A friend mentioned recently that her daughter was saddened by what she saw as a widespread sense of apathy about environmental issues.
“I have an idea…” I said “Let’s have a sustainability working bee! We’ll get together and mend things and swap clothes and anything else we can think of!”
Over the course of a couple of weeks, the idea evolved into a fully planned out day. As I mentioned it to friends in passing, the number of eager participants grew, and so it was that 19 of us gathered together at our house yesterday for crochet and beeswax wrap making lessons, sewing projects, good food and great conversation.
I’d made a stack of cloth napkins, lace vegetable bags and crocheted dishcloths as gifts…
We served up a big cheese platter, smoked salmon, freshly baked baguettes and chestnut flour brownies. My darling friend The Norsk Nymph provided incredibly delicious gluten-free treats. I was having so much fun that I completely forgot to take photos of any of it except the brownies…
We set up the clothing swap in the hallway, which worked brilliantly! “Swap” is probably a misnomer, because our system was: donate anything you DON’T want, take away anything you DO want. All the leftovers have now been stashed into t-shirt bags for donation to the Salvos.
Maude gave crochet lessons to anyone who wanted to learn – I’d been to Reverse Garbage and the Salvos to source used hooks and donated all of my half finished balls of cotton…
Meg’s first attempt (in green) was seriously impressive!
I’d ordered a stack of beeswax sheets for the occasion and Pete taught everyone how to make their own wraps. He’s the world’s most patient man, according to my friends…
We put my sewing machines to good use and mended Cake’s vintage chenille bedspread and hemmed Ilaria’s too short dress into a top. Pete and I used a pair of old jeans to reupholster Bernie’s office chair…
The Norsk Nymph asked for a bespoke yoga bag, which came together in minutes from another pair of old jeans (it’s a basic reworking of this bag)…
I gave pilates instructor Meg a different yoga bag that I’d made earlier from an old umbrella skin…
Jenni was very happy to turn her old t-shirt into a bag. The sleeves then became a water bottle holder and a polishing rag…
I, on the other hand, was delighted with this gorgeous bag that she donated to the swap – it was the perfect size and shape for a crochet bag!
Perhaps the quirkiest request of the day came from Tara, who wanted a crocheted Christmas hat for her brother’s snake. Maude was happy to oblige! Tara was thrilled, but disappointed that she had to wait before trying it on as the snake had just shed its skin and needed to be left alone for a few days (she’s promised to send a photo when it finally happens!)…
Our Sustainability Working Bee was as waste-free and low carbon as we could make it – we used hard plastic glasses that I’d bought from Reverse Garbage in the late 90s. They get pulled out whenever we have a gathering of more than a dozen people. I figured out yesterday that a small melamine cleaning cube will scrub permanent marker off the plastic, which meant we could write names on them…
Our cloth napkins have now been in use for two whole years and they’re still good enough to use for guests (granted, my standards aren’t overly high – I’m happy so long as they’re not too stained). The napkins wash easily and line dry in a flash – no ironing required…
Finally, our newly installed solar energy system meant that even though it was 34°C yesterday and the house was full of mostly menopausal women, we were able to run the air conditioner on eco mode and still be off the grid! Yay!
The day before the working bee, I emailed my friends and asked them if they’d be interested in adding a charitable component to the day. I suggested that if everyone donated a couple of gold coins, we might be able to raise enough to fund a Kiva loan (US$25)…
And because I have ridiculously generous friends, we actually raised enough to fund four loan contributions!
It was truly such a memorable day, and I’d urge you all to consider getting together with your own friends and neighbors and starting something similar! Even if you’re not particularly crafty, just swapping clothes rather than buying new ones will reduce your carbon footprint.
It’s also incredibly rewarding to see the knock-on effects from an event like this – for example, we have several friends now discussing renewable energy with their partners. After yesterday, I think we’ll all look at our possessions a little differently, thinking twice before discarding or donating, and more importantly, before buying new. And hopefully the younger folk who were here will have left feeling a little more optimistic, knowing that some of us really are trying to live more sustainably.
Let’s keep the momentum rolling towards a greener future! 🌿💚
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 