Sophie Tatlow / Utopia Goods / Shoulder Tie Dress

Utopia Goods Director, Sophie Tatlow took one Tartan organic silk slip dress sample and turned it into two.

Tartan Mind Mend: Tell us your about your re-imagined Tartan piece and what inspired you.
Sophie Tatlow: First response - transformation. Make the ’cream silk’ colourful, bold and joyful. Second response, make the ’silk’ stretch further so it creates more opportunity for the charity. I loved the simplicity of the slip but l wanted to transform the piece and make it in to a fabric puzzle. Take one slip and turn it into two dresses. I also wanted to use something from Utopia Goods (maximalism) with Tartan (minimalism) and flip it.

TMM: What creative pursuits, little rituals, or things to look forward to, helped you to keep going during lockdown?
ST: I started ocean swimming (or rather ocean pool swimming last lock down). I made a pledge with a friend that we would swim in all water temperatures, every week and all year. It has been a mental health saviour and has given me a wonderful new perspective on life. Taking ’the plunge’ and the ‘lost breath’ feeling is a real life wake up call - both mentally and physically. In it’s purest sense, ocean swimming is about the awe inspiring appeal of ‘natural creation’. AND, what’s more I was a scared of jumping into freezing cold water!

TMM: Tell us about what you do that defines being a creative to you.
ST: To me creativity is about being an ‘imagination’ magpie and open to the world - gathering, observing, collecting, thinking, collaborating and making. It’s also about executing and doing - panning for gold. Hard to find but worth it. My life within Utopia Goods encompasses many aspects and we look to the bush, history of textiles, colour and travel (India and the Middle East). It’s a patchwork of influences that produce a fabric gem. It’s also about a strong, long creative relationship with my partner. Collaboration is key to our creativity.

TMM: How has the lockdown affected your creative process?
ST: If anything, it’s enhanced the ‘creative process’ as it’s allowed me to think more clearly or deeper. I feel the lock down has ‘changed one’s a sense of time' and therefore (hopefully), made me more thoughtful. In terms of production, scheduling went out the window, and we took a ‘let’s deal with this’ approach to business and the creative process. I guess, I slowed down…

TMM: So many of your textiles draw from Australia’s native bush, how did you first get drawn to its beauty?
ST: I’ve always loved the Australian landscape and have worked on many interpretive design projects regarding landscape and history (prior to Utopia Goods). I’d often thought that Australian native flora and fauna have been the unsung heroes of the land (this has rapidly changed). Initially we wanted to subvert the cultural cringe and truly celebrate ‘what’s around us’. We have been driven to make a statement about the landscape and decorative arts. A quick scan of Europe, Asia and the Middle East reveals a textile homage of a particular country’s flora. Australia Flora is otherworldly, prehistoric, robust and beautiful - very easy to be drawn to it’s beauty.

TMM: What’s a way that you manage to reduce waste in your business?
ST: There’s multiple ways we’ve tried to reduce wastage. The textile and fashion industry is notoriously wasteful and we are very mindful about waste. As our goods are hand made and hand printed, it feels disrespectful to disregard any part of it. Fabric ‘off cuts' are either turned into ribbons, swatches, cushion covers. We never throw any fabric out. No single use plastic where possible. And we’ve just started producing a ‘performance' fabric that uses 30% post consumer yarn. Hopefully as the business expands, we can grow the sustainability aspect of the business and use more post consumer yarns.

TMM: When the world opens back up, what is the first thing you would love to do?
ST: Go for another swim…and have dinner with our closest friends.

100% Silk
Gentle Hand Wash
Dry In Shade
Sample Size 1/S

Due to the handmade/second hand nature of this item any imperfections are considered intentional and are unique characteristics of this one of a kind piece. Over time changes may occur. Handle with care. No exchanges or refunds are available for Tartan Mind Mend charity auction items.

@utopiagoods
www.utopiagoods.com