Hi, this is me, Tracy

I am the creator of The Fabric of Play.

Thanks for stopping by to learn more about what I do.

This picture sums me up pretty well. A visit to the junk shop after a bike ride is my happy place. If you look through The Fabric of Play photos you will probably find what these hose pipes ended up looking like!

As well as creating The Fabric of Play I am a Play Coach for Junky Monkeys, teach some sewing classes and I am teacher aide at Carmel College.

I have called the North Shore of Auckland home since 2009.  I have a Kiwi husband that I met at work in England, and little did I know at the time we would be living in New Zealand with two children all these year later!  As well as my interests in sewing, and teaching sewing I am also a play coach for Junky Monkeys.  Junky Monkeys provides loose parts play to schools and encourages learning through play.  I love being creative, and also helping younger people be creative.  Whether that's behind a sewing machine or surrounded with junk loose parts playing. The creative process is by nature playful.  We have to try things, play with how things work, problem solves, try again. Being creative is a process we can learn so much from.  

When did you start sewing?

My sewing journey started in school when I did GCSE and then 'A' level Textiles but I didn't really pick it up again until I moved to New Zealand and had my kids.  In 2017 when both kids were in school my sister shared this cool initiative she had recently come across called Boomerang Bags that had started up in Australia and there were groups popping up all over the world.  We got excited about making fabric bags and giving them away to encourage people to say no to a plastic bag. We started a group where we lived and held community sewing bees.  We quickly up-skilled ourselves in french seams and box corners and away we went!.  I even screen printed the boomerang bag logo at home.

I have made many many fabric bags over the years, and I think most of my friends have been given one at some point.  But I also wanted to make other things from upcycled fabric; so I started making peg bags and aprons. Fast forward a few years and I was asked by my local community House if I would be interested in teaching some sewing classes. That felt a bit scary, but I do believe that we need to push ourselves outside our comfort zones and continue to grow and learn. So I said yes and my class was a success and over the years more classes have been added. Highbury House is a great venue for classes and they have their own machines and supplies.

And then The Fabric of Play was born!

Inspired from my time as a Playcentre mum and through my work as a play coach withJunky Monkeys, I have been exploring the benefits of learning through play. I have combined my love of sewing and play, added a sprinkle of natural resources, a focus on sustainability by using repurposed elements, to create a sensory play environment.

It has been so much fun making all these creations and experimenting with different fabrics and fillings to create an interesting sensory experience.

More About The Fabric Of Play

Why use second hand fabric?

From my time volunteering to make Boomerang Bags I have seen first hand just how much unwanted fabric is out there.  And if it doesn't find a purpose, it is thrown away and that's a huge waste.  So my ethos is to repurpose second hand fabric and other elements and make them into an item that can be used again and again. 

Where do you get your fabric from?

I get my fabric from a variety of places. Second hand shops, Trade Me, Marketplace, my local Resource Centre and the local Zero Waste shop. I spend a fair amount of time keeping an eye out for suitable fabric and elements. I love exploring junk shops!

I also sometimes get donations from friends, as the word is out now that I can't say no to fabric.