Melanie Brummer

I first started working with dye and textiles in 1993. I dyed and sold T-shirts, dresses, bell-bottom trousers, babygro's, poncho's, sweatshirts, socks and anything else that I could lay my hands on. By the end of 1998 I was manufacturing and selling 100 garments a week at local flea markets. In 2002 I took what I knew to the fashion industry. I manufactured high end textiles for designers like Marianne Fassler, Stoned Cherrie, Sun Goddess, Marion & Lindie, JJ Schoeman, Black Coffee and many others. In 2005 my finishes appeared on the catwalk at SA Fashion Week in six different collections. Fabrics that I have dyed have been seen on the catwalk in New York and Milan. Currently I focus on teaching and training. I teach into schools, fashion colleges, skills development centres, NGO's and craft centres. I am fascinated with entrepreneurship and love to watch cottage industries spring up out of dreams and mist and grow into real businesses.