Tag Archives: Redcliffe

Sew 218 – Creativity is taking risks

In the 21st century, society needs people who think creatively because as they step into life’s problems they are more able to find creative ways of dealing with them.

That’s a paraphrase of the Life at 9 life journey series on television last night, which was about creativity. It seems creativity is a predictor of success in every domain of life because it is problem-solving, divergent thinking of possible solutions when presented with a difficult issue.

As we grow up, we are often obliged to subvert our creativity, to conform and follow rules and the experts in this program suggested that our current education system’s emphasis on performance and getting the ‘right answer’ is squashing creative development. Continue reading →

Sew 215 – Linking with like-mindeds

As I work my way through this Sew it Again year, I enjoy meeting people and starting a conversation about clothing – where it comes from, where it goes to, and what happens to it along the way.

There is significant community awareness of the disposable culture flowing from the cheap and seemingly endless supply. People are becoming more conscious of the negative environmental and social impacts of the clothing binge, in the same way they know about negative health impacts from over-consumption of cheap processed food, But doing something about it is another matter.

Items that are unique and locally handmade with heart are rare. They standout among the sameness of the mass-produced and are valued by conscious consumers. They’re doubly special if you take the time to learn the skills and make them yourself. Continue reading →

Sew 214 – T-shirts reworked

Hacktivism strikes me as a great term to describe the art of hacking into reject and cast-off clothing that is no longer loved, at the same time as making a statement about waste and exploitation that arises from contemporary fashion consumption habits. (That was until I googled it and found it’s more readily aligned with computer hacking.)

Anyway, this method of upcycling reflects the #scavengerstyle fashion political statement made by upcycler Karen Ellis whose 24/7 practice is wearing garments salvaged from the point of landfill in Victoria, Australia for the past five years.

Karen brought my attention to Otto von Busch and his >self_passage< research project that ‘explores how fashion can be used for empowerment, self-development and personal growth instead of being a phenomenon of top-down decrees and collective anxiety’. Continue reading →