BY Vera Vandenbosch | February 7, 2010

A testimony for recycling

During a period of self-inflicted unemployment a few years ago (I resigned from a particularly frustrating and unsatisfying job), I really felt the need to make something with my hands. My funds for materials were tight however and this is how I found myself at a salvation army in the city, buying up their entire stock of men’s silk ties, at 50 cents a piece. I had no idea what I was going to do with them, I just knew the colors and material appealed to me. I had no idea when I was taking them apart, pressing them and sewing the pieces back together. It was only when I saw tie silk by the yard in a fabric store that it all came together: I was going to make a stole. Not exactly the most practical or even useful of garments. I did end up wearing it to the job interview that landed me what became my most rewarding position so far, both personally, professionally and creatively. Recycling works…