Seeing Indian women in colourful saree and punjabi are joyous sights I remember well from our Australian Rural Leadership Program trip to India in 2009 and of course many of us brought one or two of the traditional garments home. I purchased two silk punjabi kits at a craft market in Hyderabad, made them up when I got home and wore them on appropriate occasions. I have admiration for the way Indian women make wearing the scarf so easy whereas I found it needed constant adjustment. To make one of my outfits easier to wear, I refashioned it as Sew 178 and sewed the scarf to the neckline so it is attached in place. I wore it out and about in KL today with my aunt Kate McLachlan as we enjoyed seeing the full range of textile construction techniques and national costumes on display at Malaysia’s fantastic National Textile Museum, see photos below. 

The complexity of textile creation and printing, and the component chemicals used in processing is a reminder of why we should be valuing textiles for what they are and upcycling them, rather than dumping them just because their current form and style doesn’t work. I’m not suggesting hacking up beautiful garments such as these below, just those reject garments that are gathering dust or in danger of become landfill.  After the museum we detoured (hence the lateness of this daily post) for a fish pedicure – an initially disturbing but ultimately satisfying experience we highly recommend! I upcycled my Punjabi as Sew 178 before leaving Brisbane and it worked well. I cut off the sleeves, took in the sideseams and then hemmed the armholes. I then folded the scarf in half lengthwise, marked the middle with a pin and then pinned that to the centre front. I then sewed the scarf to the neck of the dress, just leaving a small portion unstitched at the back (this proved not to be necessary). The scarf naturally drapes at the back, and I then overlapped it and bring a corner of each end to the front where it is secured with a knot. You can see in the photo of me below, with Karim our ARLF program leader, how the scarf used to be more wayward than it is in the photos above.