Shari's main project at Contact is upcycling clothing for her brand, Medulla Studio. She either adds to existing pieces or completely reconstructs them. In addition to fashion, she also works in wedding floristry along with a few other projects. After multiple years of studying fashion, Shari combines both practical and theoretical approaches, though she doesn’t see her work as primarily a money-making venture.

Having been at Contact for almost a year, she enjoys the balance of social interaction and focus that she finds in working here. The presence of others working around helps her to also focus on working, and the environment offers a good mix—people to chat with when needed but not so much that it becomes distracting. Her two studio mates also contribute to a focused atmosphere, especially when they’re all immersed in their work.

Shari primarily creates new textiles from old ones by cutting up pieces, patch-working them together, and hand-embroidering them. She’s also experimenting with tearing materials apart and weaving or knitting them back together. More recently, she has also started exploring the realm of digital garments.

When building a collection, Shari typically starts with a season, colour palette, theme, or aesthetic. However, with upcycling, you need to learn how to work with what is already available. it’s crucial to ensure that fabrics work together, particularly in terms of weight and structure, which can limit choices in colour and pattern.

One of Shari favourite fashion projects she has worked on was a collaboration with a close friend on a shoot in Iceland. They used leftover leather to make the project more sustainable and Shari also created a macramé mask. The main challenge Shari faces in her work is having multiple tactile projects going on at once, which means she frequently shifts between fashion and floristry. While this is fun and can keep things from getting too repetitive, it can also make it challenging to fully dedicate time to one or the other.