This week we are exploring the topic of sustainability as it relates to our sewing practice. We open up about where we are at in our sustainability journey, and how we plan to be kinder to the earth. We also offer tips on what you can do as a sewist to lessen your environmental and social impact on the planet.
- Caroline has Cone Mills Denim and jeans hardware kits at Blackbird Fabrics!
- Avery leggings tag on instagram! (pattern here)
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- Helen’s Ravelry, Caroline’s Ravelry
- Indie Pattern Designers list on Diary of a Chainstitcher
- Helen’s Wednesday Weekly
- Fabcycle
- Helen’s refashion projects:
- Our Social Fabric
- Send us your feedback about sustainability!
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- Record a voice memo and e-mail it to us! (Article: Record Voice Memos on your iPhone)
- The Beginner’s Guide to Sourcing Fabric Responsibly on Megan Nielsen’s blog
- Organic certifications:
- Rana Plaza building collapse
- The True Cost documentary
- H&M textile recycling
- Heather makes cool handmade dolls!
- Watson Bra by Cloth Habit
- Christine Haynes’ tip on replacing bra straps!
Follow Helen! Blog: Helen’s Closet, Instagram: @helens__closet
Follow Caroline! Shop: Blackbird Fabrics, Instagram: @blackbirdfabrics
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Hey Ladies!
Great episode. While I was listening to your ideas for recycling, I was remembering cleaning out my great grandmother’s sewing room after her passing. She was a seamstress during the Great Depression and second World War. So she has huge stashes of zippers, buttons, bra straps, hook&eye, appliques, etc. I smiled because we think of sustainability as a “new” idea…but actually past generations were just as good at it.
I listened recently to a “Missed in History Class” episode where they were going over fashion in German-occupied France and how creative the french ladies would get at up-cycling their clothes. I also was reading a fictionalized biography on Anne Boleyn where she was known in France for taking some of her older dresses and slashing sleeves, adding different decorations, turning the skirt inside out, and all these tricks she had for making an old wardrobe new. It’s really precious to think who’s footsteps we’re walking in.
When I walk into fast-fashion stores now, I’m more looking at things like…how can I imitate that pattern? How was it constructed? What different fabrics/print designs are they putting together that work. Can I imitate that at home? Or the real heresy…I LOVE the fabric, but hate the pattern…can I tear it apart and do something else with it? LOL
Anyway, just some of my thoughts. Thanks for the episode! Keep up the good work!
Sorry, meant to leave you the link to the French Fashion Resistance episode and I forgot. here it is: https://www.missedinhistory.com/blogs/missed-in-history-fashion-as-political-resistance.htm
You’re so right. We can forget how much history is behind sewing 🙂 Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Kim!
Hi Kim- What was the name of biography on Anne Boleyn that you made reference to??
Thank you!
Helen/Caroline…..I look forward every week to listening to your podcast! You two rock! I was laughing when you mentioned hair scrunchies as a reuse for leftover fabric, since I just heard a story about hair scrunchies on NPR last week! Evidently one of my heroes, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, wears a hair scrunchy every day. The story is here: https://www.npr.org/2018/03/22/595967389/scrunchies-are-back-wall-street-journal-headline-exclaims
Haha – amazing! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Jenny Rushmore from Cashmerette actually adressed sustainability and sewing in an interesting way here in your podcast, I believe. I liked this epidose as well.
Another use for fabric scraps is pocket bags.
So glad you dedicated an episode to this subject, and I hope you’ll revisit it again and again! I’m sending you an email with loads of thoughts for the community episode, but I just quickly wanted to note for everyone that Öko-Tex is not an organic certification – it’s something different. I’ll put details in the email but if anyone’s interested they can look it up online. If you’re trying to buy organic fabric you definitely want to look for GOTS certification. Also, for Fashion Revolution Week, for those of us who make most of our own clothes, a more relevant question (to ask ourselves and the businesses we shop at) might be ‘Who made my fabric?’
Listening to sustainability podcast while trolling online fabric shops… Not as much fun as I thought it would be….
Maybe I will shop later….
[-:
(P.S. good job…)
lol, thanks for listening!
One more thing.
One of the reasons I am a little turned off of instagram is that it bothers me that I see people make way more that they could ever possibly wear. (Where do they put it all?) I KNOW this is judge-y. I KNOW IT!!! But it is still a turn off. Maybe I am jealous. I just feel too much guilt.
OK two more things…. Just saw a really fun youtube video on making a (small) rug out of knitted AND woven scraps by Megan Neilson.
We saw those baskets from Megan, too! Soo cool. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on Instagram. I think it always looks like people are doing more/better than reality on social media. It is hard sometimes not to compare though!
Hello you guys!
I love your potcast so much, and I always listen to stuff while I am sewing so for me it’s just the most amazing thing ever!
I wanted to add something to the repair and care side of sustainable making… Because Harriet from Hobbling Handmades has also started a blog (https://clothingcareco.com) about exactly that and it is quite a good recourse for tips that are specialized for makers.
How cool is that!? thanks for sharing!
You mention making bras and underwear out of leftover knit material – what underwear patterns are you making?
Hi Jessica! We both swear by the Watson bra and bikini pattern. They are the perfect bikini style undies!