Shibori-dye revive – Denise Traynor

Brisbane-based textile enthusiast Denise Traynor believes that how we choose to spend our money ultimately has an impact on how things are made. “If consumers reject exploitative, wasteful production techniques, over packaging and excessive transport models by insisting on locally produced, fair-traded goods, we can lower our carbon footprint and reduce the demand for unfair wages and slavery used to produce them,” Denise said.

Mei models the dress and cardigan that Denise Traynor shibori-dyed to be a matched outfit for The Slow Clothing Project.

Mei models the dress and cardigan Denise Traynor shibori-dyed as a matched set for The Slow Clothing Project.

Denise also believes that reusing and remaking otherwise obsolete items helps to counteract the wasteful, mass production, mass consumption model that is causing so much environmental and social harm in the world. “I believe our disposable society has contributed to this harm. Plastic fibres, wearing clothes for one or two seasons, produced in third world countries with poor employment and environmental protection records, has made mountains of waste and other pollution.”

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Creative eco-fashion – Mariana Kirova

Mariana Kirova is a professional upcycler, an eco-fashion educator and an agent for change. She  transforms rescued clothing into unique timeless pieces through her Perth-based business Eco Fashion Sewing which she established after studying fashion design in Western Australia.

Mariana Kirova creates an eco-fashion statement ensemble for The Slow Clothing Project.

Mariana Kirova wears an eco-fashion statement ensemble she created for The Slow Clothing Project.

Mariana said it is sad to see lots of fashion students graduating in Australia each year yet only a few stay and work in the fashion industry. “If Australian fashion brands have their production at home, this wouldn’t be happening,” she said.

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Eco printing – Nina van Hartskamp

Nina van Hartskamp loves hand-made things and discovering natural treasures. “When you wear a piece you made yourself (or was made by a friend) it has a story. And I have a big love for natural fibres, which are expensive when you buy them new. Luckily there are op shops! I can spent ages in second-hand stores. It’s such a kick to find hidden treasures,” she said.

Nina van Hartskamp wears an eco-print wool jacket she transformed for The Slow Clothing Project

Nina van Hartskamp wears an eco-print wool jacket she transformed for The Slow Clothing Project

When Nina was a little girl growing up in the Netherlands, her grandma used to make her dresses and she loved choosing the fabrics and looking through pattern magazines.

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A statement jacket – Rozalie Sherwood

Rozalie Sherwood loves the concept of not having too much, especially too much clothing. She lived and worked in China for two years and during that period experienced the particular freedom that comes with not having too many possessions to care for. In addition, she particularly loves the potential for creating individual garments that become a statement we present to the outside world, as a reflection of who we are.

Olivia wears the jacket made specially for her by her mum Rozalie Sherwood as part of The Slow Clothing Project

Olivia wears the jacket made specially for her by her mum Rozalie Sherwood as part of The Slow Clothing Project

Jackets – the outer garments worn by both men and women – are her favourite canvas. Rozalie’s jackets are a comment on our accumulative and acquisitive society; we buy many cheap items and end up with a wardrobe of things we rarely wear. Whereas one beautiful, thoughtful, meaningful jacket can be worn forever. Rozalie made such a jacket for her eldest daughter Olivia – which now features in The Slow Clothing Project.

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Handmade goodness – Saadia Thomson

Saadia Thomson lists many reasons to value slow clothing – sustainability, creativity, self-expression, uniqueness, enjoyment, learning and honing skills, sharing and being happy. She has come to dislike the culture of consumerism or affluenza and believes people get so caught up in the next fad (fashion or otherwise) they lose sight of what’s important.

Erin Thomson wears an apron made by her mum Saadia from a rescued business shirt for The Slow Clothing Project

Erin Thomson wears an apron made by her mum Saadia from a rescued business shirt for The Slow Clothing Project

“Instead of collecting things – and getting into debt for stuff they neither need or really want – we can focus more on building skills, friendships, family connections and taking time to enjoy what they already have, being with family and friends; giving freely to others by sharing their skills and knowledge,” Saadia said.

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A slow clothing approach

Jane Milburn at ABC 702

Jane Milburn wears eco-dyed merino at ABC 702 Sydney

A transformational shift during the past two decades in the way we source, use and discard our clothing has major social and environmental implications caused by increasing volumes, changing fibres and loss of repair skills.

These changes in clothing culture brought Jane Milburn of Textile Beat to Ku-Ring-Gai Council in Sydney on Saturday (June 25) to workshop more sustainable approaches, including reviving garments in your wardrobe.  Jane was also interviewed by ABC 702’s Wendy Harmer about slow clothing, audio link below.

“Local councils report that about 4 percent of the household waste is textiles and most people know they can donate unwanted clothing for charitable recycling,” Ms Milburn said.

“Charities says about 15 percent of these donations are on-sold through op shops, 15 percent are ragged, 15 percent go to landfill and 55 percent are exported into the second-hand clothing trade.”

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Sewing brings wellbeing – Sally Harris

Clothing has become so available and affordable in the past decade that most people no longer sew. Yet there are intangible rewards from making your own wearables, including a sense of achievement from reusing natural resources.

Sally Harris wears a wool poncho she made from a knee rug for The Slow Clothing Project.

Sally Harris wears a wool poncho she made from a knee rug for The Slow Clothing Project.

Canberra-based Sally Harris credits The Slow Clothing Project with giving her an incentive to sew again. “With such emphasis on new clothes these days, it is lovely to take part in the Slow Clothing Project and enlighten people to the good old ways.”  Continue Reading →

Cherishing the effort – Xin Wang

Maths teacher Xin Wang says the more she sews her own clothes, the more she realises how much effort goes into making one simple garment. She cherishes garments more, whether they are made by her or other people, because of the effort and time put into them.

Gorgeous Flora Hanisch wears a dress handmade by her mum Xin

Gorgeous Flora Hanisch wears a dress handmade by her mum Xin for The Slow Clothing Project

“I love making my own clothes because I enjoy making things with my hands. I like clothes that are different – the worst thing to me in terms of clothes is wearing the same clothes as somebody else and that applies to my two kids’ clothes as well. Finally, it’s cheaper to make my own to achieve the uniqueness rather than buying designer clothes,” Xin said.

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Made to suit herself – Barbara Sherlock

Fast buying of fast fashion equates to a lack of thought, says Barbara Sherlock who believes many people buy for the moment, without really considering whether the style or the colour or the fit of a garment really suits them. That means these clothes are likely to be thrown away after a short wearing time not just because they aren’t the latest trend, but because the wearer knows deep within themselves that the clothing doesn’t really help them look their best.

Barbara Sherlock upcycled a wool skirt into a sleeveless vest for The Slow Clothing Project.

Barbara Sherlock upcycled a wool skirt into a sleeveless vest for The Slow Clothing Project.

“If people shopped slowly and more carefully, they would buy garments they could use for a longer time. This doesn’t mean we can’t add some garments for ‘flash’ but it does mean less waste in both eco terms and the consumer’s budget,” Barbara says.  Continue Reading →

Valuing sewing skills – Cath Jarvis

Cath Jarvis is a busy sonographer and mother of three who with partner Kevin runs a sheep property at Tottenham in central New South Wales. When growing up in the country a few decades ago, Cath’s Mum encouraged her and two sisters to step away from learning ‘domestic’ tasks and get more into professional and untraditional work. This meant Cath only learned to sew later in life when she realised these skills were useful for sustainable living.

Cath Jarvis wears the pinny she created from discarded jeans and work shorts

Cath Jarvis wears the pinny she created for The Slow Clothing Project from discarded jeans and work shorts

“We all rode motorbikes and horses, and generally mucked around on the farm, we might have been a bit wild. Then when we went off to high school we were sent to an agricultural high school and these subjects weren’t offered. I didn’t ever think it was a great loss until my late 30s when I realised being able to sew could be very handy.

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