Thursday, October 28, 2010

Magical Feedback!



Today I received some magical feedback from one of my customers. It is moments like these that make all the work worthwhile...
"Through all the usual duties and extra honey collection, I tried your dye out on cheap items from Pep Stores. And I stood amazed about the deep, vibrant colours!!! This was also a learning experience as I folded one of the T-shirts wrong! I was so excited. I e-mailed my friends all over South Africa with the photos and they are all thrilled.
I first dyed the one dress and T-shirt turquoise and the following day I folded it and dyed it navy. The other dress and T-shirt I folded and dyed with Brights. The 2 little dresses are for my granddaughter and the Brights T-shirt is for her mother, my daughter. Last night when they phoned me after receiving the photos, Samantha (granddaughter, 2 years old) told me "Ouma, bllue! Blue!!"
Thanks for your book that introduced me to your colourful world. It opened amazing doors for me!"
Kathy Du Plessis
I wish I could bottle such magical moments. Thank you to all of YOU who embark on this beautiful journey with me. The experience is amplified by your voices.
Have a great day in full colour!
Kind regards
Melanie
+27835689150

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Brush Images



I recently did an interview with a successful young entrepreneur for a newspaper. Mosa Moketsi of TYT Construction has an awesome business and a very bright future. It did not seem right to write an article about this charismatic young lady, without some amazing pictures to go with it.
Lwazi Hlope of Brush Images Photography was there to help out. He took some really awesome pictures that really captured this vivacious young lady at her best.
Lwazi specialises in protraits and weddings, although he frequently does work for magazines as well. Currently he is working on pictures for a gardening magazine and he says that one day he would really like to take the pictures for a cookery book.
I am VERY impressed with his work and can recommend him to anybody.
Brush Images...making magical moments click.
0725169252
Have a great day in full colour!
Kind regards
Melanie
+27835689150

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Kids Absolutely LOVE Dyecraft!



Why kids absolutely LOVE dyecraft...
  • They have to dress up in apron and gloves to do it.
  • It gets messy.
  • They see the colour wheel come to life.
  • They work with their hands.
  • It gives them a sense of achievement and self-worth.
  • It is a means of self-expression and uniqueness.
  • They LOVE the Wow Moment.
  • They get to wear what they have made...again and again...and again...
Dyecraft is a kids confidence-builder, and it is FUN!
Have a great day in full colour!
Kind regards
Melanie
0835689150

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

mot selefi by Marle Drotsky



I always get VERY excited when I see what my students get up to.
Last year, Marle Drotsky attended my lino block making class to learn how to do her own print detail on her garments. She is an up-and-coming young fashion designer in Gauteng.
I popped in at SA Fashion Week Pop-Up Shops this weekend and was delighted to see how she has used the knowledge.
I just love her "Bokkie" design, and the way that she has detailed it with a screenprint and felted heart. She has used this on her childrens' wear to embellish tops and hats.
She also printed bows and roses using the technique.
SA Fashion Week is going from strength to strength and this year's Pop-Up Shop concept was a hit that I am sure will be repeated in years to come.
Well done Lucilla Booyse. You are an invaluable resource to the South African Fashion industry. Your event creates an amazing platform for young designers to get exposure to their target markets. I look forward to seeing what new innovation next year will bring?
Have a great day in full colour!
Kind regards
Melanie
+27835689150

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Maranatha Bana



Last week I had the most amazing time at Maranatha Bana in Pretoria North. I made rainbow spiral T-shirts with more than 150 kids, ranging from little ones all the way up to teenagers.

Maranatha Bana is a privately funded NGO that supports needy children in the local community through the intervention of a local church. They supply housing, food, education, sports facilities and other activities from which the children benefit.

I had the most amazing time there. The kids were SO excited about the shirts that they made that many of them decided to put them on and wear them when they were still sopping wet out of the rinse. It was quite an experience to hear their excited voices and see them all running around in their new T-shirts on the playground.

Even though I was absolutely exhausted when I got home that evening, I could not fall asleep. My head just kept spinning with all the happy little faces and rainbow bursts of colour from the day's fun activities.

Each time that I work in an NGO like this one, I look around me and realise how lucky I have been to have grown up with both of my parents in a supporting family environment.

Hats off to Maranatha Bana for taking care of these kids. You guys are doing an awesome job!

Have a great day in full colour!

Kind regards

Melanie

+27835689150


Sunday, October 3, 2010

Nedbank Gives Back!



I had an incredible time at Nedbank last week. The Nedbank staff decided to have an event in which they "gave back" to their community.
They donated 100 white T-shirts to the activity. In four short hours, they transformed them with dye into unique clothing items.
Wow Moment after Wow Moment emerged from the dye and by the end of the day I had a pile of hand dyed T-shirts to deliver to Out Of The Box Skills Centre.
The kiddies T-shirts will go to the creche. The little ones will really enjoy getting a new T-shirt that is uniquely theirs.
The adult T-shirts will go via their sewing centre into their shop for sale. The proceeds will then go back into the centre.
This is a great concept for combining corporate social investment with your teambuilding activity and I look forward to doing more events of this kind in the future.
Thank you Nedbank! You guys rock!
Half way through the afternoon I wondered if we would ever finish the large pile of shirts waiting to be dyed. A handful of enthusiastic participants saw the challenge and got stuck in. I am totally impressed. Nedbank staff can certainly deliver on their promises.
I cannot wait to deliver the shirts to Out Of The Box once I have washed them out properly. I will give you feedback afterwards.
Have a great day in full colour!
Kind regards
Melanie
0835689150