Flourishing Fringes!

yes...there is quite a bit of fringing in this poncho...yesterday was a day of endings. I finished the poncho with a thick flourish of fringing and I finished the book I was reading ("How to be Both" by Ali Smith)too. Now I have a bit of a combined post-craft-project/post-good-book blues....

piece of cloth part: from black and white to technicolour

A piece of cloth exhibition is hosted by Gleaners inc and curated by Liz Jones as part of L’oreal Fashion Week.

Over thirty artists/crafters/designers were given this little swatch of 70’s fabric in orange, green and brown to respond to in any way they liked - colour, pattern, feeling - whatever.

Initially, my reaction was to go into complete denial about the 70’s (yes I’m sure there are others out there who are in denial about the '70's too..) and bleach the hues away in my head...

And I made this. The poncho is 100% recycled material(even the sewing thread was vintage and from an op shop). The base is a felted cream blanket and the lines are from jumpers recycled into felt rope/yarn and hand dyed black. 

Yes. A bit drab isn't it? But then, like Dorothy going to Oz my world burst into technicolour! I embraced the Seventies. I revelled in the colour scheme.
 

 I tried all the groovy seventies crafts...

like macrame, crochet, wooden beading, latch hooking and tassels....

and then I added pineapples. Because wasn't that what you did in the Seventies? Just added pineapples to everything?

It doesn't look Seventies - which is what I wanted. I wanted it to look modern - but it strangely looks a bit Edwardian. Hmmm.

A Piece of Cloth Exhibition opening night is Friday at 6pm at Gleaners Inc

tassel garland how to

A factory around the corner was throwing away rolls of interfacing - we rescued them from the skip and have used it over the years for pattern making and other things. I wanted to make more tassels but in the spirit of keeping it eco I didn't want to got out and buy anything new!
Here's how I made the tassels....same technique for paper but you don't need the wire....

A friends Mum got married in the 1950's and had bridesmaids in rainbow pastel frocks. That's what i think of when I look at these. Swishing frocks and sugared almonds.