April 30, 2015
“I was so grateful to my friends who woke up early and stood out in the cold to have their photos taken. And I’m so thankful to Hannah for her enthusiasm and skill. She brought out the beauty in that cold morning. I’m really happy with the outcome of the images. They’re just what I had in my mind and it’s great to be able to have something to give back to my friends to say, ‘thank you’ for being my inspiration!”
– Charis Bailey
It was an overcast and very chilly morning when I met with Charis and a few of her girlfriends to photograph these hand embroidered jewellery pieces Charis made for her end-of-the-year university project! I was so excited when Charis contacted me to join her on this project! It wasn’t an ordinary portrait session; it was unique and crafty and enlightening! I loved bringing an extra angle to her pieces and giving her the images she needed for her university project. My hope is that these photos play a small role in inspiring others to acknowledge who makes their clothing and to give those people the appreciation they deserve. Read more about Charis’ project below!
Course: Hand Embroidery for Fashion, Interiors and Textile Art with the Royal School of Needlework
Title of the Project: I love it because you made it
Brief: “For my final major project I set myself a brief to create a collection of embroidered jewellery. However, although I love jewellery and love wearing it, I decided I didn’t just want to create pieces that could be sold commercially. Instead, I wanted to create jewellery with more meaning. So I decided to develop a more personal approach to my project. I wrote myself a brief to create 6 different jewellery pieces for 6 of my friends. The key being, to make each piece unique and personal to each individual. For each piece, I wanted to capture an aspect of each of the girl’s personality whilst making it something that they would consider wearing.” – Charis Bailey
“Alongside my embroidery work I’ve been doing a lot of research into sustainable fashion. The reality today is that there are thousands of workers that make the clothes and jewellery we wear that get no recognition what-so-ever. Not only that, they are often treated like slaves and paid less than minimum wage. This is something I’m passionate about changing!
Therefore for my project I wanted to further promote the idea of re-establishing the relationship between that maker and the consumer. (Hence the title ‘I love it because you made it’) Now of course it’s unrealistic to assume we can suddenly become best friends with the people that make the things we buy. However, If we make more conscious decisions when shopping, acknowledging those people, then we are more likely to value the pieces we buy instead of throwing away and replacing them every few weeks.” – Charis Bailey
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