Tag Archives: denim

Sew 34 – Denim gets ripped, not

denim jeans to skirtOld denim jeans are a dime a dozen and for today’s offering, I converted a pair of jeans to a skirt by cropping them at the knees, turning upside down and creating new waistline.

My year of upcycling existing clothing with Sew it Again is all about transformation – of old clothing, damaged clothing, ill-fitting clothing and myself!

I can see how my bossy left brain – the maths/science part – has inhibited my creative right brain with this conversion because it looks a bit too ‘neat’ for my liking. I started off well, upending the jeans is creative, but then tried to tame them with a neat waist and bow.

The exciting thing is that I know that if I work at it every day, my actions and commitment to creatively pursue new ways of doing old things, such skirts in future will be wilder and freer.

Denim is a fashion perennial and according to MX Style it is ripped, pale, overalls and dresses, and boyfriend denim that’s on-trend this season. And apparently rips are back big-time. Continue reading

Sew 31 – 1 of 12 months’ upcycling

jeans to skirt convoThis denim jeans-to-skirt conversion marks the completion of one month’s upcycling in my year-long campaign transforming discarded garments for a second life. Yippee. I’m learning, discovering and connecting with others as I demonstrate choices we have for a different way of dressing that is mindful of ecological health, Earth’s limited resources, wellbeing, ethical sourcing, creativity, thrift, resourcefulness and individual choice. At its heart, this Sew it Again campaign seeks to revive home-sewing as the enabler to wean us from dependence on others for everyday clothing which is as important to our health and wellbeing as the food we eat. Home-cooking has made a comeback, so why not home-sewing? I’m demonstrating ways of resewing existing garments at home as a quick, easy, rewarding and affordable way of dressing because there are mountains of discards stashed away in wardrobes and languishing in op shops. Continue reading