I came across Gary Harvey when I was looking for upcycled clothing ideas on pinterest. He is a designer that uses unwanted clothing to create extravagant and gorgeous dresses.
He is trying to challenge the notion of throwaway fashion and get people to consider the cost of the garment they are buying. Not just the monetary value but the cost of production, the chemicals, the people that make the clothes. Like me, he thinks that it is very wasteful of us to not use our clothing to their full potential. The dress below is made of old pairs of Levi's jeans, these jeans were made to last but because they are now deemed a fashion item they are being thrown away as if they were just a £10 pair from Primark. If something is made to last then we should bleed it dry, wear your clothes until they are falling apart or at least upcycle or recycle them so that the materials are not wasted.
This dress was made using 26 baseball jackets, an item originally intended to be suitable for sports use and therefore hard wearing. Now that people are wearing them for fashion purposes they are being discarded at the end of seasons instead of cherished and worn.
Just because you are upcycling an item of clothing it doesn't mean the new product needs to be clothing too. I have taken this gorgeous skirt and turned it into a pair of even more gorgeous cushions. All the raw materials were there, including fastenings because I was able to re-use the zip of the skirt and use the vent for an over-lap cushion.
From this:
To these:
I love my cushions! I used some embroidered fabric I'd bought ages ago to make them more bling. I think they look fab!
Dubbed the 'Queen of upcycling' Orsola De Castro, founder of the labels From Somewhere and Reclaim to wear, is working to encourage people to turn to upcycling and move away from fast fashion. She mainly works with off cuts from factories that would normally be thrown away and any garments deemed unfit for sale. She believes that with the right imagination and an open mind even the most ugly scrap can be made into something beautiful.
Orsola De Castro is also the founder of Estethica, an initiative of the British Fashion Council, that showcases and supports eco/green designers at London Fashion Week.
Most of us only consider the amount of waste generated post-production and I think it is wonderful that she is working to minimise waste before the garments are even sewn. If there were people campaigning to cut down the waste before and after garment construction then the fashion industry would become much more sustainable.
De Castro gave these tips in an interview with the telegraph:
'Buy clothes with longing and desire, don't buy on a whim, and always buy thinking you will pass it on to someone else. That way you will buy good quality and classic styles. Take the time to learn how to sew and mend. Sewing machines are very exciting objects and one can be very creative with one's clothes'
To read the rest of the article visit - http://fashion.telegraph.co.uk/news-features/TMG7205477/Orsola-de-Castro-The-ethical-fashion-designer.html
I found this dorothy perkins dress in a charity shop in Whitstable, I really like the print and the general shape of it but I'm not a fan of the frilliness.
So, what do you do when you don't like something? Remove it!
I have cut off the frills, turned it into a top and hemmed the bottom and arm holes. I think it looks much better now...
I was lucky enough to get this book for my birthday, it is gorgeous (but lets be honest most things from Cath Kidston are) and, as the blurb on the back cover describes it..
'Sew! is a treasure trove of over 40 simple sewing projects - bags, cushions, quilts and much more - all designed by Cath Kidston using her signature printed fabrics.'
The book is well designed and the projects are all practical and enable you make things you may actually need around the home like aprons, peg bags and oven gloves. For the fashion focused there are bags, purses and gadget cases.
The tutorials are well written and easy to follow and are rated according to their difficulty level which I think is handy because you can start off with an easier project and work your way up to the more difficult ones.
There is a good introductory guide to basic techniques at the front of the book explaining things like seams, fastenings and decorative elements.
I already know most of what is included in this guide so I found it very easy to understand and therefore could easily follow one of the tutorials, I wonder, would it be so easy if I was a complete beginner who had never sewn before?
Also I found it very peculiar that the seam allowance changed on each project, some had a 15mm seam allowance whereas others only had 6mm allowance.
Included with the book was a pattern sheet for you to trace off the relevant pattern for the project you are working on. It took me a while to get my head around it because of the amount of patterns squeezed onto one bit of paper. Each of the patterns are colour coded though so at least it was easy to follow each line and not get them confused.
I am going to make something from the book to find out just how user friendly it is. Wish me luck!
From a shirt to a cushion in 30 minutes.
You will need:
- Paper
- Pencil
- Ruler
- Cushion filler (I bought mine from Wilkinson for £1.35)
- An old shirt large enough to cover the cushion
- Scissors
- Sewing machine
Instructions:
Make the pattern - Measure the width of the cushion, draw a square of the same size onto paper, add 1cm seam allowance around all four sides. Cut out.
You should have something that looks like this....
Make the cushion cover - Pin the pattern onto the shirt, lining up the centre with the middle of the buttons. Cut out. Un-fasten the buttons and pin along the button wrap to keep it lined up when sewing. Pin the two squares of fabric right sides together and sew 1cm from the edge. Remove the pins from the button wrap and pull the material through the hole so that the right sides are facing out. You should have something that looks like this....
Finally, put the cushion filler in and fasten the buttons!
I believe I first heard about this company via the everso awesome website Lost at E Minor (http://www.lostateminor.com/). They create beautiful pieces of jewellery from the metal of landmines and unexploded ammunition in the hope that they can 'support sustainability in post-conflict countries'.
This is upcycling on a whole new level. Working in Cambodia, Saught are removing the harmful waste products of war, educating people in Cambodia about design and manufacture, employing them so that they have money and security and educating us, the consumers about the importance of their work. The profits made from each piece of jewellery are re-invested into supporting sustainability. I think it is a fantastic idea!
My only complaint is that I cannot afford to buy any of it! Why do upcycled and eco friendly products have to be so much more expensive?! I want to do my bit but I just don't have the money. For the meantime I will just have to keep upcycling as much of my own stuff as possible.
To find out more about Saught visit: http://saught.com.sg/
