Wardrobe Refashion
 Being green comes in many fashions—it's not all hybrid cars and compact fluorescent light bulbs (although those are great, too). One Australian stay-at-home mum is wearing her environmentalism on her sleeve, literally, and has invited the blogosphere to join in.
In 2006, Nichola Prested started Wardrobe Refashion and welcomed fellow crafters to take the refashion pledge. Their vow? To abstain from buying manufactured clothing items for two, four, or six months. The only "new" clothes "refashionistas" can have are ones they make or recycle from pre-loved items. Exemptions are allowed for undies and shoes, and crafters can buy some new fabric and yarn, but the emphasis is less consumption, more creativity. This collaborative blog and Flickr group fast became a hit, and each new refashion cycle has added more and more participants. We talked to Nikki about her sustainable style. What gave you the idea to start Wardrobe Refashion? I was looking into being more eco-friendly and came across some sites on the Internet. One was fiftyRx3; Jill spent a year wearing 50% sustainable clothing. The other was Brown Dress; Alex wore the same brown dress, which was handmade by her, every day for a year. [We love that site, too—and featured it in Picks last year!] I was not prepared to wear the same item of clothing every day for a year nor was I prepared to spend a heap of money on sustainable clothing so I decided to compromise by refashioning clothing and making my own from scratch. My main reasons for doing this were to save money, be more eco friendly, and improve my sewing skills. Have you always been into sewing and crafting? I've always been creative. My favourite thing to do growing up was to make things. I did a little sewing when I was younger, learning the basics from my mum but didn't really get into sewing as a hobby until just over three years ago whilst pregnant with my first child. What inspires your fashion sense? I just like to wear what I think suits me rather than follow any fashion. I don't think of myself as fashionable at all, probably very unfashionable in the eyes of fashion magazines, but I don't buy those so I don't really care. I have my own odd sense of style, I think, and I like that. A lot of moms are into Wardrobe Refashion, both for themselves and for their kids. Was this part of your plan or did it surprise you? No, it wasn't really part of my master plan, but it didn't surprise me either. I think it's great that mums are taking part and getting their kids involved, hopefully it will rub off onto them, and as they grow up they'll be more conscious of how they go about buying or making clothing. Where are the refashioners from? We have participants from all over the world: Australia, U.S.A., U.K., Canada, Japan, Europe, and others. How many sign-ups did you get the first round? How many are in the current round? Is there a limit? In the first round, I think there were about 60 or so that signed up. The last round I had almost 150 sign up. I haven't thought about putting a limit on how many I will accept. At the moment, I think there are around 400 participants. Which pledge length is the most popular? Two months is the most popular. People want to start small to see how they go, then a lot do repeat their pledges, usually going for a longer period the next time around. What's the strangest thing someone has refashioned? Well, I'm not sure we have anything I'd think of as strange, but we did recently have a girl refashion her favourite old T-shirts with logos into a quilt, it looks really good. What's the most inspiring thing someone has refashioned? I really don't think I could choose one item, there are so many that I admire and a lot that inspire too. Are people without advanced sewing skills feeling pretty well accepted? Everyone is really encouraging, and people new to sewing fit right in. Wardrobe Refashion is about learning a new skill, it's a great place to ask for advice and get inspiration and ideas. Thanks Nikki! We can't wait to see what you and the rest of the refashionistas are wearing next.
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