Today I invented a rucksack.

Okay, so it's not as though the rucksack hasn't been invented before! But I was thinking yesterday, while I was on the bus on my way to work, and I thought it would be good if I could figure out a way of making rucksacks out of the pillowcases that I'm recycling. Tote bags are great, but they are everywhere, and I have a wonky wrist at the moment, and I'm happier carrying shopping on my back than in my hand.

Anyway, here is my first experiment on the subject:

As you can see, the bag itself is the same size and shape as the Paddington pillowcase tote. Instead of two carrying handles, I've made two long straps. They're fixed at the top of the bag, and adjustable at the bottom. They thread through two-rings, so they can be lengthened or shortened to fit comfortably on your back.

The first two pictures show the bag empty. The second two show it with Stuff inside. You can see that it gapes at the top as soon as you put anything in, which is no good. I added a popper in the centre, which fastens the bag quite neatly. There's also a button on the front of this one. It's purely decorative - I'd already sewn it on before my sewing machine informed me that it didn't feel like making buttonholes today!


I'm really pleased with how this bag came out. It's comfortable to wear, nice and sturdy, and it will carry a lot of weight.

There are a few changes I'd like to make to the design though. At the moment, as soon as you put anything into the bag, all the weight is carried by the popper. This means that the load-bearing capacity of the bag is dictated by the fastener, not by the bag itself, which isn't ideal. Mind you, this can be solved quite easily by simply putting on the bag the other way around. That way the straps hold the weight of the bag against your shoulders, and the bag can't gape open. Maybe the solution's as simple as that?


As always, this one's for sale. £7.50, anyone?
If not, I'll pop it into my Etsy store later in the week.

Recycled pinstriped skirt...

I had been planning to make some slippers today, but I realised that I was missing a vital ingredient - the soles! I'll work on those another time.

Instead, I fished out two pairs of my fiancé's trousers, which had been in a box destined for the charity shop. They were made from a really nice heavy brushed cotton, with a faint narrow pinstripe. I decided they'd be much better off being given a new home in my wardrobe, so I turned them into a skirt!

It turned out to be a sort of fishtail shape - straight to the knees, and then flared out at the hem. This was dictated by the shape of the trouser pieces, once I'd cut them up. The waistline is in my usual choice of bomber jacket elastic, and there's a very narrow lace trim around the bottom.

I'm now quite tempted to raid a couple of charity shops, and see what they've got in the way of interesting trousers. Two different pairs, in alternating panels, might make a really pretty skirt.

Pottering...

I've seen the doctor again, and have been diagnosed with "secondary viral labyrinthitis". Sounds more exciting than it is, I promise! I have been instructed not to stay in bed feeling sorry for myself, but instead to "potter about" doing a few gentle bits and pieces.

And so, I present to you another skirt:

This one's made from a recycled duvet cover. It's faded black, with squares in light and dark grey.

There will shortly be six of these available, in the following sizes:

Waist 24-34", hips 34"
Waist 28-38", hips 38"
Waist 32-42", hips 42" (pictured)
Waist 36-46", hips 46"
Waist 42-52", hips 52"
Waist 46-56", hips 56"

Finished length is approximately 27", including the elastic waistband.

Let me know if you'd like to claim one, before I add them to the shop. :)

Bloomeenee's Bambi Bolero.

This is the second bolero that I've made for Bloomeenee. It's made from a recycled duvet cover, with an original Disney Bambi print. It's lined with plain brown, which was the original reverse side of the duvet cover.

The seam allowances are carefully placed to ensure that there are no decapitated Bambis... unlike Giles Deacon's newest dress! I particularly like the matching hat. ;)

Doing My Homework.

Last week I received an email from Kirsty, who's studying Fashion and Textile Technology. She asked whether I would mind answering some questions about using recycled textiles, for a project that she's doing.

Here are her questions, and my answers...

1. Where do you source your fabrics from?

For recycled fabrics I usually go to Ebay, and to my local charity shops. I look for any large piece of fabric with a nice print, that I could imagine being worn as clothing.


2. What kind of fabrics do you use?

I use cottons and poly-cotton blends, almost exclusively. Usually I buy these in the form of bedlinen, such as sheets and duvet covers. Sometimes I will choose old curtains, if I think that the fabric can be washed, and will stand up well to being worn as an item of clothing.


3. What methods do you use to:
a. clean

I always wash any used fabrics before I start to work with them. I do this by simply washing them in my own washing machine. Whoever buys the resulting garments is probably going to wash them in this way, so I need to know that the fabric can survive, and isn't going to fray, shrink or fade.

b. prepare

Once the fabric is clean and dry, I inspect it thoroughly for any worn parts, and any holes or marks. Sometimes small holes can be mended, or covered with embroidery or other decorative work. Any dirty marks which can't be removed must be worked around. I don't use any area of the fabric which I feel is too distressed to stand up to being worn as clothing.

c. plan

Usually the type of fabric and the print will dictate what sort of item it will be reconstructed into. A small print, for example, could be used for a skirt or a top. A larger print might be better for a bag, or the back of a jacket. Plain fabrics can make more subtle garments, or be used as linings.

d. construct your designs ?

Everything I make is designed, cut out and sewn together by hand. I make everything myself, nothing is outsourced. I use new sewing threads, zips and other fasteners, as I then feel that I can guarantee that the garment will last a long time.


4. Why have you chosen to use recycled fabrics over new fabrics?

I have chosen to use recycled fabrics because I think it is a resource which is often overlooked. The textile industry is enormous, and we are being encouraged as consumers to buy cheap garments, change our trends every few months, and to treat fashion as something transient. As a result there is a great deal of waste fabric generated, which can easily be used in different ways.

I do use some new fabrics, but I am trying very hard to buy responsibly, and to only buy new fabrics which are organically produced or fairly traded – preferably both.


5. What has the public reaction been and how commercially viable do you think recycled production is?

The public reaction so far (from my personal experience) has been somewhat confused!
An enormous number of people don't see the point of spending money on a recycled garment, which they perceive as "used", when they could go down to their local high street shops and pick up something brand new for a very low price. So much of modern fashion is cheap and disposable that It seems difficult for people to understand that recycled garments can be of good quality, and long-lasting. Even if the original fabric used to be something else, what could be more luxurious than having a garment hand-made especially for you?

I think that recycled production can only ever be commercially viable on a small scale. To produce recycled garments industrially, there would need to be an enormously large availability of recycled fabrics. The raw materials would still have to be collected, cleaned, inspected and deconstructed before any new production could begin. These processes can be very time consuming and labour-intensive, and so it becomes more commercially viable to produce your fabrics from scratch. This is why I believe that it is very important to encourage the textile industry to manufacture in a sustainable and environmentally friendly manner.

Having said that, there are ways in which technology and recycling can work together to create new fabrics. Polar fleece, for example, is made by recycling plastic drinking bottles. New cotton yarns can also be made from industrial waste such as fabric offcuts and used clothing, and then woven into new fabrics. Worn out cotton fabric is often recycled into paper products. With a bit of lateral thinking, I believe that a lot more could be made from products which are currently treated as waste. The success of this approach from an environmental point of view will at least partly depend on whether the energy required to recycle a product is going to be greater than that consumed by making it from raw materials.

Maybe I should think about adding something like this to the website. I found it really interesting to be forced to think about why I've made some of my decisions regarding my fabric choices, and explaining things to someone else really helped to clarify things in my own mind.

Jeans & T-shirt Tote

This tote bag is a one-off design that I made for my sister.

She originally presented me with a pair of her husband's old jeans and asked me to make them into a skirt. Unfortunately the reason that her husband was throwing out these jeans was a huge rip across the behind, and it was strategically placed so that I didn't have quite enough fabric for a skirt.

So, instead, I made a tote bag, for carrying around all of life's essentials on a casual weekend.

The bag is my standard tote size, 10 x 12 inches. It will comfortably hold A4 paper, or your favourite magazine. The handles are 25" long, and fit nicely over the shoulder. You can also carry the bag in your hand without it dragging on the floor.

There is a pocket on each side of the bag - the one on the front still has the original "Levi's" tag!

The bag is lined with a pretty blue t-shirt from my mountainous collection of "things to cut up".



Now to parcel it up and send it off in the post - along with my Dad's second Christmas glove. They took slightly longer to knit than I'd expected... sorry Dad!

Four New Vintage Duvet Covers...

Where do you draw the line between "vintage" and just plain "old"?

I have four new-to-me duvet covers now available, and I think I would describe two of them as "vintage" and the other two as "recycled".

The E.T. and Bambi duvet covers I would describe as "vintage", as each of them is more than twenty years old. The Winnie the Pooh and Finding Nemo bedding is much more recent, so I'd describe those as "reclaimed" or "recycled".

These four new fabrics are now listed on the website, and are ready and waiting to me made into shiny new items, just for you!

You can order them very simply. Go to the Design By Claire web store, and add your elasticated skirt, a-line skirt, bolero jacket or tote bag to the shopping cart.

When you check out, simply tell me your choice of fabric in the "information" box. you can also include your measurements at this point.

As soon as I receive your order I'll email you to confirm the details, and then get started on your sewing!

Bags of Space...

...pun intended.

Today I have been mostly making cushion covers and Christmas presents. This means that I can't show you most of what I've been making, but I'm fairly certain that the recipient of this little bag won't be reading my blog and spoiling her surprise - she's only five!

This is a regular magazine-sized tote bag, made from a recycled duvet cover.

The handles are a bit narrower than usual, to accommodate little hands.



Don't forget that you can order tote bags in the shop, in any of the fabrics shown here.

Marmalade Sandwich, anyone?

This skirt is another commission for Madamequeeny. I wasn't sure whether the print would be too big for it to work properly, but I'm actually really pleased with the way it's come out.

Considering the age this duvet cover must be, the fabric's in absolutely excellent condition. I'll probably make another skirt out of what I have left.

Over the weekend I had an email from Cia (of Cia's Palette), telling me that my two favourite fish fabrics are back in stock.



I've only just placed an order with Cia (for lots of different half-yards to make tote bags), but I'm sorely temped to make a version of Simplicity 6373, with the fishies in bags for the skirt, and the free-swimming ones for the bodice...



What do you think...?

Star Wars Skirt!

This one's a commission for Madamequeeny - she saw the fabric on the website, and couldn't resist!

The print goes in all directions so it's inevitable that something's going to be upside down. I decided it was probably safest to make sure that Darth Vader was the right way up though!

Here is also a sneaky peek at one of the next projects I'm going to be making for myself. The Bambi duvet cover arrived this morning, and the printed front is backed with plain brown cotton. That makes it perfect for this dress with contrasting trim, I think.

Erin would be proud.

More Space...

Remember the space bolero?

Now it has a matching skirt.

The waistband is bomber-jacket elastic, simply zig-zagged to the top of the skirt. The hem is bound, partly because I wanted it to match the bolero and partly because I couldn't find any other form of navy trimming which was actually nice.

I like elasticated waistbands, because my waist size varies by up to four inches depending on my health (long story), and this way I know that I'll be able to wear it whenever I like.

Space is big. Very big.

My jacket says so.

This is a little bolero jacket that I put together this afternoon, following a sudden flash of inspiration yesterday evening.

Believe it or not, it's made from a kids' pillowcase!

It's a different style from the red silk bolero - shorter in the arms and the back - and I think I like this one better. It'll be more comfortable to wear to work, as my arms are more free to move around.

I do have tons of this fabric left (I bought a duvet cover as well as a pillowcase!), so if anybody wants one of these, please yell!

Prices start from £30, depending on fabric.
(Obviously, a silk bolero is going to cost more than one made from a recycled pillowcase!)
It's fully lined, and the sleeve edges are bound. I can bind all of the edges if you prefer, or none at all.

These little jackets look fabulous over corsets, by the way... ;)

REM t-shirt - Before and After...

Before: 1 REM t-shirt, size XL. This is what happens when you're at the back of the merchandise queue.

After: 1 REM t-shirt, much smaller. This is what happens when you have a sister with a sewing machine. ;)

My sister bought this t-shirt when she went to see REM at the Milton Keynes Bowl, approximately one million years ago. She has kept the t-shirt all this time even though it in no way fitted her. In fact, her fiancé wore it when they went to see REM in Hyde Park, slightly more recently. Apparently it was also too big for him, and he's over six feet tall!

It's actually quite nerve-wracking, chopping up other people's precious t-shirts. All it takes is a snip in the wrong place and you've got a hole, or a t-shirt that's too tight. Band t-shirts in particular come with a lot of memories attached, which imbue them with greater significance than you might expect in a mere item of clothing. Being entrusted to refashion someone else's beloved t-shirt is actually quite an honour.