Trashion Junkies

It is high time I wrote about the inspirational class I took at Geelong in September this year: Kirry Toose was the tutor, and recycled fashion was the theme. Our brief was to collect a range of op-shop clothing for reinvention as Steampunk, Flash-trash or Trashion. What to choose…??? I had always enjoyed op-shopping, but the need to gather a usable stash for heaven knows what creative masterpieces sent me on countless very fruitful op-shopping sprees. Fortunately the class filled us all with so many skills and ideas that we just may be able to use up all those wonderful bargains  one day….in the meantime, storage becomes an increasing problem! 



The Trashion Junkies (with Kirry Toose just behind my right shoulder)

 To say that we all had a ball would be an understatement:  the 14 of us who took the class were reluctant to see an end to our recycling addicton, and so we formed an email group and called ourselves “Trashion Junkies” so that we could go on developing and sharing ideas. Kirry suggested we set ourselves regular challenges, and it is the deadline for the first challenge that has finally set me writing this blog entry.

Kirry got us all started on creating with men’s suits. The first piece that most of us completed in the week at Geelong involved building a stylish woman’s waistcoat out of a man’s jacket and, in some cases, pants. While Kirry supplied the inspiration and basic pattern block, the resulting waistcoats were refreshingly diverse. The front of the waistcoat utilized one of the jacket lapels, while the back panel was cut out of either a sleeve or a section of the pants. Other design details were added from suits: pockets, sleeve buttons, or whatever seemed right at the time. My waistcoat utilized parts of three op-shop garments: 2 men’s coats and one woman’s silk jacket. To commemorate the contributing garments, I added the labels as design features.



My waistcoat




Detail of waistcoat back



Many class members went on to create amazing asymmetrical skirts featuring the second jacket lapel, but I was more drawn to Kirry’s wonderful shoulderless peplum jackets. I decided to make one featuring the sleeves of my second jacket, and spent the best part of a day strip-piecing the bodice out of fabric gleaned from op-shop clothing and offcuts. Sadly, this top section of the jacket was all that I completed during my week at Geelong, and while I had planned the peplum and photographed my layout, this would have to wait until I found time at home.



Peplum planning



Note the bird theme on the peplum: those who know me will not be surprised! 

Well, it took 2 months, but eventually I made the plunge and worked on the peplum. The delay was partially caused by my trepidation in the face of what would be my first attempt at free machine embroidery. I knew that everyone else in the class was adept at it, but wasn’t confident that I would be able to do it at all.  Remarkably, I found it not only do-able, but also enjoyable, a fact which has caused me to optimistically book into a course involving free machine embroidery at next year’s Geelong Fibre Forum! 

The neckline of the jacket proved to be too plain when I completed it, so, in true trashion junkie style, I found the remaining piece of collar from the original coat and cut it to fit my jacket neckline. Perfect solution!



The finished jacket




The sexy cut-out shoulders!




Detail of peplum machine embroidery and applique




Detail of bodice strip-piecing




Front view, featuring suit-coat collar




Detail of side front of peplum



And now to the first Kirry-challenge which was scheduled for December 31^st: Kirry had made a wonderful evening bag out of a used drinking chocolate tin, and after explaining her method of construction, our task was to create one of our own and share the photos.  After completing the jacket, I decided that it would be useful to have an evening bag that matched, and anyway, a matching bag did not necessitate any new thinking about colour and design. It also meant that the sample machine embroidery I had made in preparation for my jacket could be used as the central bag panel. Well, procrastination with the coming Christmas season was a major hassle, and I am sure you will not be surprised to hear that apart from buying the necessary coffee tin and some braid, I had not started the project by December 30^th!  So….at 4.20 pm last night, I bit the bullet.  At that point, I really wished I had asked more questions in class…but somehow, shyness had overcome me.  It all started when Kirry explained that the ends of her bag were made with 2 Suffolk puffs. Everyone else in the class said “Ah…” and nodded knowingly, so I was a little reluctant to admit that I didn’t know what a Suffolk puff was.  But being a modern, semi-computer savvy lady, I decided that if 14 women knew what a Suffolk puff was, Google would surely know too!  I was right, of course, and turned up a great little site which featured cute little Suffolk puff hair clips. (http:www.cutoutandkeep.net/projects/suffolk-puff-hair-clips).

 They seemed like a fun way to practise, so I unashamedly copied the website’s designs to make my own Christmas clips. Being a new expert on Suffolk puffs, I decided that I didn’t want my puffy bits hidden on the inside of the bag as Kirry’s were, and resolved to have double puffy ends to my bag like the hair clips.



My suffolk-puff hair clips



Sadly, though, that wasn’t the only thing I needed to ask questions about. I made my central panel and lining into a sleeve which I pulled over the core of the coffee tin. Later, after I had hand-sewn the Suffolk puffs to the ends, I found that the panel would not stay put, and really needed to be glued. Applying the glue after finishing the ends was really not the easiest task! I also realised, as the bag neared completion, that I should have sewn the lining Suffolk puffs in earlier; the small size of the bag did not accommodate my hand and a needle for intricate manoeuvres. Fabric glue came to my rescue there, too, but I am not overly sure that it will stay the distance. Nevertheless, as I have not owned an evening purse for the last 40 years, I suspect that this one will not get sufficient wear to try its construction strength! Anyway, the bag was happily finished over coffee at 9.30 on December 31^st, so I have only to email  everyone now to complete the deadline.

So, Trashion Junkies, I hope you enjoy viewing the fruits of my often hurried labours, and I hope to see the lovely bags you have all produced.



The bag, featuring suffolk-puff sides




And another view



And one day, I will do something with that lemon silk jacket you all shuddered at!