An inveterate frequenter of Opportunity/Thrift shops and hoarder, and entertaining myself with craft work at weekends and after work hours, the time came this could not be sustained because we joined the ranks of Grey Nomads, retired and travelling Australia, full-time. While reading a magazine on sustainability and the ‘upcycling’ (new term meaning to use again in a better way) of building fabric
the idea was born. “Upcee” could satisfy my urge to ‘just have a look’ in all the opportunity shops of the towns we passed through, spread some tourist dollars to charities, relieve the need to be doing something with my hands and fill the time when sitting in a caravan park waiting for the next pension payment. Over the years I had noted that one of the most likely fabrics one could find in an op shop was denim, plus it was worn by all ages, sizes and types of people. This therefore was to be the basis for the initial designs. Little Black Dresses (LBDs) was another line to be considered then I could never go past a piece of lace and was fascinated by the designs on fabric for men’s ties. There are two types of women. Those who have only one handbag and it goes everywhere and the other who needs to have numerous handbags to suit the mood of the moment. I could appeal to both by making the designs interesting, quirky even and extremely functional by having multiple pockets. Then came the quandary – what to do with multiple handbags. They couldn’t be stored in a caravan. There is a limited number and range of customers in caravan parks and I didn’t want to be tied to sitting at markets. The solution had to be selling on-line. For this I needed assistance because we are not always in range for internet connection. I approached my daughter to carry out the business end and agreement was reached. She would be the administrator of Upcee.
