From an old hessian sack to a dress to an art installation - Year 12 Dickson College student Rosie Hawkins has engineered an amazing transformation.
The 18-year-old took up a challenge in her final Fashion and Textiles unit ''Recycle Reuse'' to convert five old hessian sacks into a party frock.
Everything from the 1950s zip - donated from her grandmother's sewing box - to the lining - which was reused from a dress her sister made years ago - was reused and recycled. The sacks were donated by Braddon coffee hot spot Lonsdale Street Roasters. When Rosie completed her dress, it not only earned her the top mark in her year, but caught the attention of the Roasters crew who want to make it an art exhibition in the cafe.
Barista Danielle Salvestro said the dress was ''truly a work of art'' and she was in the process of assigning it a prominent place on one of the walls.
Titled The Strongly Worded Letter, Rosie has enhanced the Colombian Coffee print on the bags with her own random rant.
''It begins 'Dear Sir' and includes lots of angry words and outrage,'' she said.
The project, which earned Rosie 96per cent, ''made me realise that you can make something new from something old without needing anything other than your own ideas''.
She is taking a gap year next year to work in a primary school in London before returning to either the Canberra Institute of Technology to study fashion or NIDA to study costume design.
Rosie will be among about 3000 local Year 12 students receiving their Australian Tertiary Admission Rank from next Monday with the ACT Government hosting an awards ceremony to recognise the top 90 achievers from across the college system.
Rosie is likely to be among the top students at Dickson College, but she is not terribly fussed about her mark.
''I guess I am curious as to what it will be but I am not nervous about it.
''It is more important that I really enjoyed my subjects and I think you need to keep the whole ATAR thing in perspective as friendships last longer than a ranking.''
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