At the start of this year I set myself a ridiculous challenge. I had no idea whether it was achievable, and that was part of the attraction. I promised you that I would make an outfit that was made from local fibre, local labour and local colour, even if that meant wearing a crochet bikini! Following the Fibreshed philosophy was a massive ask given the remoteness of the city I live in.
Well, here I am fully clothed in local wool, alpaca, silk and clay, feeling pretty darn chuffed. I learnt to felt, knit, weave, crochet, natural dye, wood fire and handstitch in the making of this outfit. My one skill that I had any experience in (machine sewing) turned out to be completely and utterly useless.
Throughout the year I actively recorded the colours and seasons around me in my visual diary (cough, instagram), and I fell head over heels in love with this city again. The brightness of the sun, sky and sand, and the sleek black of the swan were my inspiration for the colour palette. The nuts and flowers of eucalypts created the pattern in my vest and the pom poms in my shoes. The herringbone weave chosen as it looks like patterns in the sand under the waves. Somehow it seems silly to write this all down, but I really do feel like this outfit is both perfectly me and this land that I grew up on.
It’s rough, it’s edgey but underneath it is soft and warm.
I wanted to learn about the sustainability of textiles and I thought that working from the ground up would be the best way to do it. I can tell you now, that it was that and so much more. I am privileged to have meet so many wonderful people (and animals) this year, people who care passionately about the environment and textiles and who shared their knowledge with me.
Some of these crazy people even decided to give this challenge a go themselves, and together in Perth we have built a little community. A little community of local textile discoverers who have made this project feel less overwhelming and who pushed me to make something that at the start of this year I would never have dreamed of. For those in Perth, we hope to hold a gathering in the new year to celebrate this wonderful Fibreshed in which we live.
Watch this space for more posts on local garments made by participants far and wide, and for details on doing it all again next year if you are thinking of joining in!
Felt top: merino roving and olive oil soap, details here
Zac’s tank: Alpaca fleece, details here
Herringbone Skirt: handspun wool, sour grass, local clay, merino roving, alpaca mill off cuts, hand reeled silk thread, details here
Necklace: local clay, handspun wool dyed with sour grass and eucalypts
Pom Pom garland: alpaca mill off cuts, handspun wool dyed with sour grass and eucalypt, details here
Neck warmer: merino roving dyed with native indigo, details here
Boots: not made by me, but 10 years old and resoled, re zipped time and again, making them a sustainability stand out in my wardrobe
Yay!! Congrats nicki chan!! So exciting!!
Thanks Jess! I am excited too.
Amazing! I love how each of the pieces is so unique, but they play really well together. It’s been an inspiring challenge, both taking part, and seeing what everyone else has made. I should have at least one garment to post before the end of the year too!
I really afraid that I couldn’t create the picture in my head, so I was really glad when everything fit together just as I intended. Looking forward to seeing your make (you are fast!) too.
So incredibly inspiring to have followed your journey and to see the fabulous end product. Each of these pieces, with their stories are so special. xx
Thanks Helen. I wish I could let people touch the buttons, see the skirt flick out when I walk because of the felt facings, and feel the softness of the alpaca. Photos don’t seem to do it justice!
It’s all kinds of awesome as I knew it would be. I love the final touch of the neckwarmer xxx
Hahaha! That neck warmer had a few iterations, it was a bag, then I ripped it, I tried to knit it, that didn’t work, then I settled on this for now. I think I’ll be using this and the blue silk next year. Thanks for joining in!
Congratulations! Everything is so beautiful, and I love the story that goes with each piece. You’re an amazing woman!
Thanks! I think determined is the word I would use 🙂
Amazing work! Sounds wierd but I’d love to touch it all. Ha ha. I love anything alpaca, your garments have turned out brilliantly and really suit you. Love the weaving, the clay necklace, the felting, love it all. Thanks for inspiring me! Can’t wait to see more. Now you know how to do it all!
Thanks Louise, I am really enchanted by the dyeing and weaving part so will definitely be doing more. And knitting, perhaps just not cables just yet 😭
Love the outfit and the localness of it! I’ve enjoyed following your blog this year. I’d love to be a part of the Perth meet in the New Year, maybe it’s time for me to get a blog and join in the fun!
Blogging is by no means mandatory, glad you have enjoyed following along!
Oh it looks amazing all together!!! Massive congratulations to you, it was such a huge feat but you did it and with an impressive list of new skills. Can’t wait to see what you come up with next year but perhaps you need a rest first…haha!
Yes, a bit of pure sewing to help me feel like I’m not doing everything for the first time is in order I think!
This entire outfit is amazing, it seems to have been a journey full of new experiences and the outcome is priceless considering the people youve met and the new skills you’ve learned, this outfit represents all this!! I’m really tempted and am processing this in my mind, probably not giving myself the one year time limit as I don’t belive i’ll manage that but I have to figure it out!!!
It has been eye opening that’s for sure. It really helped that there was a group of us here in Perth doing it, going to suppliers together and then sharing solutions to the construction problems. It does seem to need longer if you don’t have that, and there is no need to stick to the year time frame at all. Also, I’m introducing some other more relaxed options next year to make it more achievable!
So, congratulations Nicki, on a very successful year and outfit. I absolutely love what you’ve done, it’s quirky and different and very stylish, just what I expected. Again, thank you for inspiring us and challenging us, it’s been an epic adventure!
Thank you, it has so great doing it with you, I wouldn’t have pushed nearly as hard on my own!
I knew that you were going to do, no matter what. It’s amazing, I love every pice separately and all of them together, they make such a unique and edgy outfit, My favourite is the felt top. It sounds like an amazing journey! Well done and thank you for the inspiration.
Thank you! It has been really fun!
This is such an amazing achievement. Not only is the provenance of each item so wonderful and interesting in and of itself the whole ensemble is harmonious and beautiful. The black and white make the soft yellow stand out and the shapes are so artistic and beautiful. I salute you This is Moonlight. Dreaming of next year….
Thank you kindly Kate, your words mean a lot.
Oh my gosh you are so, so clever. Utterly fab and inspiring!
This is so so good, Nicki! You are the Peter Pan punk from Perth 😉 in this outfit! And yay for learning new skills and pushing boundaries. I am almost ready to dye my fabric and then I will make an inari tee dress with my German linen. I am a bit envious of your connection to your land and soil and plants, maybe a bit of that will happen for me next year as I explore dyeing and knitting some more. I think you and Zac should be in a punk band together, maybe Nicki and the alpacas 😉
Wow! I’ve so enjoyed watching this all come together… and I’m so buoyed up by your determination and creativity. I really loved the little story about your inspirations and how each part of your outfit connects you to your land – that’s the really special part of the project – the bit that made me want to join in! What I love is that everyone else’s outfit, like my Welsh one (when it is finally made!) will be totally different… What an amazing journey this all is and how different for each of us… and I really appreciate that it doesn’t stop here – clearly you have all sorts of ideas for things which you’ve started and want to push further… can’t wait to hear/see more…
Thanks Zoe! I have loved watching everyone else’s progress too!
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This is beautiful!! Congratulations on the successful launch and completion the outfit! I love the white top that is over the black alpaca top, is it also made of alpaca? (I might have missed this in your post, but couldn’t find the info) Amazing work!!
Thank you Helen. The top is felted Merino and is my favorite too. Did you end up posting on your experiences in 2015? Just putting a round up together.
O I love it! Yes, I wrote a final post, but am waiting to take a final photo of my sister in the dress (she is out of town until Jan 17). Is it ok to post it then?
I will wait for you!
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