From the Midland Free Press, By CHRISTINA BERNARDO
In an effort to keep complex items such as textiles from landfills and to extend the life of cloth beyond its original usefulness, Midland resident Louise Sparrow makes one-of-a-kind clothing with used apparel and scrap fabrics.
She makes clothing such as t-shirts, pants, skirts and dresses for children under her label Repurposed.
"I make all kinds of textiles, from chair covers to apparel to home decor," she said. "(Making textiles) uses a lot energy, water and various resources to create, so I'm trying to take that energy that's already been spent, and extend the life of the textile that's been produced.
"I'm keeping the clothes out of the landfill and I'm extending the original investment of energy, and resources, and turning it into something else," she said. "For me it mimics life itself. Nothing alive ever really dies. It just goes into the ground, turns into energy and comes back as something else."
Harvesting fabric is her way of being environmentally-concious.
Before she got into making children's clothing, she was making trapper hats and reusable bags.
"I've always wanted to do more with textiles because there's so much out there," she said. "I started with this because it's small enough that I can do it in a short period of time. I can charge $15 for the boys' t-shirt and $18 for the little girls' dress -- that's not inexpensive. On the other hand, you're also getting a one-of-a-kind, and then I bring my design skills to it."
Sparrow's ultimate talent is what she brings to her Repurposed pieces.
"The design process is very organic. I don't decide that I'm going to make a shirt an orange shirt," she said. "I look at what I've got. I let the fabric inspire the design."
The 50-year-old gets her clothes from local thrift shops.
She will make other clothing sizes upon request.
Sparrow has been sewing most of her life and loves "to turn something into something else."Sparrow's future for Repurposed is to continue to harvest fabric, but also grow it, so she can create sewing circles and perhaps sell on the Internet.
For more information on Repurposed, contact Sparrow at 527-4023.
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