Spinning the dream

Grow, harvest, clean, spin, weave, dye, design, sew and market. All these stages in the creation of clothes are largely outsourced to industrial processes that have cotton garments appear almost by magic for 21st century wearers buying on demand. JANE MILBURN reports.

About 90 percent of clothes bought in Australia are made overseas yet spinning is the only one of these processes that Australia can’t do right here, right now, today.

If we were to reintroduce onshore spinning capacity, this would enable local processing as well as recycling capacity to create a closed-loop fibre economy saving textiles from landfill.

Glenn Rogan in his Australian Super Cotton field at St George.

Until recently, most wearers were not thinking about the missing stages of repair and recycle that can help make the journey of clothes more circular and reduce their ecological impact. Now we are asking more questions, taking actions and seeking solutions.

With increasing concerns about climate change and pollution, the circular economy is poised to grow and Australia needs to be part of it. Manufacturing has been migrating offshore for decades, but pandemic disruption of supply chains may herald a turning of the tide.

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Permaculture your wardrobe

Permaculture clothing is real; it is what I wear. All my wardrobe selections are natural fibres, made and mended, thrifted and repurposed, adapted to suit current needs. Produce no waste, slow and small solutions, creatively use and respond to change. Permaculture principles to live and dress by for a more permanent culture.

I was invited to present a session on Permaculture your Wardrobe at the 2021 Australasian Permaculture Convergence and delighted to have my work described there by permaculture leader Robin Clayfield as a ‘new edge’. Also delighted to recently chat with global permaculture ambassador Morag Gamble on her podcast Sense-making in a changing world.

Michael Wardle of Savour Soils Permaculture and Jane Milburn at the 2021 Australasian Permaculture Convergence

Dressing is integral to life. Skin is our largest organ and we can think about clothes doing for us on the outside what food does inside. They protect and warm our bodies, and influence the way we feel and present to the world. And dressing is an agricultural act, if we want to wear natural fibres rather than plastic fibres.

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Rising to resilience

Disruption arising from the pandemic reminds us of the need to live thoughtfully in tune with nature, as Jane Milburn reports.

Jane Milburn wears self-made upcycled silk dress. Photo by Robin McConchie at Mt Coot-tha Botanic Gardens.

Sewing arose as a survival skill during the COVID-19 pandemic when global supply chains fractured and locally-made cloth face masks became valuable personal protection equipment. Even New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern made her own face covering to help stop the spread of the coronavirus when masks became mandatory on public transport during the Auckland breakout.

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On the Textile Beat Dec 2020

It has been hard to find words for this year, this time. Grateful to be living in Australia. Thankful for health, family and home. Inspired by a Permaculture Design Course. Disappointed my Churchill Fellowship was deferred until international travel becomes possible. Excited to be starting a new book yet easily distracted by gardening, cups of tea and visitors. Mostly grateful. Hoping things are OK at your end. I’ve put together a December enews, which you can read here now or if you would like to subscribe there is an avenue for that on the right-hand side of this website.

Wear the difference

When we follow a predictable path, we walk in another’s shadow. Only when we explore our own creativity and embrace the unusual can something original emerge. Jane Milburn reports

What is unusual? The dictionary says it is something remarkable or interesting because it is different from or better than others. Synonyms include extraordinary, singular, particular, marked, outstanding, notable, distinctive, striking, unique, unparalleled, mind-blowing and superior.

Jane Milburn, left, and Elizabeth Kingston, right, wear their own style. Photos by Patria Jannides and Evelina.

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Influencing behaviour change

Fashion is responsible for up to 10 percent of carbon emissions and about  70 percent of the clothes in our wardrobes are not worn. These are some of the reasons to choose ways of dressing that are more circular and regenerative.

Changing our behaviour is the biggest thing we can do to reduce our energy and resource consumption. Great to see reloving options expanding, with UNTAGGED Sustainable Fashion Exchange a new option for keeping wardrobes fresh whilst being kinder to our wallets, each other, and the planet.

They’ve been sharing quotes through their Instagram platform, including words from Cate Blanchett, Jane Goodall, Emma Watson, Livia Firth, Vivienne Westwood, Carry Somers, Elizabeth Cline,  Celine Semaan, and Jane Milburn (that’s me).

Wabi sabi time has arrived

Rethinking the way we live, work and play is happening as we adapt to the uncertainty and profound changes coming down the line with coronavirus. We can calm ourselves by focusing energy on living with creativity, simplicity and integrity, rather than worrying about distant unknowable possibilities.

Wabi sabi is a gentle approach to life embedded within Japanese culture that has its roots in Zen philosophy. As I (Jane Milburn) read more about wabi sabi during lockdown, it struck me as a way of living in tune with nature rather than seeking to control, manage and exploit it.

Jane Milburn wearing garments made from natural fibres coloured by leaves and bark. Photo by Patria Jannides.

At a time when we need to be adaptive and resourceful, wabi sabi is a salve that enables us to find beauty in what is around us, in all its imperfection and impermanence.

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The Maker Within

There is a maker inside us all. People often speak of the soothing and satisfying nature of making for relaxation, reward or reinvention. In earlier times, working with our hands was how we explored and became connected to the world. Then with industrialization and the feminist movement, many of us shifted away from making and towards higher-status thinking careers.  Working with our hands was often associated with home-based domestic work – and we didn’t want to be trapped there.

The COVID-19 lockdown gave pause, for some not on the frontline, to explore making and creating with our hands – gardening, cooking, baking, sewing, knitting and mending clothes.  We are ready for more conversation about slower living, adaptation and resourcefulness – using our hands, head and heart to create change.

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Supporting local food systems

The coronavirus pandemic was a wake-up call about many things we take for granted in life, including where our food comes from.  As the lockdown began in late March, uncertainty took hold and people began hoarding and scrambling for whatever food stocks they could find.

The National Farmers Federation was moved to reassure people that Australia produces enough food to feed 75 million people, more than three times our population, and that 89 percent of the food Australians eat is Aussie-grown.

With many global supply chains fractured through the pandemic, local production and manufacturing is arising to be more strongly grounded and appreciated in regional communities.

Earlier this year on February 15, Pine Rivers Heritage Museum had hosted a conversation to highlight how we can support local farmers in the Moreton Bay region which is home to a plethora of agricultural industries including berries, pineapple, avocado, macadamia nut, other specialty crop businesses as well as livestock production. (There’s a follow-up session planned for September 12, so put that in your diary if you are in the region.)

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Don’t compare yourself to anyone else: Rachel Smith

Rachel Smith is a consultant, change-maker and author of Under$pent who says this is an important time for leaders to share the information and knowledge to inspire community members and ignite the fuse for change. ‘’We have been given a gift of time and we shouldn’t waste the opportunity to stop, and reflect and reset our own lives, our communities, our government services and infrastructure, and almost start again.‘’ This conversation is #8 of Jane Milburn’s Virtual Churchill series ARISING from Disruption – stories of adaptation, resourcefulness and self-sufficiency. Rachel’s best piece of advice is   do not compare yourself to anyone else. ”It is really easy to fall into the trap of comparing yourself with others, what they might have bought, what you think they’ve got, what you think they might earn. I think that is a really big issue at the moment. ”

Read notes from this conversation below, or read more about Rachel and Under$pent here.

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