A Lil' About Tumbler & Tipsy
...a biography
Tumbler & Tipsy is the new model of chic fashion in the modern world: a green fashion label that produces hand-made, one-of-a-kind items from reconstructed vintage fabrics and clothing. With one eye towards the environment and the economy, a finger on the pulse of the current industry, and a playful sense of humor, Tumbler & Tipsy looks to be the forerunning innovator of today's fashion scene.
The eco fashion label was founded in 2009 by Michael Kuluva, an unlikely fashion entrepreneur who got his start as a professional figure skater. Born in Montana and raised in Los Angeles, Kuluva immediately took to the sport at a young age after his first visit to an ice skating rink with his parents. Lessons followed, as did a ten year stint as an amateur figure skater, becoming a Junior Olympian in 1998. He joined the U.S. Figure Skating Team in 2001 and skated professionally for seven years following that, appearing in over 20 touring productions around the world, including a part as Dash in the Disney On Ice show of The Incredibles. No stranger to media attention and glamour, Kuluva appeared on The Today Show, Good Morning America, French Television, Univision and Regis and Kelly Live, as well as making an appearance in the MGM/Sony "Cutting Edge 2: Going for the Gold" motion picture.
Along the way, however, Michael had maintained a passion for the creativity of fashion. From the beginning, he'd worked with designers on his skating costumes. He knitted scarves for friends. He spent all his extra money on clothes and was continually fascinated by the ever-changing fashion world. Michael Kuluva owns a large designer collection that he has collected from all over the world while he was traveling with international figure skating tours, "I collect clothes as they are pieces of art in my eyes!" Kuluva states. So, in 2008, he hung up his skates and took up thread and a sewing needle, making a professional transition that might have seemed strange to some, but for Kuluva was "completely natural."
His first official foray into the fashion world was nothing short of a minor innovation: the "Tipsy Tie." Comprised of simply a choice piece of fabric hung on a luxurious chain, the Tipsy Tie has gone on to become Tumbler & Tipsy's signature item, as well as their best-seller so far. Explains Michael, "For me, ties were always hard to wear. I never could tie them, I just wanted to put one on every day." Unlike an ordinary tie, you can simply hang a Tipsy Tie around your neck, and mix-and-match fabrics as you see fit. To Kuluva, it was a revelation: "It's much better than having that one plain tie that I have to screw around with, take it off, put it on and loosen it. This is just much more comfortable." The Tipsy Tie has gone on to be featured on MTV, Perez Hilton, Curve Magazine, VH1 and many other mainstream publications.
Kuluva would next look to apply that same aesthetic, casual yet classy, comfortable yet fashionable, dressy and playful, to luxury reconstructed clothing. He was aware of other reconstructed clothing companies on the market, but according to him, "none of the current designers were really doing what I was looking for. I like the classy style that you can dress up to a distinctive dinner, dress down, mix with other Tumbler & Tipsy products, and not be restricted to one style."
His final inspirations for the concept of the label came through a chance discovery from his miniature English Bulldog Cooper Kuluva and of an old English poem concerning the age-old practice of whiskey consumption. Appropriately, today Michael can't quite remember the name of the poem or where he found it, but from it emerged his new company's name, as well as their playful slogan: "Too many tumblers of whiskey might make you a bit tipsy!" British colloquialisms and slightly drunken sensibilities from a time now long gone have become an essential part of the playful sense of humor Kuluva brings to all his products.
Constructing Tumbler & Tipsy's distinctive line of clothing from scratch has required, for Kuluva, a completely hands-on approach to which he remains committed. Michael first started with sourcing his materials from around the world and specialized vendors that make the world's finest products. His criteria is extremely strict for the label, "I never buy two of the same item for inspiration, so you'll never see the exact same garment twice in my collections." Kuluva then continues with his inspirations that are followed by a series of stitching, cutting and assembling these garments. The final product of Kuluva's designs, a piece of art.
Tumbler and Tipsy is distinctive but never repetitive, one that looks towards the future with a heavy debt to the past and is ecologically recycled. Tumbler & Tipsy is split into two sections "Tumbler Men" and "Tipsy Women" which offers men and women's clothing in small, medium and large sizes, including vests, shirts, blouses and blazers, each emblazoned with the gothic style T & T logo and the occasional slogan. Each item is both comfortable and versatile, ready to wear for a casual night out or a flashy fashion event.
In the Spring/Summer Collection of 2010, Tumbler and Tipsy made history by debuting a full environmentally friendly unisex collection that is "Ready to Wear". The Tumbler and Tipsy label has been featured interntionally in over 100 publications in it's first debut collections and this unique fashion label is still growing fast upon the masses worldwide. For the future, Kuluva is wary of dramatic expansion, preferring an exclusive distribution to keep the clothing firmly within his hands-on approach. However, he's in this now for the long run: "As long as there are materials I can work with, I can't see myself stopping."
Environmentally friendly, stylish and comfortable, Tumbler & Tipsy is the leading way of the modern "Ready to Wear" fashion industry.
