Shoppers loved the 'fabric queen'. Then, order by order, her story fell apart |
At 6ft tall and plus-size, shop-bought clothes had never fitted Maree O'Connor well.
Sewing offered her a solution - allowing her to use beautiful fabrics to make garments that fit just right.
One day, while on the lookout for colourful prints to make new dresses, she spotted some "amazing" fabrics being sold online.
Enticed by a yellow floral pattern and another black-and-white abstract design, she splashed out $600 (£450, A$900) on three orders.
Months later, none had arrived.
It was October 2024, and tired of waiting, the legal studies teacher from Melbourne, Australia, decided to set up a Facebook group to try to find out if anyone else was in the same boat.
The group exploded. Within two weeks it had drawn hundreds of members, according to Ms O'Connor.
She had unearthed a scandal that would consume the sewing world - from China to Europe, to the US.
In the group, other sewing enthusiasts detailed how they too had been waiting months - and in some cases years - for fabrics to arrive, while a supplier alleged it was owed tens of thousands of dollars.
At the centre of the controversy was globally renowned designer, Nerida Hansen.
Her company had grown rapidly during the pandemic, when she made a name for herself selling bold, distinctive fashion prints that set her shop apart from other retailers.
Popular with sewists - as members of the sewing community call themselves - around the world, her fabrics often appeared in influencers' Instagram posts. Some newspapers had even dubbed her Australia's queen of fabrics.
"People liked what she was doing and producing," said UK-based artist Gabriela Larios, who has worked with Ms Hansen.
"My impression of her was that she was doing something different and new in Australia," added Sarah Rowe, another artist who worked with Ms Hansen. "I was impressed by her, she was formidable."
That's exactly what excited Bergen Anderson, who ordered more than $3,300 (£2,500; A$5,000) of Ms Hansen's fabrics in 2024.
She planned to use them to make clothes which she would sell through her US-based children's clothing business.
But, as in Ms O'Connor's experience, none of Ms Anderson's goods arrived within the eight-week window that was promised.
Instead, she received a number of what she described as "generic" emails, saying her orders were soon to be printed and shipped.
She also received a number of emails from Ms Hansen saying suppliers were delayed sending goods because of events like national holidays.
"It was every excuse under the sun," Ms Anderson said.
Frustrated and in search of answers, she too stumbled upon Ms O'Connor's Facebook group.
In it, she found customers wondering where their money had gone - and why the company was still accepting orders even........