Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
Lifestyle
Lucianne Tonti

The end of the paper trail? Australia’s largest garment pattern supplier is closing and sewers are worried – but pragmatic

Cybil Shepherd in a Butterick pattern jacket for Glamour magazine in 1973
Cybil Shepherd in a Butterick pattern jacket for Glamour magazine in 1973. Butterick is owned by Simplicty McCall’s, which is shuttering its Australian branch. Photograph: Rico Puhlmann/Conde Nast/Getty Images

Decades ago, in the hallowed days before the internet, sewers would walk into a haberdashery store, pick a paper pattern labelled Vogue, Simplicity or McCall’s, figure out how much material they needed and head over to the fabric department to choose something they liked. It was a careful in-store ritual for sewers contemplating their next project, and especially for those who were beginning their sewing journey.

“That was my process when I started sewing, which was a while ago now,” says Michelle Sanger of Melbourne. “It used to be a big investment and you would choose carefully based on what you could afford.”

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.