This is brilliant. Kate Blanchett stepped out in crochet couture, to open an event at the Australian Center for the Moving Image (ACMI) at Federation Square.
Says the All Toil and No Reward blog (‘how to find joy and fulfillment through love, work and sewing’):
“My word, if I ever needed any more proof that craft is the new cool, this is most definitely it. A crochet dress. A one-shouldered, full sleeved, ruffle-ornamented crochet dress. Worn without any sense of irony at all. And it looks bloody great – I especially like the double ruffle layer at the bottom.”
If you’re from down under, where Cate Blanchett is from, your nana had at least one of these crocheted blankets in her home. It’s the Aussie form of quilting. The hours of work gone into this dress, makes this dress a very high maintenance creation for an actress to choose to wear out. In Australian terms, Kate brings the bedroom at Nana’s house, to the red carpet. Or, ‘my nana loves me’ is the subliminal message as well as ‘I am Australian’s nana of the arts and moving image.’ Whatever the message is, I love it. Crafty crochet couture, handmade with love.
Love Cate Blanchett’s nerve, to be fashion forward by going backwards into the past. Proof that this Australia beauty’s taste in fashion, can be worn anywhere! By the way, the Australian Noir, moving image library at ACMI, is to die for. Yummy Aussie cinema from the archives proudly on show. Go Australia and the filmic arts!
Has anyone asked Kate ‘Who’ are you wearing? as they normally do on the red carpet. I agree with you, she looks gorgeous in it. Kate appears to be a very down to earth person, and I wonder if she did it to support some charity groups which produce such kind of handy crafts. Kate has utterly changed my perception of this crochet craft I have seen in many English homes, a small crochet blanket over the lap of an elderly person sitting by the fire.