Self-reliance is a useful characteristic in life that springs from creativity, versatility, intuition, access to raw materials, knowledge and skills.

In the office, it means you can nut out a pragmatic solution for a tricky problem. In the kitchen, it means you can pull together a feed without necessarily having all ingredients listed in a recipe. And in the clothing department, it means you can bring together disparate items and adapt them to suit yourself.

Refashioning, restyling and mending clothing using simple sewing skills means you can be self-reliant, individual and resourceful in the way you dress. 

There’s an oversupply of clothing in the world due to global supply chains that churn out fashion faster and cheaper than ever before in history. But is this clothing ethically and sustainably produced? Is it toxic? Does it suit our shape? Is it in our best colour? Will it last more than one season? Is it made from petroleum or natural fibres?

By reusing existing clothing – your own and others from recycling outlets – you become part of the Refashion Revolution which is changing the way we think about our wardrobes. You are not reliant on what you can buy new today. You can refashion clothing you already own, or harvest reject and waste garments from op shops and magic them into a original, bespoke garment that is unique in the world. Remade by you, and for you. Judging by the enthusiastic response to UTS Sydney fashion lecturer Kirsten Lee’s recent Refashion It! workshop, see photos below, the best of the Refashion Revolution is yet to come.

Sew 161 was a chocolate brown silk trouser suit which I refashioned by changing the trousers into a skirt. I cut the legs off just below the front zip, then chopped and resewed the fabric offcuts back together as a straight skirt. The jacket remained as it was, and the suit then teamed with an op-shop purple and white crisp cotton shirt.