Category Archives: repurpose

Sew 167 – Skirt with upcycle history

This history skirt may have a few minor imperfections but there is none other exactly like it in the world. Created by its owner Fay, it is based on an original concept developed by Jane Milburn as a way of reusing cast-off clothing and waste textiles to make garments with stories to tell about where they came from.

This skirt was made with skills and energy invested Fay at a Biloela Arts Council upcycling workshop she organised in central Queensland which saw me (Jane) fly-in and fly-out this past weekend with support from a Regional Arts Developing Fund grant.

How exciting to be reusing materials that would otherwise languish in cupboards or eventually be dumped to create something unique and wearable that can be endlessly patched, mended or adapted further – adding even more character to the story of how it came to be. We individual unfashionistas interested in sustainable, ethical eco-clothing are bringing on the REfashion Revolution turning waste and reject clothing into something we wear with pride. Continue reading →

Sew 166 – Shirts refashioned into dress

It was great to engage with such a productive and enthusiastic group of women at the Biloela history skirt workshop. We were fortunate to have been able to invest two days of time and energy in mindfully using imagination and skills to refashion unworn clothing to suit ourselves.

The concept of reusing existing clothing has appeal to people who dislike waste and are prepared to be resourceful and creative in how they dress. It requires right-brain engagement and an overhaul of our previous way of thinking about fashion and textiles.

I see it as a significant milestone in the refashion revolution that this workshop was made possible by the Regional Arts Development Fund (RADF), which is a partnership between Queensland Government’s Arts Queensland and Banana Shire Council to support local arts and culture. Continue reading →

Sew 164 – Rice-cum-library bag

We’re cutting down on rice consumption in our household and only occasionally buy a 10kg bag. Instead of throwing out the tough plastic bag, I recognised its potential as a bespoke library bag.

I’ve rediscovered the library as a great source of inspiration. We can borrow for a month then extend for a month (if no one else has placed a hold). That’s plenty of time to absorb any book’s offerings I reckon. And the Brisbane City Council library e-catalogue is such that you order on-line and be emailed when the book’s ready for pickup at your local. Fabulous service #teambne. I’ll be using my new library bag to return my books this morning before flying to Biloela this afternoon for our weekend History Skirt workshop and the regional launch for our homegrown #REfashion Revolution. Continue reading →

Sew 163 – Pinny from upcycled jeans

Great to enable undomestic goddesses to join the refashioning revolution today with Danielle Crismani aka Digella, Sally Gardner, Alison Triffett and friends of #bakedrelief recreating aprons from reject jeans at a workshop in the Textile Beat studio.

As i introduce others to upcycling, I’m learning more about the stumbling blocks to sewing, how people missed out on learning these life skills, and why others were turned off by previous experience or simply don’t have access to a sewing machine.

Sewing is a reasonably straight-forward process but you need to problem solve because things never go smoothly – particularly when you are working with random, irregular and different resources such as reject clothing and fabric offcuts. Ingenuity, persistence and creative solutions are the order of the day. But it is fun, and you can magic something useful out of not much – as these great ladies did today making aprons from jeans and offcuts. Continue reading →

Sew 160 – Domestic goddess ex-jeans

This denim apron idea came via Danielle Crismani aka Digella and Sally Gardner from #Baked Relief after they visited Toowoomba Quilters Club and posted a photo on Facebook.

We’re having an apron workshop later this week so Sew 160 is a test-drive of what’s possible when you refashion denim shorts (left over from Heather’s jeans project yesterday).

I cut out the zip (it will be used in a future project) and trimmed the bottom edge. The back pockets were already embellished and make a pretty feature on the front of the apron. From my material stash (friend-donated offcuts), I found a piece of fabric which had a complementary pattern and colour. I cut one 5cm wide strip (selvage to selvage), sewed right sides together, then turned right-side out, and it becomes a tie belt for the apron. I cut another 2cm wide strip and Heather used this to neaten the bottom edge of the apron. Continue reading →

Sew 159 – Op-shop-chop chic

I’m swimming against the tide this year with the Sew it Again project by demonstrating how we can reduce consumption of clothing and reuse and reshape that which already exists rather than buying new.

It is therefore affirming to find people who get what it’s about – such as friend and colleague Heather Grant-Campbell who spent the morning sewing in the Textile Beat studio after we caught up recently at the Green Heart Fair.

Refashioning waste and reject clothing into something you can wear is mindful, creative, thrilling, satisfying, rewarding, sustainable and enlightening. My methods of chopping up garments and roughly stitching back together again are different to traditional tailor/seamstress techniques. I look for unconventional, quick and simple solutions – and Heather and I joked about how “Mrs Davis” her high-school sewing teacher would not have approved! But we got results for Heather – turning 2x$2 jeans into a wrap skirt – and getting her inspired to create more at home when time allows. Continue reading →

Sew 158 – Stretch the imagination

Every day we eat and we dress. We know fresh, varied, nutritious meals enable us to survive and thrive as human beings but the recent series The Men Who Made Us Fat unmasked the shocking truth about our consumption habits. We are over fed while under nourished. This British documentary by Jacques Peretti exposes how corporations devise tactics to sell us more and more unhealthy addictive processed food. Two-thirds of us are overweight and at risk of chronic diseases. This downward spiral of socially irresponsible businesses exploiting human weaknesses and addictions for commercial gain is disturbing.

In the same way our food intake is manipulated by commercial interests, our clothing wants are too. We allow ourselves to be victims of fashion trends, constantly feeling the need to have the latest greatest so we keep up with the Jones and look sharp. Yet we often feel dissatisfied and need to shop for more.

The extent of clothing waste in the name of fashion is astounding, and my Sew it Again project is a simple effort to demonstrate what we can do as individuals to reuse existing natural fibre clothing. Used clothing is not waste – it is resource that can be harvested and reused in imaginative and creative ways when you have the skills and allow time and space to do so. Continue reading →

Sew 157 – Upcycled jumper poncho

The fabric of my career includes earlier work with the Rural Press Club network which is a great forum to discuss how farming and agriculture feeds into the health of society.

While the specific topic of this morning’s RPC breakfast at Tattersalls was rural health services, I loved catching up with Margie Milgate about her ideas around bush paleo and paleo agriculture – doubly so after watching The Men Who Made Us Fat on ABC TV last night.

We can learn a lot by reflecting on where we’ve come from, how things used to work and complementing modern-day practices with practical old-fashioned solutions – because almost everything old seems to eventually become new again. Continue reading →

Sew 156 – On World Environment Day

On average Australians throw away around 21 million tonnes of waste per year, according to the Australian Government’s Living Greener initiative. This figure includes waste from our homes and gardens as well as waste generated from building and renovating our homes.

Since the population of Australia is 22 million, we’re each contributing nearly one tonne (that’s 1000 kg) of waste every single year. This is three kgs of waste each, every day, every year ongoing.

Steps to reduce waste are simple actions we each undertake to minimise our footprint on the planet – today as World Environment Day and every other day after that. Continue reading →

Sew 154 – Three Ts reworked

Leadership is an action not a position. This favourite quote is attributed to US television executive Donald H. McGannon who believed in socially responsible leadership through actions – such as dropping cigarette advertising because it was the right thing to do.

I’ve adopted this quote as my own following socially responsible leadership study last year with the Australian Rural Leadership Foundation and James Cook University, which led to my upcycling social enterprise Textile Beat and this Sew it Again campaign.

On a much bigger scale and operating since 2007, Redress is a Hong-Kong based non-government organisation led by Christina Dean working to promote environmental sustainability in the fashion industry by reducing textile waste, pollution, water and energy consumption. Continue reading →