How should we relate to objects? Are there better and worse ways to live with inanimate things? In a time when so much is bought and quickly thrown away, these are the inherently ethical questions that underpin the Precious Things project.
This week’s ‘Thing Person’ Hayley Lau of Remade in Melbourne blog knows a thing or two about this. Her blog details her journey into ethical living, focusing on 'creating, thrifting and making do.' Until recently, Hayley also designed and mades clothes for her ethical fashion label Heidi & Seek.
Here Hayley talks about her beloved upcycled clock, decoupaged in vintage fashion papers from prettygreen.etsy.com. I also asked about how personal style, making, consuming and ethics fit together for her.
You rarely see clocks in homes and public places these days - most people consult their mobile phones to check the time. What's this clock's significance for you?
Well, it depicts vintage dresses and fashion, which I'm very interested in, so it's meaningful in that way. I also adore the look of it. It's my style exactly. I'm really good at changing my tastes, but I can tell that I'll never get tired of this clock. Most of the other things I own can be replaced pretty easily, but not this. It's one of a kind. Whenever I look at it I'm grateful and happy that it's mine.
Do you see your style as something that's unique to you, uninfluenced by trends?
My style is colourful, earthy, natural. A vintage sort of feminine. I've really only come into it in the past two years or so. Before that I felt confined by generic styles in catalogues and things, although I don't think I realised I was confined - I just felt that the decorative things I bought were lifeless. It's important to connect with the look and feel of something. Back then I didn't really look at interior inspiration, but now that I've done so, I can define my style much better and see where it differs from the catalogues.
Is your clock inherently ethical?
It's handmade and upcycled. I think I appreciate it even more because I didn't make it myself - if I did, I'd see it as replaceable and it maybe wouldn't be so special. Plus, I really enjoy supporting other people's ideas when I think they're amazing.
Why do you see the things you make as replaceable and less special?
I think one reason is because I'm a relatively impatient maker. I don't make things that take more than a couple hours to complete - so that means if I need another of whatever I made, I can make one up fairly easily in the same style. Maybe if I made a big complex quilt or something I'd feel like it was a lot more special. Also, I always see the fault in things that I've made. I'm a lot more judgmental. I suppose I'm less appreciative of the individual objects that I've made, but I do really love the spaces I've created in my house where it's a mix of self-made, handmade and vintage. The self-made is part of the package, but if one particular object went missing or got broken, I could easily replace it with something else I'd make without too much heartache. But I couldn't get this clock replaced. If I made one myself I'd probably think it was inferior, haha.
Handmade has enormous ethical appeal for buyers, but being a small producer exacts its own personal toll on makers. How do you see buying handmade now, in light of having been a creator?
I learned that the makers have choices. I learned that there's a problem with equating handmade with ethical. Some 'handmade' sellers put together jewellery from mass-produced pieces, and who knows under what conditions they were made. In that way, buying handmade can be just as damaging to the environment as those in the shop. There are 'big' businesses (like People Tree and Etiko) that are probably more ethical than some handmade sellers. So it's still really important, as a buyer, to know what and who you're supporting.
As to the personal toll of makers, understanding it firsthand doesn't really change my opinions as a buyer. I've always been appreciative of the making process and the creativity that goes into it. If a handmade item truly catches my eye and, particularly, if it is made from recycled materials, then I'm willing to buy it. The maker has a choice to take my business or not. Their hardship is their business unless they choose to share it.
Has becoming an ethical consumer changed your sense of what you like - your style and taste? Do mass-produced things still have an appeal, or are you now drawn to the unique, unusual, one-off?
Mass-produced things have definitely lost a lot of their appeal. Not entirely. I still appreciate really simple things. Simple furniture and clothing and useful things like that. I find that simple things matched with unique can really bring attention to the unique thing. I like that. But I tend to think that I can find simple things second-hand, so I try to refrain from buying them new anyway.
I don't think being an ethical consumer has changed my style, but I'm not 100% sure on that. Being exposed to many different interiors and fashions has helped me work out that I love a certain vintage style. Am I drawn to it because vintage is more ethical or because the style is simply better to me? I'm not sure. I'm just glad that I can really appreciate things which have the option of being much more ethical.
(Photo: Hayley Lau).
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