A bit of lateral thinking can go a long way. Meredith brought this gorgeous embellished red wool skirt to our Biloela workshop wondering what she could do to morph a cast-off into something she was more likely to wear.

After turning it upside down, around and about for a few minutes, we came up with the idea of turning it into a winter cape. The skirt was comprised of panels, and Meredith unpicked most of two seams that lined up with her arms. She then used blanket stitch and wool thread to secure and define these openings as armholes.  The zip became the collar when half-unzipped and with the edges secured by a couple of random vintage buttons. The zip and fastenings remain in place as collar features – and a signpost to the fact this is a refashioned creation. To finish off the neckline, Meredith sewed a piece of elastic inside the back of the ‘collar’ so it sits up neatly at the rear. Clever! 

This is a simple, imaginative solution to revive an unwanted skirt that was surplus to requirements. We thrifty types hoard natural fibre garments because of their intrinsic value but basically they’re often then wasted in the wardrobe. This project is evidence of how you can apply right-brain thinking, creative problem-solving, mindful hand-craft to produce an original refashion that reduces waste. Meredith had fun doing it – and I enjoyed enabling her onto the refashion way. The Biloela stockpile is nearly at an end – was great while it lasted!