The Recycled Textiles Story
At RagamuffinStuff I try not to discard anything if I can help it.
A while back I realised that after all my 'busying' in the sewing room there were oodles of threads and snippets of fabrics, beads which have pinged off whilst attempting to snare them onto ridiculously fine beading needles, shiny foils from munching on old fashioned toffees and a plethora of other riches that I couldn't bear to throw away. About this time I came across the word Orts. The dictionary definition is 'for scraps or leavings', and having pondered possible uses for the now eclectic collection I was gathering, I started to evolve a way of encompassing the Orts between layers of sheers, over sewing, embroidering and then embellishing the new 'fabric', whilst genuinely having the most amazing fun.
Processes buried long ago in the recesses of my mind, from the time when I completed a City and Guilds Certificate in Creative Embroidery, began emerging again and this time with more contemporary and adventurous expression.
Cords were fashioned from yarns, which honestly in their own right I wouldn't have considered, but when stitched and twisted and mixed like a delicious cocktail, created a yummy embellishment. Buttons were made from the same 'fabric' as the piece I was working on, or a beautiful vintage find used instead. I made fabric and paper beads, Suffolk Puffs and Dorset buttons.
The Recycled Textiles journey had begun.
At present I am continuing with Recycled Textiles. Nearly 100 per cent of the materials and notions I use are from up-cycled items of clothing and jewellery and sourced from places like scrap stores, where off cuts from manufacturing are donated, and charity shops. I collect wonderful sea glass, driftwood and smoothed pieces of plastics from beach combing the most beautiful nearby coves.
For inspiration I love looking through old books and magazines, collecting vintage crockery, crystal glass wear and fabrics, also from the same places, and of course nothing beats nature. Getting up close and personal to a huge sunflower head, or an insignificant piece of lichen, really looking at the smallest components totally amazes me and leaves me in awe.
My Recycled Textiles are like a wonderfully tasty hotchpotch, a little bit of this, and a pinch of that creates a 'nourishing meal' for little expenditure. The real cost comes however in the awareness that each piece of 'fabric' is manufactured by hand before even beginning to resemble an object in its own right. The hand embellishments are a labour of love and time consuming, but makes each piece totally unique and one of a kind.
A while back I realised that after all my 'busying' in the sewing room there were oodles of threads and snippets of fabrics, beads which have pinged off whilst attempting to snare them onto ridiculously fine beading needles, shiny foils from munching on old fashioned toffees and a plethora of other riches that I couldn't bear to throw away. About this time I came across the word Orts. The dictionary definition is 'for scraps or leavings', and having pondered possible uses for the now eclectic collection I was gathering, I started to evolve a way of encompassing the Orts between layers of sheers, over sewing, embroidering and then embellishing the new 'fabric', whilst genuinely having the most amazing fun.
Processes buried long ago in the recesses of my mind, from the time when I completed a City and Guilds Certificate in Creative Embroidery, began emerging again and this time with more contemporary and adventurous expression.
Cords were fashioned from yarns, which honestly in their own right I wouldn't have considered, but when stitched and twisted and mixed like a delicious cocktail, created a yummy embellishment. Buttons were made from the same 'fabric' as the piece I was working on, or a beautiful vintage find used instead. I made fabric and paper beads, Suffolk Puffs and Dorset buttons.
The Recycled Textiles journey had begun.
At present I am continuing with Recycled Textiles. Nearly 100 per cent of the materials and notions I use are from up-cycled items of clothing and jewellery and sourced from places like scrap stores, where off cuts from manufacturing are donated, and charity shops. I collect wonderful sea glass, driftwood and smoothed pieces of plastics from beach combing the most beautiful nearby coves.
For inspiration I love looking through old books and magazines, collecting vintage crockery, crystal glass wear and fabrics, also from the same places, and of course nothing beats nature. Getting up close and personal to a huge sunflower head, or an insignificant piece of lichen, really looking at the smallest components totally amazes me and leaves me in awe.
My Recycled Textiles are like a wonderfully tasty hotchpotch, a little bit of this, and a pinch of that creates a 'nourishing meal' for little expenditure. The real cost comes however in the awareness that each piece of 'fabric' is manufactured by hand before even beginning to resemble an object in its own right. The hand embellishments are a labour of love and time consuming, but makes each piece totally unique and one of a kind.