For over a year, Laksheeta Govil has been trying to ensure the fabric waste that is generated while producing the juttis for her brand Fizzy Goblet is upcycled. She turns the leftover cloth used for the traditional footwear, which she refers to as “the world’s original ballerina shoe”, into scrunchies, bags, masks, even upholstery for their offices in Mumbai and Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
“Scrunchies, we used to send for free with orders earlier. Last year, we even started making masks because of covid-19, using the wasted garment (referring to the fabric waste). I think people are generally getting more aware of reuse or upcycle as a concept, as a way of life. And people want products that tell a story,” says Govil, 32, a Pearl Academy of Fashion graduate who started Fizzy Goblet in 2015 to give juttis a contemporary look by using ikat, silk, embellishments and prints.
During the festive season last year, Govil, who divides her time between Mumbai, Singapore and Delhi, introduced potlis (bags). “Some of the material we are using is the same as the shoes. The thing with upcycling is that it gives people a way to connect with what they are wearing or carrying,” she explains.
For this instalment of the DIY Upcycle Project, she tells us how to make a potli using a long scarf and two bangles. Yes, it’s that’s simple.
Without a stitch
1. Take a square piece of fabric, around 12x12 or 18x18 inches (depending on the size of the desired potli) and two bangles of your choice.
2. Take two adjacent corners of the fabric and tie them around one bangle.
3. Do this with the remaining corners and the second bangle. You can secure the sides with snap buttons so the contents don’t spill out.
4. Tie the ends of the adjacent knots together on the outside of the potli. Secure them with a bow knot to make it look like a finished product.
5. Your potli is ready. Personalise it with buttons, patchwork, fringes, whatever your heart desires.
