A challenge to all dressmakers.
Posted: Mon Feb 16, 2009 9:29 pm
http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.htm ... page_id=34
As the article won't be available for ever I quote it below.
"Why waste money on haute couture when you could have your very own designer wardrobe growing merrily in your vegetable patch?
Take inspiration from Nicole Dextras, who has created a whole weedrobe from leaves and flowers. 'I use mainly plentiful local plants. I need many leaves and flowers, so I look for plants where I can get at least a hundred,' the 52-year-old said.
'My biggest challenge is finding enough natural material in the city.'
Ms Dextras began her cabbage couture using offcuts she found near her home in Vancouver, Canada.
Now she has a deal with a garden centre which lets her leaf through the cuttings at the end of the day.
'The garments are made to wear but they are more for a special event, where you would just wear them for a day or an evening,' she added.
The art tutor spends between two and three weeks making the outfits, using willow branches for frames and then making the 'fabric' from magnolia or laurel leaves.
She also uses hawthorn thorns to pin the foliage together.
But, true to her green roots, Ms Dextras is not looking to make cash from her creations.
'The concept is anti-commercialisation but they have a future in making statements for the environment,' she said. However, she is considering making the green gowns to order. "
As the article won't be available for ever I quote it below.
"Why waste money on haute couture when you could have your very own designer wardrobe growing merrily in your vegetable patch?
Take inspiration from Nicole Dextras, who has created a whole weedrobe from leaves and flowers. 'I use mainly plentiful local plants. I need many leaves and flowers, so I look for plants where I can get at least a hundred,' the 52-year-old said.
'My biggest challenge is finding enough natural material in the city.'
Ms Dextras began her cabbage couture using offcuts she found near her home in Vancouver, Canada.
Now she has a deal with a garden centre which lets her leaf through the cuttings at the end of the day.
'The garments are made to wear but they are more for a special event, where you would just wear them for a day or an evening,' she added.
The art tutor spends between two and three weeks making the outfits, using willow branches for frames and then making the 'fabric' from magnolia or laurel leaves.
She also uses hawthorn thorns to pin the foliage together.
But, true to her green roots, Ms Dextras is not looking to make cash from her creations.
'The concept is anti-commercialisation but they have a future in making statements for the environment,' she said. However, she is considering making the green gowns to order. "
