๐Ÿงถ

Clothes

Photo: Jenna Kelly

I love clothes from the ground up: the farming of sheep and cotton, the spinning and weaving that turns fibre into fabric, the supply chains that carry it around the world, the way a garment becomes a cultural object, and what happens once it's worn out. Below is a gallery of objects, and behind each photo is that object's own story: mended, layered, upcycled, or borrowed, and how it fits into that bigger loop, soil to second-hand shop.

A cardigan covered in small crocheted flowers made from speckled white scrap yarn
A mustard-yellow knitted cardigan trimmed with colourful granny squares along the front edges and collar
Placeholder illustration of a pullover, photo coming soon
Raw fleece soaking in a bowl of soapy water, with wellington boots in the background
A hand spindle wound with pale handspun yarn, resting against a tweed project
A small needle-felted sheep sitting on top of two James Rebanks books about sheep farming
A striped colour-block jumper belted at the waist and worn as a dress on a boardwalk through reed beds
Placeholder illustration of the reworked dress with its detachable sleeve top attached, photo coming soon
Placeholder illustration of the reworked dress without its detachable sleeve top, photo coming soon
A striped knitted garment in brown, mustard, teal, and green, with a row of buttonholes down one edge
A long striped knitted panel shading from near-black through brown, teal, blue, and purple
A striped knitted garment laid flat, showing a row of buttons and a pink ribbon tie at the waist
A short dress worn over a white lace underskirt to extend its length
 Photo: Jenna Kelly
A hand-sewn burgundy tie-on pocket with a long cotton tape tie
A drawstring bag holding granny square crochet, yarn, and scissors
A pair of hand-knitted mittens with a sheep pattern
A pair of hand-knitted mittens with a different sheep pattern
A mismatched pair of hand-knitted mittens for Mum, one navy and one oatmeal
A pair of hand-knitted mittens, one with a hamster holding a carrot and one with a skeletal Death figure carrying a scythe
A pair of pale blue hand-knitted mittens embroidered with a dragon, its body and teeth stretching across both hands
A fabric-covered notebook, a crocheted book cover, and a tablet laid out on a checked tablecloth
A crocheted pencil case next to two small matching pouches, a round coin purse and a patch embroidered with a circle and the number 10
A zipped, floral-lined cutlery pouch holding a set of reusable wooden utensils
A crocheted toadstool-shaped bag with a red spotted cap and a mint green strap
A laptop sleeve crocheted to look like an old television, with static on the screen and two dial buttons on the side
A crocheted basketweave laptop sleeve shading from navy through blue to magenta
A navy crocheted phone pouch on a long crossbody strap
A crocheted phone case shaped like a classic Nokia handset, with the Nokia logo and a full numeric keypad worked in contrasting yarn
A small tartan sample woven on a cardboard loom, in blue, rust, and dusty pink threads
A floral tin full of oddments of leftover wool and embroidery thread
A red knitted bobble hat and matching scarf with a white Nordic snowflake pattern
A teal crocheted cowl fastened with a row of wooden buttons
A hand-knitted mitten in a rainbow gradient of purple, gold, and rust
Close-up of a grey jumper cuff repaired with a visible mending patch
Close-up of a fair isle patterned cuff mended with a patch of rust-coloured wool
Close-up of ribbed olive knitwear mended with a small blue-grey leaf-shaped patch
A tiny needle-felted sheep face charm held between two fingers
A crocheted banana-shaped phone case embroidered with "banana phone"
A crocheted blossom branch with white flowers on wire stems, arranged in a pink vase
A red wool skirt with a mustard drawstring gathered at the waistband and a cream floral ribbon trim along the hem
The red wool skirt worn with a navy knitted top, the drawstring waist gathered to fit
Red trousers laid flat, showing two separate waistband tabs on white cotton tape at each hip
The back of a black crop top with crossed elastic straps between the shoulder blades
The back pocket of light-wash jeans embroidered with small blue roses
Close-up of the chunky dark grey knitted wrap skirt, crossed and tied at the hip
A black three-quarter-sleeve top worn over a dark red skirt
A grey ribbed three-quarter-sleeve top worn over a floral crop top
A grey floral button-front skirt laid flat, hemmed shorter than its original length
A small crocheted basketweave pouch in mustard and heather purple
A textured brown knitted pouch with a soft grey-blue lining tucked inside
A small knitted brown pouch with pockets, perched on the arm of an orange sofa
A beige and brown crocheted laptop sleeve with mended burgundy wool patches stitched onto both bottom corners
A pile of dark socks with pale contrasting thread visibly darning the heels and toes
References