“Stoked” by Sun, Sewing & Sustainability
Sarah Lancaster hits on the road, spruiks nature’s wonders and sews up a storm – all from her trusty caravan, called Cecil by Janai Velez
If you’ve been in New Zealand recently, you may have seen a white and aquamarine caravan with a solar panel and yarn-bombed fixtures driving past or parked at craft markets or outside op-shops.
Cecil, the caravan, and Sarah Lancaster have travelled the length of New Zealand – from top to bottom. At each stop, Sarah’s bright personality and infectious enthusiasm for the environment, sewing, colours and patterns inspire those she meets.
The owner and operator of Sew Love and “promo girl for Mother Earth”, Sarah teaches sustainable sewing on the road. “The aim has always been to provide an opportunity for people to get creative, learn how much fun sustainable living can be and feel empowered by making with their hands,” says Sarah.
Learn turned-edge machine appliqué and free-motion quilting!
“I used to teach in community centres and in my sewing lounge in Auckland. Then I put the sewing lounge on wheels to travel the country.”
To turn Cecil into a craft hub, she removed the satellite dish and microwave and installed a solar panel. “That runs through an inverter to power the sewing machines. I have batteries to store the energy, so I can sew through the night or on rainy days,” she says.
Add a modern spin on the traditional Dresden plate block!
She’s packed Cecil with equipment for markets (racks, tables, blackboards) as well as all the fun essentials for sewing classes and life on the road (fabrics, op-shop hoardings, surfboard, bike, four sewing machines and one banana box for clothes storage).
While on tour, she pops up at the local craft event or farmers’ market, where she sells reusable bags and gives people the chance to make their own, using the solar-powered sewing machines. “It’s always a treat, getting people on a machine again (often the first time since intermediate school).
Fun fact for you: while on tour, it’s been 80 percent males who are keen to jump on a machine and get making and fixing – very surprising and cool!”
Sarah also teaches mending techniques and skills to refashion op-shop finds. “Every town is different.
Sometimes, I can park up next to an op shop for a day or spend a whole week at a recycling centre, teaching repairs and refashioning, and sometimes, Cecil and I get booked for crafternoons in people’s driveways.”
The experience has been hard sometimes, but fun and heartwarming for Sarah. “I’ve had friends join me for part of the journey, which has been lovely, but there’s something quite special about the freedom and openness from travelling solo.
Create your own desert landscape quilt!
I love being fully immersed in local communities and have the freedom and peace of solitude and reflection.
“I hope to continue spreading the word about how much fun it is and how empowering life can be when we are kind and considerate to others and the natural world around us,” says Sarah. Whose motivation is: to live sustainably; to not keep fast-fashion slavery in business; reuse and recycle; save money; share experiences with others; appreciate things with history; shop locally; support neighbours, fellow businesses and makers who are fair traders; and to support positive social change. And, “to feel stoked by doing something good!”
Follow Sew Love on social media (@sewlovenz) to see all the latest adventures, and visit the Etsy store (www.etsy.com/nz/shop/SarahSewLove) for some colourful products to buy.
