Category Archives: refashion

Sew 231 – Individual style based on shape

Whether we like it or not, we are judged by how we look and what we wear. That’s often the reason people shop for new clothes because they want to look right, wearing pieces specifically designed to be together.

But as image consultant Rita Noon says, fashion companies don’t design clothing ranges with you specifically in mind. Fashion looks great on models but we are all different – and don’t have to be slaves to what is on-trend and in-store this season.

My op-shopping hobby enables fun and affordable experimentation with colours, shapes and textures. Playing with individual style is what I’ve done for years and I’m putting it out there with Sew it Again 2014. Continue reading →

Sew 228 – Valuing history and integrity

A quick photo and post today, since we spent a lovely day in Toowoomba visiting beautiful Gabbinbar Homestead and tasting menus at The Angel Cafe as our son Casey and fiancee Jenna finalise details for their wedding next year.

Gabbinbar is a splendid estate that once was the summer resort for Queensland Governors and is now a wedding and function venue which offers elegant, spacious and authentic buildings and gardens for what will be a special day for the Milburn and Moir families in May next year.

It was great to see original features, including sketches of The Newest Fashions in 1828, see image below, with Casey and Jenna on the left.

Sew 228 values the past-effort that went into this hand-knit wool vest that was languishing in an op shop and unlikely to be worn as it was. I could see its potential to become a skirt by turning upside down and filling the ‘gaps’ with fabric from an unworn silk/wool blazer also picked up at op shop. I un-stitched the vest at the shoulders then pinned and cut pieces from the bottom of the blazer to fill in the neck and arm openings – aligning the bottom of the jacket with the new bottom of the knit (once the shoulder seam). I stitched these pieces in place with two rows of zigzag, and used hat elastic to secure the skirt waistline. What was left of the blazer works as a jacket with irregular hemline (zigzagged to prevent fraying), after I removed the shoulder pads and added another button to secure it off-centre at the front. I was happy with this creative result from rejects, which are a great colour match but with different texture and fabric.

Sew 227 – Refashioning op-shop wool

Natural resources are finite and it is great to see Sweden announcing that it has created technology to recycle all materials that contain cellulose, as reported in The Guardian recently.

Apparently old cotton clothes are brought into a factory where they are shredded and mulched into porridge-like goop from which the non-recyclable pieces like zips and buttons are removed. The goop is then further broken down before being turned into a fibre substance which become threads and then rayon-like fabric. Reconstituted fabric is a mechanical way to reuse the mountain of waste clothing generated by fast fashion.

A creative way of reusing natural fibres is by individual refashion – cutting and resewing existing clothing to suit your own needs. This is what I’m doing every day this year with Sew it Again and Sew 227 is a refashion of wool garments from various op shop excursions. Continue reading →

Sew 224 – Opshopchop coat of colour

“Uh oh, this is not going quite as planned” … is a frequent thought when you take scissors to garments. Expect the unexpected, let it lead you to creative original solutions and don’t give up until you have a wearable result.

Upcycling is a creative discipline that requires a combination of time, skills, confidence and desire to produce something unique from rejects.

Natural fibres now make up only one-third of modern clothing according to the FAO – the rest are made from synthetics which are mostly pure petroleum. Continue reading →

Sew 221 – Coming full circle

Our journeys through life are all different, yet most are trying our best at being and doing, playing and working at the level of consciousness on which we’re operating. We look after hearth and home, support our family and friends, and reach out to career networks and opportunities.

This year I’ve come full circle. Like a homing pigeon – I’ve been out there and now I’m coming back to base. I’m applying everything I’ve learned through various career roles and professional development opportunities to create a homespun campaign to shift our thinking about what we wear. Continue reading →

Sew 218 – Creativity is taking risks

In the 21st century, society needs people who think creatively because as they step into life’s problems they are more able to find creative ways of dealing with them.

That’s a paraphrase of the Life at 9 life journey series on television last night, which was about creativity. It seems creativity is a predictor of success in every domain of life because it is problem-solving, divergent thinking of possible solutions when presented with a difficult issue.

As we grow up, we are often obliged to subvert our creativity, to conform and follow rules and the experts in this program suggested that our current education system’s emphasis on performance and getting the ‘right answer’ is squashing creative development. Continue reading →

Sew 214 – T-shirts reworked

Hacktivism strikes me as a great term to describe the art of hacking into reject and cast-off clothing that is no longer loved, at the same time as making a statement about waste and exploitation that arises from contemporary fashion consumption habits. (That was until I googled it and found it’s more readily aligned with computer hacking.)

Anyway, this method of upcycling reflects the #scavengerstyle fashion political statement made by upcycler Karen Ellis whose 24/7 practice is wearing garments salvaged from the point of landfill in Victoria, Australia for the past five years.

Karen brought my attention to Otto von Busch and his >self_passage< research project that ‘explores how fashion can be used for empowerment, self-development and personal growth instead of being a phenomenon of top-down decrees and collective anxiety’. Continue reading →

Sew 208 – Easy when you see how

Interesting to see a Vinnies op-shop scarf included in the fashion pages of our local newspaper The Courier-Mail yesterday. St Vincent de Paul was Just casually listed along with the other fashion suppliers featured in the photos.

Does this suggest op-shops are going mainstream? Advertising enables publishing and commerce makes the world go around, so can’t get too excited that op-shops and upcycled clothing have more than a niche future.

Unlike the established processes for recycling glass, metal and plastic, we don’t do much with textiles beyond donating them to op shops. That’s why I am spending this year on a counter-culture Sew it Again project to demonstrate other uses for reject clothing and fabrics – building a 365-page archive of options for reuse. Continue reading →

Sew 201 – Men’s dash of splash

A few men – including my sons – have been asking whether I’m upcycling men’s clothing. I’ve mended men’s clothing, but here’s the first creative effort.

This upcycle is a resew of two men’s shirts that were the same brand and size, so the button fronts match exactly. I’d fabric-painted the white shirt (which had a stain) many years ago when the children were little and we did t-shirt painting workshops with friends. I don’t think it was ever worn, partly because it just looked like a painted shirt. I’d kept it as a memory and the cotton is still crisp. Continue reading →

Sew 197 – Wool jumpers become coat

Sew it Again is a social-change project to shift thinking about the way we consume clothing and textiles. The project demonstrates creative ways to upcycle existing clothing and empowers others to tap into their ‘greenest’ clothing of all. It engages old-fashioned sewing skills, encourages a culture of thrift, and shows heart-felt concern for where mindless consumption of fast fashion is leading.

Creative entrepreneur Dr Cathryn Lloyd from Maverick Minds says today’s business is no longer about doing business as usual. “Complexity and uncertainty reflect the world as it is today. All businesses require creative entrepreneurial thinking and behaviour. The 21st century belongs to those who can bring their creative potential and leadership skills to their personal and professional lives.” Continue reading →