Gentle Footprint

This is the name for my dream. I am going to take a risk, and publicly talk about my dream as it develops.

I have made things all my life it seems. I remember sitting on the back steps of our house (a typical Queenslander house on poles, and the laundry was under the house), learning to knit a head band on a day home from school - my mother was washing the clothes. It was orange wool, I remember, and I proudly wore that head band.

The perfect birthday present I remember from my childhood was 2 pieces of material and a pattern - and then the privilege of making up those dresses. I remember one was light blue floral, and the other was pink. I think Mum made up one, and I made the other. It was a princess style dress pattern. The house I can picture this in means that I was younger than a teenager when this happened - my 10th birthday I suspect. I told my mother recently, that SHE is to blame for my obsession with crafts and sewing - and she is, and should be proud of it.

I went on to do Home Science throughout High School, and through the enthusiasm of an extraordinary teacher, 8 of us went on from Year 12 to become Home Economics teachers. Sewing was always my favourite part of Home Economics.

Life has proceeded, and I left the teaching field, and brought up my children, making all their clothes for many years. For some time I earned some pocket money making clothes for others.

I have seen home made clothes move from a necessity in life, to the a sign of being "poor", to a freakish, unusual thing to do - and now I see the tide turning again where making clothes is a valued and precious skill to have.

It is my dream to pass pass on the skills of making your own clothes and home essentials to other people.

The other side of this dream is the need to live gentler on our earth. We are all finally becoming aware of the need to make sure out footprint on the earth is lighter and gentler. My dream is to be a catalyst for encouraging people to tread lightly on the the earth in our home and family life.

Watch here as this unfolds.

Do you want to join me in this journey? If this ignites a passion in you in any way - please let me know. I don't know how things are going to develop - and maybe there is already something happening out there that is achieving this dream that we can work together with.

Cheers
Janet McKinney