Community-stitched Mary Quant Dress Stitch-School
In February 2020 Stitch-School was invited by the V&A Dundee to design three dresses to be stitch by the community using Mary Quant downloadable pattern for the exhibition Sewing Box for the Future.
Across the UK, approximately 30-40% of clothing in our existing wardrobe is unused – this equates to £1K per household or £30 billion nationally. The consumption and use of clothing are at odds. Each time we invest in a new garment, we are making another obsolete. As a result, £140 million worth of clothing (350,000 tones) is landfilled in the UK each year. So, what can we do to help? One practical option is to devote more time and care to looking after what we already have. By focusing on three areas: care, repair and customisation, Sewing Box for the Future illustrates that by making small changes, we can make a big difference – we have the power to effect change. The exhibition invites you to join in by learning some new skills to help proactively solve the problem. Hemming trousers or darning a sock might seem time consuming or overwhelming at first, but with a needle and thread and a few guiding principles, it is possible to love fashion and update your wardrobe in a sustainable, responsible way. Sewing Box for the Future is curated by Dr Jen Ballie of the University of Dundee and V&A Dundee, exploring her research into fashion and the circular economy.
The cloths was stretched on the Stitch-School tables over a period of time where visitors were invited to sit around a communal table and embroidered patterns onto three dresses using a simple set of instructions. The third dress was sent out of the museum during lockdown to be stitched in a community setting.
The dresses have been made from an open-source pattern that you can download from our website along with the rest of our sewing resources and part of Sewing Box for the Future.
The third dress in a series created exclusively for V&A Dundee by London-based Stitch-School, this garment was hand-finished by Dundee-based collective Kindred Clothing. Over several weeks the group worked with V&A Dundee’s Learning team and practicing designers in museum-based workshops focused on developing embroidery sewing skills. Applying a range of textile embellishment techniques inspired by Sewing Box for the Future, the group disrupted and enhanced the original design to make it personal to them. Kindred Clothing is a Front Lounge project working with young parents to access a unique qualification with a foundation curriculum focused on the fashion industry. Dress patterns constructed into finished garment collaboratively by Kindred Clothing, V&A Dundee’s Learning team and textile designers Kirstie Campbell and Syrah Jay.
