Today’s upcycle is simply about changing buttons – as my friend and wool producer Carol Watson has done to personalise a beautiful linen jacket for Sew 335 of 365 (see photos below).

It seems we’ve just blinked and now we’re at the beginning of the last month of the year, reflecting on 2014 and considering what might be up next.

The storms last week had a silver lining – they forced a tidy-up of the Textile Beat studio (for those following the details, I’m still drying out my machines under the overhead fan and have not tried to plug in yet – hence hand-sew projects).

One useful rediscovery during the tidy-up was my seven-point note-to-self written during study last year that provides some homespun perspective and direction for day-to-day actions and reactions. The points are: 1. Being is enough  2. Follow the heart  3. Live and work to your values  4. Make health a daily priority  5. Stay connected  6. Respect process and planning 7. Give/ask for help, and keep learning. I’ve mostly stuck to that philosophy this year, with just a few deviations. 

Meanwhile, Carol bought this beautiful linen jacket new in Armidale a while back but found she wasn’t wearing it because the charcoal buttons made it seem masculine and a bit dull. Carol gave the jacket a lift by replacing the originals with splendid shell buttons, most of which she had already while I contributed the rest from my op-shop gathered collection. Looking good Carol, a great hand-sew upcycle!