Category Archives: repurpose

Sew 182 – Merino lives on

I’m half-way through the Sew it Again project – and celebrated by flying into the Gold Coast this morning with the sun rising on a beautiful clear sky day – and a bush walk up Mt Coot-tha with daughter Lily where the clear skies meant we could see across Moreton Bay.

I loved visiting the colourful, cultural melting pot that is Kuala Lumpur to catch up with my brother Tony Capon and his family, and my aunt Kate McLachlan from New Zealand, but city high-rise living in a tropical metropolis is very different to our leafy-green Queenslander lifestyle in inner-suburban Brisbane where we live close to nature. Continue reading →

Sew 180 – Upside-down trouser skirt

Bev brought a bundle of brown garments to the Biloela workshop that she was no longer wearing, including a pair of trousers. This outfit was created by flipping the trousers upside down and turning them into an elastic waist skirt, with the zip remaining in place to act as a front-slit feature.

We estimated how long Bev wanted the finished skirt to be, then cut off the bottom part of the legs accordingly. We then filleted the inside leg seams and instead of them being joined front to back (as when trousers) they are then joined front to front (and back to back) to form the skirt. It is just a matter of pinning then sewing the seams so they blend into the existing seam (which was top of trousers). The angle on the front seam was such that we did not need to add an insert panel. Continue reading →

Sew 177 – History in the making

Here’s the lovely and productive Bev in the History Skirt she made at our Biloela REfashion workshop which is still delivering dividends, including #upcycle number 177 of 365 in the Sew it Again year.

Although I have a few more days left to enjoy in Kuala Lumpur, I’m already planning for my next workshop Creative Chop and Change on July 12 which is being hosted by the Queensland branch of the Australian Textile Artists and Surface Designers Association – you can book here if you are interested in being mindfully creative with rejects from your wardrobe. Continue reading →

Sew 175 – Skinny jeans wrap skirt

It was very affirming to see Biloela upcycler Kerrie leap into her REfashion projects with confidence, enthusiasm, creativitity and commitment to getting results that worked for her lifestyle and existing local resources.

There’s been some interesting discussion on Facebook after my friend Gen Robey shared a photo of waste clothing at Reedy Creek refuse station at the Gold Coast, which prompted reflection on why charitable recyclers are swamped with cast-offs every day and end up dumping them. The reasons I put forward are these:

1. Non-transparent global supply chains mean you can buy new so cheaply (ask Q who’s exploited in process and remember Rana Plaza)

2. Many people have lost simple sewing skills to mend and alter – can’t replace a button or cut off wayward (once-on-trend) feature to revive garment for second life. Continue reading →

Sew 174 – Jumpers become history skirt

The recent Textile Beat history skirt workshop at Biloela was ‘sew’ productive it is still providing a store of daily upcycles for me to post while I visit my brother Professor Anthony (Tony) Capon in Malaysia.

Tony is based in KL as Director of the International Institute for Global Health at United Nations University and it is always inspiring to have the opportunity to talk about big issues facing the world around our shared interest in disease prevention, ecological health and food production.

Obesity is a growing global epidemic and was the focus of a recent opinion piece Tony wrote for the New Straits Times which has since opened new dialogue about obesity as the ‘mother of all diseases’. Tony and I also enjoyed visiting Malaysia’s League of Extraordinary Women exhibition which features global humanitarian Dr Jemilah Mahmood, see photo below. Continue reading →

Sew 173 – History skirt with local touch

When in Malaysia, do as the Malaysian people do. Dressing for local conditions is practical and respectful. I don’t always wear a head scarf here, but it is certainly good to pack a few so one can blend into the local streetscape. I made this blue cotton scarf from a five-metre length I picked up at a Warwick op shop a while back. It had been in someone’s fabric stash then discarded before they did anything with it. It was lovely light loose-weave cotton which is quite hard to come by, so naturally I snapped it up and stored until I had a use for it. It was just a matter of cutting a length about 1.75m long, folding over lengthwise then sewing together while leaving a gap of about 8cm so it can be turned inside out to become a scarf. Good for sun protection, mopping a perspiring brow, and to dress as do many locals with the hair covered. Continue reading →

Sew 172 – It’s Fashion Week in KL

It is amazing to be transported via AirAsia from the Gold Coast to Kuala Lumpur in less than one day – and now be posting from Bukit Bintang.

People here are so helpful and it is great to catch up with family – my brother Professor Tony Capon, Wendy and boys Will and Hugh.

It is exciting to find I will be able to catch the last day of Kuala Lumpur Fashion Week at Pavilion tomorrow! That will an enlightening experience, as is the shopping immersion which KL offers with all the high fashion brands seemingly on every corner. Such a contrast to the way I live and shop in Brisbane! Continue reading →

Sew 171 – Tropical shirt becomes apron

This apron is refashioned from a children’s shirt, with second-button torn on an otherwise useful cotton garment.

The tropical print is getting me into a packing mood for a trip to Malaysia tomorrow – sorting summer gear and scarves. And I’m pleased to still have at least five guest upcycles by Gwen, Bev, Audrey, Kerrie and Meredith from the productive Biloela workshop to post while I’m in KL!

Today’s tropical shirt was part of a ‘fill-a-bag for $2’ batch of natural fibre rejects I recently gathered from my favourite Windsor Road Baptist Church Thrift Shop and Eternity Boutique. I am trying to keep out of op shops, but like my upcycling colleague and fellow frugal-refashionista Karen Ellis of #scavengerstyle in Victoria I’m always on the lookout to rescue useful stuff that’s going to waste. Continue reading →

Sew 169 – Gorgeous zero-waste skirt

At a global level people are beginning to question the way we dress, where clothing comes from, and whether it is made with ethical and sustainable processes.

As there is rising interest in home cooking and food growing for health and wellbeing, there is a pressing need to rethink our approach to textiles and fashion. Fast food and fast fashion are convenient – but not necessarily sustainable or good for us and our planet.

My model for a social and environmental shift includes empowering individuals to reimagine and recreate their own wardrobe collection by creatively chopping and changing existing clothing to suit themselves.

Instead of global generic bland brand dressing, this shift involves local, individual unfashionistas branding themselves through sustainable, ethical eco-clothing as part of a REfashion Revolution turning waste and reject clothing into something to wear with pride. Continue reading →

Sew 168 – Creative metamorphosis

To draw an analogy from nature, when you apply right-brained creative thinking to traditional sewing skills it is like undergoing metamorphosis. You can transform yourself and mediocre garments into something bespoke.

What I most enjoyed about the Biloela upcycling workshop was enabling willing and able women to make a chop of faith and change their garments – and in some ways themselves – forever more.

It is not particularly hard or risky when you use reject and unworn clothing that isn’t working for you any more as it was anyway. And once your creative right-brain switches on to the potential of upcycling, there’s no end to what you can do when you invest time and energy in a mindfully creative way. Continue reading →