BEAUDESERT and District Community Art Project (BADCAP) welcomes a new upcycling group, The Rim Re-Makers (TRRM), that is dedicated to individuals who have a love of repurposing old or used items.
BADCAP is a not-for-profit volunteer organisation that works with communities in the Scenic Rim to develop public art projects and experiences.
President Erica Bates has been a BADCAP member since 2011 and was ecstatic to start the community group in Scenic Rim to share her love for recycling and repurposing.
“We’ve been thinking about getting a Scenic Rim group for a while. It was a little bit of a puzzle and I took it to a BADCAP meeting,” Erica said.
“Everybody thought it was a great idea and it passed unanimously.”
TRRM monthly gatherings will run in conjunction with BADCAP’s monthly creative gatherings held on the last Saturday of each month from 10am-2pm.
Erica has co-organised previous workshops with Textile Beat founder Jane Milburn OAM at Bond University but was intent to start one specifically in the Scenic Rim region.
“I desperately wanted to get back to the Scenic Rim because this is where my tribe is, my creative tribe and so it’s just all come together beautifully,” Erica said.
“It is just incredible when you add it all together and get all those people together in a room – we’ve finally got a group happening.”
Erica says TRRM will teach an array of skills, from threading needles to sewing an old work shirt into a dress and will provide a safe space for everyone who shares a similar interest in preventing waste.
“If a hem goes down on a garment, you don’t just throw it away – it’s about make do and mend,” she said.
“We’ve got far too much textile waste going into landfill and a lot of it is simply because people don’t know how to mend what they’ve got or how to repurpose what they’ve got.”
“We want to share our skills with other people as well and encourage other people to think about those things.”
For more information, visit BADCAP – Scenic Rim Arts’ Facebook page or contact Erica on 0417 720 352.
