Incorporating the industry's ideas of introducing products and educational tools for independently minded business owners, the fashion industry, and retail fashion buyers, Nolcha sponsors London, New York, and Chicago fashion weeks. U.K. based eco-friendly " Morsbags", challenged its U.S. 'pods' to make and send re-usable cloth shopping bags to Chicago.
Our pods are small, unlike in the UK where fervent and passionate sewers work diligently, and endlessly, to create one bag after another. Often sewing in public places and then handing out the completed bags for free, they often surprise prominent public figures by giving them bags and even getting them to help sew some of their own! Check out their photo albums here and truly be inspired!
We couldn't come up with 1,000 much less 2,000 completed bags in time, so the UK pods had to chip in and help us out! With only a few days remaining before the Chicago Fashion Week opened, I did manage to get these six made and labeled and sent off to my contact. The idea is to get retailers to think 'outside of the box' and consider the environment with our own classy re-useable bags instead of ' name brand' paper ones.
My floral bags used to be curtains, and have been re-purposed into 'green' shopping bags. So, with a 'morsbags.com' label that advertises environmental awareness as a premium label of its own...2,000 morsbags will be released onto the fashion conscious sidewalks of Chicago this month and hopefully onto the arms of savvy shoppers and a new kind of label awareness.
Then the great Pillowcase Sew-off! After hearing about Pillowcases Needed for American Samoa I managed 7 pillowcases for donations disaster relief. These were all made from remants from my 'green' bag making, or leftover pieces from costume and garment making days.
Not as many as I might have liked, but still 13 projects in a short time frame is enough to make me happy, and certainly put a smile on my face :)
See, Finn...I can sew quickly when I need to and I'm even Crossing the T's and Dotting the I's... ;)
Links:
Bags:
morsbag website: http://www.morsbags.com/
Morsbag Guide (PDF)
Morsbag Guide (MS Word)
How-To Animation
Labels (PDF)
Labels (MS Word)
Make your own labels with fabric and freezerpaper
Pillowcases:
Make a Magic 'Burrito' Pillowcase
6 comments:
These Morsbags are great!! I have been making my own bags out of recycled fabrics forever - I may have to add the Morsbag label to the bags with my own!!! Thanks for sharing!!!
Wonderful bags and wow on all that sewing. I'm quilting like crazy too. I'm on my 4 UFO and should have it finished today. This incentive was all I needed.
Great job!!
Great causes all...I remember when I lived in England I was really good about bringing bags with me whenever I shopped. I need to get back into the habit again!
Good for you! you're one of the few online bloggers who always is willing to help with whatever cause you hear about. I really admire that.
Thanks so much for your comments and concerns about the Samoan people, they will love the pillowcases. Thanks so much...I can see that you too have a quilters heart!!
Wow, you were very busy and got so much accomplished. Great job!
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