Grief Garments transform the clothing of those who have died into powerful, worn memorials, keeping their memory close. Our workshops offer creative expression and foster community connection through shared stories of grief and loss.
The first pilot of Grief Garments is supported by Tender Funerals Western Sydney and has been awarded a Compassionate Communities Grant by the Proveda foundation to work with people specifically bereaved by Suicide*.
During the August 2025 Dying to Know Day campaign, a selected group of makers will come together in North Sydney for a garment transformation workshop, the results of which will be exhibited on September 10th 2025, World Suicide Prevention Day.
*Future iterations of Grief Garments will address other forms of bereavement, and we have several workshops pending for 2026. If you would like us to host a workshop with you or your community please get in contact.
WHO CAN BE INVOLVED?
Our first group of makers are people who are bereaved by suicide (meaning that someone they love has died as the result of suicide) and own a garment that belonged to their person.
The pilot of Grief Garments will be located in North Sydney, and preference will firstly be given to makers located within that community.
Our makers(you) don’t have to have any skills in sewing, textiles or art. They will be guided through this process by a team of facilitators who are creatives with professional and personal experience of suicide bereavement.
Makers are transforming garments, making relationships, making community and making new relationships with their grief.
Proveda has generously funded the positions for each of our makers, so there is no cost to participate. Additionally a material fee has also been provided for facilitators to help purchase the tools and decorative materials each maker might require to complete their garment transformation. How you choose to transform your grief garment is something that you will plan with a facilitator ahead of the making workshop. You will be shown a range of examples of particular techniques that are accessible and feasible to complete during the workshop.
The Grief Garments pilot process will be documented through photography, and the final garments displayed in a public exhibition on World Suicide Prevention Day, Wednesday September 10th.
An exhibition catalogue will also be produced and feature portraits taken by an award winning photographer who specialises in bereavement photography. We will be making an announcement of the photographer joining the Grief Garments team in the lead up to the exhibition.
An information session about the project and expression of interest process (EOI) will be held on Friday May 16th at 6:30pm.
You can register to attend this session here: https://events.humanitix.com/grief-garments-info-session
This session will be recorded and available to view via request.
VIDEO ABOUT GRIEF GARMENTS
Watch this 9 minute video explaining the Grief Garments project:
EXPRESSION OF INTEREST: ARE YOU INTERESTED IN BECOMING ONE OF OUR MAKERS?
An online form will be available here after our information session.
TIMELINE and IMPORTANT DATES
We ask that anyone interested in joining the Grief Garments project check that they have noted and checked their availability for the following dates:
MAY 16th (online): INFO Session (6:30-7:30pm GMT+10) and EOI Available 6.EOI MAY 30th: EOI form closes
JUNE 6th: Maker selection and notification
[1] JUNE 14th (online): Maker Meet and Greet (Saturday 2-4.30pm)
[2] JULY tbc (online): 1:1 maker and facilitator planning session (via appointment)
[3]*AUGUST 9th (in person): Grief Garments workshop (Saturday 9am-7pm)
[4]*AUGUST 10th (in person): Grief Garments workshop + Exhibition Portrait
[5]*SEPTEMBER 10th (in person): Exhibition set up and Opening event
[6] OCTOBER tbc (online): Maker catch up and debriefing
*In person dates are mandatory for participation and will take place in North Sydney
MORE ABOUT HOW IT WILL WORK:
[1] MEET and GREET: Once our EOI process is complete, selected makers will be notified by Friday June 6th and invited to an online Meet and Greet session which will take place on Saturday June 14th (2pm-4:30pm). Makers will bring an item(s) of clothing that belonged to their person who suicided, and will be asked to tell us about the garment and the person who wore it..
Facilitators will show our makers a range of garment transformations who will also be given access to a database of examples to consider. Makers will be prompted and supported on how they might like to honour their person before the main making workshop in August.
This meeting will show makers a range of accessible techniques such as applique, splicing and insertion, transfer printing, embroidery, and minor size alterations.
Facilitators, who bring professional expertise in the funeral industry as well as qualifications in fashion design and art practices, guide these creative processes. Through group discussions, facilitators will help makers capture the essence of their person using colours, textures, motifs, or text to build a feasible and creative technique palette profile.
[2] 1:1 PLANNING SESSION: Between June and July each maker will be invited to have a 1:1 discussion with a facilitator to create a design plan and materials requirements for the workshop. Proveda has provided funding for a range of materials to be purchased and this will be negotiated with each maker.
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[3] GRIEF GARMENTS WORKSHOP (Dying to Know Day): On Saturday August 9th makers will gather in Northern Sydney for our pilot Grief Garments workshop at Crows Nest community centre. This day-long workshop session focuses on crafting with care, and makers will cut, splice, insert, print and transform their person’s garment into an item of clothing the maker will embed within their own wardrobe.
[4] GRIEF GARMENTS PORTRAIT: On Sunday August 10th our makers will be photographed by a professional photographer (to be announced) wearing their person’s Grief Garment. These photographs will be collated into an exhibition catalogue and record of the Grief Garments process, and available to exhibition guests.
[5] EXHIBITION OPENING (World Suicide Prevention Day): On September 10th the garments will be installed in a gallery, and the Grief Garments exhibition will open to the public.
[6] GROUP CHECK IN AND DEBRIEFING: In October (date tbc) our makers and facilitators will regroup online to connect and debrief.
WHO ARE THE FACILITATORS?
Our facilitators are professionals working in the death and dying space. They each have personal and professional experience with suicide bereavement.
You can read more about each of our facilitators by clicking on their links:
Dr Pia Interlandi (Garments for the Grave, RMIT University)
Hini Hanara (Queer as Death),
Hayley West (The Departure),
Amy Sagar (Tender Funerals)
It should be noted that this is not an art therapy group. Instead it is a group of people coming together to facilitate an opportunity for you to engage with your grief in a creative and experimental way to make a wearable memorial for your person.
HOW IS THE PROJECT FUNDED?
This project has been funded by Proveda, and there is no cost to our makers to participate. If you are interested in participating in this project, or finding out more then please complete the expression of interest below. Positions are very limited. Applicants will be contacted to assess if this project is suitable for them, and once positions are filled those who missed out will go on our communications list to be notified of future opportunities.
CONTACT:
Instagram @grief_garments – email [email protected]
SUPPORT SERVICES
Suicide Call Back Service – 1300 65 94 67
Lifeline – 13 11 14
Beyond Blue – 1300 22 4636
Q Life – Support for LGBTIQA+ community- 1800 184 527 (3pm to 12pm, everyday)
13Yarn – Support for Aboriginal Mob – 13 92 76
Kids Help Line – 1800 55 1800
MensLine – 1300 789 978
1800 RESPECT 1800 737 732 support for sexual assault/family violence
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