Debuting ‘Sew it Goes ‘: Amber Horsburgh on clothing, identity, and motherhood.
Amber Horsburgh needed more from motherhood than just the ‘mother’ part. She is revamping her jacket and identity to celebrate all aspects of being a woman this Mother’s Day.
“I was so scared of becoming pregnant because I thought that was going to be like a nail in the coffin to my identity,” said Horsburgh.
Horsburgh has a decorated career as an Australian music and brand marketing executive with accolades such as founding her company ‘Deep Cuts’, working as a vice president at Downtown Records in LA, and a string of awards for her work (Cannes Lions, Webby’s, Shorty’s, One Show and more).
She is starting a new video series ‘Sew it Goes’ to talk about the connection clothing has to our identity.
“Sew it Goes is about taking [clothing] that you would generally change yourself for or that has been left behind or thrown out in op shops and changing them, so it works for you and your style,” she said.
“I wanted to take the colour that is in my brain, put it into the clothes [I wear], and have the confidence to go into the street and wear those things.”
The first video, which will be released this Mother’s Day, is about her ‘motherhood’ jacket and her struggle with holding on to her identity after childbirth.
“You get pregnant, and people are so much more excited about [the baby] than anything you have ever done before,” she said.
“I couldn’t grapple with the fact that I’ve built up 34 years of interests, hobbies, and a career … only for when I have a kid for all of that to be completely stripped away.”
The jacket is designed to spark conversation beyond sleep schedules or baby-wed weaning. Horsburgh instead chose vibrant colours, with Britney Spears and the Spice Girls as conversation starters. All of which are boldly displayed on her ‘motherhood’ jacket. She wanted it to be extra loud, not conforming to current trends, and not fitting into a minimalist palette.
“I wanted to create a jacket that is a conversation starter but that is also fierce as well, something that felt hard and powerful,” said Horsburgh.
“It needed to be waterproof, so I choose leather, it needed to be breathable, so I had to switch out the lining because postpartum bodies sweat more, and it needed to be warm because [of] Melbourne winters,” she said.
The lyrics quoted down one sleeve of the jacket are from the song ‘Something More’ by Róisín Murphy.
“The lyrics themselves are a very masculine image of success, but [are] about wanting something more, I loved that as a metaphor for motherhood, you are being pushed into this one role and yes I am going to do this one role, but I am going to do something more,” said Horsburugh.
Horsburugh wanted to release ‘Sew it Goes’ on Mother’s Day because she wanted to share content other than the “Instagram mumma-core aesthetic” she sees on her social media.
“I wanted to put something out that does not look like what you are going to see on Mother’s Day because I think of that image of perfection and when you can’t see yourself in that image, it is really terrifying,” said Horsburugh.
The ‘Motherhood jacket’ will be featured as the first of thirty videos in her ‘Sew it Goes’ series. The videos feature different pieces of reworked clothing from jackets, belts, skirts, and pants, all made of leather. Each item of clothing is designed to spark conversation about a range of topics like sobriety, social media, and identity.
“I want all the videos to show that clothes should be made to fit you, not for you to fit the clothes,” said Horsburugh.
By Erin Constable
