Sew & tell
New Zealand Listener|September 2-8 2023
A new breed of at-home sewers explain what it is - besides pandemic lockdowns - that inspires them to get creative with fabric.
EMMA RICKETTS 
Sew & tell

Like thousands of Kiwis during the 2020 Covid-19 lockdown, Sarah Gulley spent a lot of her time online. 

Then a fourth-year law student, Gulley lived with six friends in a small, four-bedroom central Wellington apartment. The limited living space was crowded with desks as the flatmates studied and worked from home. Looking back, Gulley wonders how they ever made it work.

When Victoria University extended its mid-semester break to cope with the shift to lockdown, Gulley had to find ways to combat boredom. She spent hours each day on TikTok, gravitating towards crafting videos on the app. This led her to graphic design TikTok, candle-making TikTok and finally sewing TikTok. “The TikTok algorithm is amazing,” she says. “It was my gateway.”

As soon as the lockdown lifted, Gulley returned home to Pukerua Bay and used her mother’s sewing machine to make her first garment – a tiered, sleeved dress in an intricate black and white pattern.

“It was the Wilder Gown by the Friday Pattern Company, which I made with a cotton drill. I don’t wear the original garment any more because I didn’t quite choose the right fabric – I cut it up and turned it into wide-brim bucket hats.”

Undeterred, Gulley bought her own sewing machine – a Brother Innov-is A16 – and joined the growing number of young Kiwis turning to the craft.

A STITCH IN TIME

New Zealand’s once-strong textile industry suffered under the rise of imported ready-to-wear fashion.

Denne historien er fra September 2-8 2023-utgaven av New Zealand Listener.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra September 2-8 2023-utgaven av New Zealand Listener.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA NEW ZEALAND LISTENERSe alt
First-world problem
New Zealand Listener

First-world problem

Harrowing tales of migrants attempting to enter the US highlight the political failure to fully tackle the problem.

time-read
3 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Applying intelligence to AI
New Zealand Listener

Applying intelligence to AI

I call it the 'Terminator Effect', based on the premise that thinking machines took over the world.

time-read
2 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Nazism rears its head
New Zealand Listener

Nazism rears its head

Smirky Höcke, with his penchant for waving with a suspiciously straight elbow and an open palm, won't get to be boss of either state.

time-read
2 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Staying ahead of the game
New Zealand Listener

Staying ahead of the game

Will the brave new world of bipartisanship that seems to be on offer with an Infrastructure Commission come to fruition?

time-read
4 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Grasping the nettle
New Zealand Listener

Grasping the nettle

Broccoli is horrible. It smells, when being cooked, like cat pee.

time-read
3 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Hangry? Eat breakfast
New Zealand Listener

Hangry? Eat breakfast

People who don't break their fast first thing in the morning report the least life satisfaction.

time-read
3 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Chemical reaction
New Zealand Listener

Chemical reaction

Nitrates in processed meats are well known to cause harm, but consumed from plant sources, their effect is quite different.

time-read
4 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Me and my guitar
New Zealand Listener

Me and my guitar

Australian guitarist Karin Schaupp sticks to the familiar for her Dunedin concerts.

time-read
2 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Time is on my side
New Zealand Listener

Time is on my side

Age does not weary some of our much-loved musicians but what keeps them on the road?

time-read
7 mins  |
September 9, 2024
The kids are not alright
New Zealand Listener

The kids are not alright

Nuanced account details how China's blessed generation has been replaced by one consumed by fear and hopelessness.

time-read
4 mins  |
September 9, 2024