CRAFT LOVE FESTIVAL - APRON STRINGS


My name is Tessa Bowden and I have recently started up my very small business making clothing. Mostly this is girls’ skirts and dresses plus accessories, but I am venturing into maternity skirts and have had many requests for grown up versions… I’ll get there eventually! I make everything at home in a small sewing room, with my two trusty colleagues (my sewing machine and my overlocker) in lovely Lyttelton. 



I make skirts because the other mums at my girls’ school kept asking me to! I started by just making skirts for their girls for birthdays and got pestered into doing it for real. I have loved to sew since I was at primary school, and particularly love mixing and matching fabrics. My skirts are full of colour and I like to match up unlikely prints and encourage kids to wear fun things. 


I haven’t been to many markets so far, but I love the sense of camaraderie I have experienced with other craftspeople and the gorgeous things to admire and appreciate. But selling at a market also pushes me out of my comfort zone to a place where I get feedback on what I do. I love that markets are having a revival, because they sure beat the mall for a pleasant shopping and social experience! 

For me ‘Indie Design’ implies a modern take on traditional craftiness. That is, making something beautiful and useful out of not much, using things we have locally or using usual materials in an unexpected way, making something for our needs rather than buying mass-produced items. Craft is cool again! 


Find Apron Strings on Facebook

1 comment:

Helen julian said...

Cute skirts!