Vintage Sheets and The Big Design Market!

Cast offs Vintage Tunic Top by Morgan Wills

Piles of vintage sheets becoming cushions & quilts

Funnily enough I consider myself a bit of a squirrel when it comes to gathering all manner of craft related bits and bobs I think I may be able to use in my work. I’m passionate about re-purposing, recycling and generally up-cycling discarded fabrics into new and loved products. I’ve been working with felted woollen jumpers for many years now – turning them into scarves, blankets, Babushka dolls and more. 

In my travels over the years, collecting materials from here there and everywhere – I somewhere along the way discovered vintage sheets from the 60’s & 70’s. It was the floral patterns and colours that particularly caught my eye and let’s face it - I was a child of the 70’s – so there is a good dose of nostalgia associated with them – I think it was inevitable that I started to collect them!

The piles grew and grew - as I kept stacking them up in the corner of my studio. I knew that one day they would become a new product and last year I started to dip into them when I produced my ‘Cute as a button’ range of cushions, pincushions and rattles.

In recent months they have had my full attention as I have been working on an idea for turning them into vintage inspired quilts and women’s clothing. When my clever quilting friend Emma from Ballarat Patchwork closed her store I knew she would be the one to work with me on bringing the quilts and quilt kits to life – collaborating has been fun! The two sample quilt designs – Circles & Squares and Chevron pattern are almost finished and will be available for purchase as pre-cut kits with full instructions and ready to sew.

The beginning of my women’s clothing range has been inspired by styles I like to wear myself. My first design is a loose fitting tunic style top with pockets (I love pockets!) and will be made in small (10 to 12), medium (14 to 16) and large (16 plus). I love the fact that the beauty of using vintage fabrics means you won’t see anyone else wearing the same top as you!

So there you have it! It’s been a long process in design and prototyping to get to the product launch stage and I’m delighted to say that these and lots of other crafty bits and bobs I have made and gathered will be available on my stand at the Big Design Market on the 6, 7, & 8 December at the Royal Exhibition Buildings, Carlton Gardens.

I look forward to seeing you there! Morgan x