Monthly Archives: March 2014

Sew 80 – Valuing natural treasure

Today’s textured pink silk two-piece suit has a simple frill added to enhance its plain neckline, after the skirt bottom was recast as the collar.

Reusing material from nature has been a theme today. My brother’s friend Marcus and I spent the morning at Gingin north of Perth working out a future for the mountain of recycled jarrah timber my brother Paul accumulated over years as a builder.

I guess that’s the problem with upcycling. It is one thing to have an intention to reuse natural resources – but they need to be in the right place in the right hands at the right time to be useful. Otherwise they become a burden. Continue reading →

Sew 79 – Extended hemline

This blue and black outfit was created from a too-short skirt extended by adding bands of black and blue fabric teamed with an op-shop-found silk shirt.

I was in upmarket Perth suburb Claremont shopping for a SodaStream for my friend Pat yesterday and spotted the Jigsaw shop window of blue and black garments equivalent to today’s upcycled outfit.

In the first-world consumer society, we have been conditioned to buy new and buy often but there are alternatives when we turn our minds and energy towards clothes swapping, second-hand vintage or resewing.

Insights into our buying habits were analysed by Cherry Healey in Secrets Of The Sales which aired on ABC2 last night. Healey looked at the retail world from both sides of the counter to discover the tricks of the sales and reveal ways of becoming savvier sale shoppers. Continue reading →

Sew 78 – Eco-dyed urchin wear

This was an apricot-coloured raw silk suit upcycled with eco-dye from purple carrots to become what is now called Urchin Wear.

Eco-dye is an easy and affordable way to refresh dull garments. Animal fibres such as silk and wool absorb colour more readily than plant fibres such as cotton and linen.

Purple carrots date back thousands of years according to the World Carrot Museum and are loaded with beneficial antioxidants and nutrients when consumed as food. Continue reading →

Sew 77 – Twin-set, no pearls

This hand-knitted coral pink wool twin-set is an op shop find which I’ve upcycled and wear with a contrasting jumper-skirt.

There was a time when people looked down their noses at home-made clothing. That’s all changed now that cheap store-bought stuff is a dime a dozen and one-off hand-made originals are being re-appreciated.

Knitting and crocheting has been rediscovered as a craft of skill, creativity and relaxation. What fun to come across Woollylatte’s, an exclusive knitting boutique and coffee house just around the corner from where I’m staying with my friends Pat and Bruce at Wembley in Perth. Continue reading →

Sew 76 – Creative reuse

A jumper-skirt is teamed with an upcycled jacket that has its hemline recast as a collar to become Sew it Again #76 of 365.

Creative resewing of existing clothing is one of several ways eco-conscious consumers can be part of the sustainable fashion movement which has strengthened after the Rana Plaza fire in Bangladesh raised awareness of the deathly high cost of cheap clothing choices.

If you want to rethink the way you dress, there are four options (summarised below) outlined by Dominica Lim in a Verily Magazine article “What kind of eco-fashionista are you?”

THE CREATIVE: Rally girlfriends for a clothing swap party or engage in fun DIY projects to usher in new style statements.

THE INVESTOR: Think quality over quantity and price per wear. Before you buy ask yourself, will I wear this more than 10 times? Will I be able to wear this next season? Why am I buying this? No matter how fast fashion is, a staple piece that makes you feel your best self is absolutely timeless. Continue reading →

Sew 75 – Colour frills

A plain, serviceable top and skirt can be revived by adding silk frills – five rows to the skirt and one to secure the altered neckline of the top.

I’m excited today to have the opportunity to attend a talk by Western Australia’s most famous botanic artist Philippa Nikulinsky who has dedicated 50 years to her craft as an illustrator of natural history specialising in plants from harsh environments. The colour and attention to detail in her work is superb.

Philippa’s story began back in the Kalgoorlie goldfields where she was born and continued through a wonderful partnership with her husband Alex and their creative children and grandchildren, some of whom I had the pleasure to meet yesterday.

Hearing other people tell their story helps crystallise your own – particularly when there are shared values of integrity, creativity, autonomy and purpose involved. Continue reading →

Sew 74 – Adding a button fix

This embroidered silk wrap-around op shop find had a belt-tie waist which I upcycled by adding two buttons/buttonholes to secure the garment more definitively.

Sometimes we need to see things done before we can conceive of different ways of working and wearing – which is why I’m demonstrating upcycling ideas every day with this Sew it Again campaign.

Being in Western Australia for the next couple of weeks, I was lucky to be inspired by a whole bunch of creativity in the annual Sculptures by the Sea at Cottesloe Beach. Several of the textile creations which took my eye are photographed below. Continue reading →

Sew 73 – Untangling a shawl

It was only after I took this op-shop find home that I identified it as a square shape adapted as a shawl by folding on the diagonal, buttoned at front and armholes hidden in the layer below.

I’m posting from Western Australia at the moment – having prepared a few weeks’ worth of upcycling ahead of time. My purpose in being here is to finalise my youngest brother Paul’s estate, after he died in an excavator accident a year ago. He’s left a few mysteries for me to solve – and one that remains outstanding is a single key attached to his Mercedes vehicle key which none of his friends know to what it belongs. We may never know. Life’s like that – uncertain, mysterious and ephemeral. Continue reading →

Sew 72 – Upending banana drama

These black t-shirts are 10-years old and the screen-printing is as good as the day it was created for the Save the Aussie Banana awareness campaign I ran with the Australian industry.

Australia is the only Western country with a commercial banana industry and is relatively free of the world’s worst pests and diseases. It was on these grounds that Tully banana grower Len Collins led the industry campaign against Philippines banana imports.

We used creative ways to raise public awareness via a big banana giveaway at Sydney’s Royal Easter Show and a Cowboys’ rugby league home game in Townsville – see photo below right with a Cowboys’ fan, Benny Banana and Jane Milburn, taken by my friend Chrissy Maguire in 2004.

After an extended import risk analysis by Australian authorities, the quarantine bar was set high to prevent disease incursions (such as black sigatoka, moko, bunchy top, freckle) and imports have not proceeded on this basis.

That was ages ago and now I’ve moved on to an ecological health campaign of my own making, demonstrating upcycling and resewing existing natural fibre clothing for pleasure, reward and sustainability. Continue reading →

Sew 71 – Have creative courage

Today’s upcycle adds an extra row of buttons to create room in a double-breasted silk jacket and turns a cardigan into a skirt and scarf.

These garments may not be perfect couture but they’re wearable and workable. And as the quote from @Wisdomalive on Twitter said today: Imperfection is an essential ingredient in the pursuit of excellence.

This aligns with a New Scientist article (March 8) by Michael Bond about The Secrets of Success, which include adopting a growth mindset – the belief that abilities can be developed through dedication and practice and aren’t fixed by biology. Continue reading →