Owners of STALPH discuss Brand History and New Release

Photography by UaZit

STALPH is an uncensored, eco conscious and multifaceted creative brand established and run by the unstoppable pair WaZeil & UaZit. For six years, the wife and husband duo have worked together, using their strengths and skills in harmony to develop a brand reflective of the true nature of their lives, beliefs, and high vibrational spirit. STALPH offers a wide range of handmade products and creations and more recently, they have released an ethically sourced and aesthetically pleasing FALL & WINTER apparel collection.

PATTERN had a chance to dive deep into the history of the brand and the individuals that make the brand so special. Read below to learn more about their newly released WAZAUZ collection and the trajectory of the brand itself.

Khaila King: How did your love for creation develop into a brand identity?
WaZeil &UaZit: On a mission to make products safe for humans, the earth we wander, and all of it’s precious creatures, our identity naturally came to fruition. We started practicing self-love and deciding to cut as many toxins as possible from our own physical consumption made us want to reflect those actions in our creations. Throughout the years of growing STALPH into what it has come to be, one constant reigns above all else, we are the embodiment of our brand; it’s face, heart and soul. No matter what the product might be, it is absolute that we must personally love and utilize it in our daily lives. This approach is embedded within the very foundation of our product design process, forever and always.

KK: What does your brand encompass product wise?
W&U: Being resourceful and living consciously without excess or waste. Biodegradable, compostable and recyclable are the three drivers for our brand. From the products themselves, to the labels and packaging.   Everything we sell is a detail from our own daily life. From the moment you wake, until you wind down for the night. 

Starting with our cold-processed soap in the shower.  A couple drops of Hippie Drips Face Oil to moisturize, a pump of Hippie Drips Hair Oil to tame the mane.  Dress in WAZUAZ collection, head to toe, from outerwear down to your undies.  Accessorize with our jewelry.  Prep and pack food using our hand carved cutting boards and beeswax-free reusable food wraps.  Whether you are off to wander, work, or to gather up nature’s goodies, we offer a variety of bag shapes to suit an assortment of lifestyles.  We want our customers to feel like they are at home, wherever they find themselves.  

KK:  What messages and values do you hope to convey through your brand identity?
W&U: Beyond our message of living consciously, we hope to convey the importance of being authentic.  Be who you want to be, do what fulfills your soul and say what you need to say.  Live, not exist, in a way that is true to yourself.

KK: Where did each name derive from? (WaZeil, UaZit & Stalph)
W&U: We personally chose our names with intention to reflect who we grew to be as adults, rather than accepting the names we were given at birth. We have been WaZeil (wuh·zel) and UaZit (waad·jet) since early 2015 and haven’t looked back.  Around the same time, UaZit was experimenting with an ink blowing technique that resembled something Ralph Steadman might spew out onto paper. A friend of ours looked at one of UaZit’s drawings and called it “STALPH”.  The name stuck and it was legally registered as a business in March 2015. We made the decision to capitalize the Z in both of our names for harmony.  Those Z’s also represent the buzzing about of two worker bees depicted in STALPH’s logo.

KK: Tell us about your most recent project that you’re sharing with us?
W&U: Twice a year (spring/summer and fall/winter) we release a new collection of apparel, also known as WAZUAZcollection. This offspring of STALPH is our collection of vegan, handmade and gender-fluid apparel. Slow Fashion that is from the earth and can be returned to the earth. Garments are all designed, sewn and naturally dyed in house by the two of us. We exclusively use premium, plant-based and biodegradable textiles.  As well as dye materials we often wild-harvest ourselves.  WAZUAZcollection is an experience much greater than simply picking your size from a rack of mass destruction.

With the release of each collection, we also renew our color library of naturally dyed options. Meaning, each garment is available in a variety of color ways to match your mood and wardrobe.

This collection we are sharing with you is our 2021 Fall + Winter collection.  Styles that are deep-rooted in being warm and cozy with the ability to be layered.  We are using three staple fabrics; a heavy weight sweatshirt knit, a heavy weight thermal knit and medium weight jersey knit. A combination of both Certified Organic Hemp and Certified Organic Cotton. The color library for this season has five beautiful color options to choose from.  Peach Logwood, Rust Logwood, Black Walnut, Eucalyptus and UNdyed Raw.  Additionally, a couple pieces are offered in a special dye technique called Shibori.  Each garment is made to order in a size inclusive range (XXS-5XL) and finished with a small rose quartz sewn into the hem for a little extra love.

KK: How do you source your materials?
W&U: All of the knit textiles in our 2021 Fall + Winter collection are sustainably sourced from Envirotextiles. Woman owned for over two decades, they have a long history of experience, development/design and distribution of natural fiber yarns, fabrics, finished products and non-woven textiles.  One of great things about sourcing our fabrics from them is that they offer certificates and full transparency for how they create their sustainable textiles.  From their growing practices, harvesting, processing, employment and more.  With all the damage the fashion industry causes to our planet, this aspect has been important to us. Sourcing textiles from a company that cares about their workers as much as our planet.

As for sourcing the natural materials used to create the color library for this collection, it varies. The Black Walnuts used to achieve our soft shade of brown are self-foraged.  We go out and pick those up individually at the beginning of autumn each year, preserving them for use throughout the next 12 months.  Both the Logwood and Eucalyptus are delivered to us as natural dye extracts.

KK: How has the city supported your journey as a business owner?
W&U: We have to acknowledge the impact that Amy Ward has made on our success in Indianapolis.  We owe her a great deal of thanks for the abundance of opportunities she presented to us when we were first starting out.  She paired our visual art, music, physical creations and brand as a whole with countless galleries, breweries and venues in Indianapolis.

In summer 2016, Amy was curating a group art show and invited WaZeil to showcase her paintings at Indiana City Brewery.  It was the first time we had met her and upon getting to know us, she realized we have a wide variety of creative outlets beyond painting.  When it became known to her that we have a clothing collection, an idea blossomed to physically intertwine fashion and photography.  Instead of printing photographs on enlarged canvas for an exhibit, she wanted find a way to make them 3D. The concept was to print photographs on fabric, creating wearable art for a runway show. A couple weeks later, she paired us with two local photographers, David Slivka and Tyson White.  Each photographer chose four of their works to be printed then we designed specific garments to compliment the subject matter of each image. 

Over the next few months while we were creating the garments, hiring models, hair/makeup artists, and organizing accessories/shoes, Amy was curating a massive group exhibit at Indiana Landmarks in the Rapp Family Gallery where the runway show would be featured. UaZit was also invited by Amy to performed his music live in Indianapolis for the first time. The show took place October First Friday 2016.

That show was monumental for our career. It showcased EVERY aspect of our abilities at that time. It opened so many doors for us and introduced us to a world of new people that still impact our life to this day.

KK: Do you have any piece of advice for a new business owner?
W&U: Our piece of advice is to always rank purpose over profit.  Make sure what you are doing is true to your beliefs. When times are testing you, remember the pendulum will always swing the other direction, eventually. 

KK: What has been the most rewarding experience so far as a business owner?
W&U: Being able to make a living transforming our own ideas into tangible products with our hands. In the beginning, we were simply ink on paper; nothing more, nothing less. Seeing how far this idea has expanded beyond the walls of a bedroom in central Indiana is mind boggling.  The journey of our emergence has taken us and our creations around the entirety of the United States multiple times, with many road trips to 42 states and shows scattered in-between. In 2021, we reached a new milestone…we skipped a rock all the way across the big pond; officially making our first INTERNATIONAL sale!  Knowing all the hard work it took to get to this point is the greatest reward of all.

KK: What has been the most challenging experience as a business owner?
W&U: Learning to practice patience has by far been the most difficult. We live in a “give it to me now” society where every human want is expected to be delivered in a matter of seconds at supersonic speeds. When in reality, the greatest achievements we yearn to accomplish take the most time. Some days you have to remember to let it breathe.  

2 replies on “Owners of STALPH discuss Brand History and New Release”
  1. Avatarsays: Joke Blokland

    Super couple and insanely beautiful products. And yes I am one of those customers from overseas in the Netherlands, and very satisfied with the products and service. Every customer receives personal attention and waiting for your personalized order is no problem, everything is worth the wait. Keep it up and success is assured.
    Kind regards from Joke Blokland <3

  2. Avatarsays: James

    Dope line love the idea and the way your doing things. Thanks for putting my sister in your shoot and giving her the opportunity to be apart of what your doing. Keep it going boss up n keep breaking down walls

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