Howzit! from sunny South Africa, and welcome to all the new people that have joined here recently. I figured it was time for a more formal introduction.
I am still trying to find a label to describe what I do. It may be easier to describe what I’m not, first. I’m not a seamstress, nor a tailor. I know what’s wrong with each item I make, and take the view of “let’s see if anyone notices” with those errors. (Most people are so focused on their own problems that they don’t notice anything else). Perhaps I’m a textile artist? Or a fabric recycler? Perhaps I don’t fit into a box at all…
It all started when my stepdaughter was getting married in 2016… what to wear? I didn’t dare look better than her biological mom, so I was treading a fine line. I had a look at some bridal shops and was horrified at the prices! I had an epiphany… let me go look at fabric (something I hadn’t done in 20-odd years). I pulled out the sewing machine my mom gave me for my 18th birthday… and made my outfit for the wedding for less than 10% of the bridal shop price. But the bug had bit. From there I started converting my wardrobe to wash and wear (since my helper had left us and ironing ain’t fun).
Then I watched some fashion waste videos on YouTube. These showed how much fashion/textiles goes to waste. Even that which goes via the recycling loop first. I joined a bunch of local “freecycle” groups in my area and asked for any leftover fabric to be discarded… my direction. Oh boy… the floodgates opened. I now have what my husband refers to as a “fire hazard” of fabric (he’s a health and safety specialist). I’m not kidding – I have 22 thirty-litre clear bins full of fabric, and 10 more clear rubbish bags for the rest. Ok, so that means I’ve rescued all this fabric from landfill. Good start. I’m learning that if items are still good enough in their current state, to not cut them up. Those I’ll pass on to either a local charity store or to a nearby squatter camp. I have more than enough fabric to work with.
The next step is figuring out what to do next – what to make. In winter I’ll dig out airline blankets Bruce brought back from some of his overseas flights. (This was pre-covid lockdown nonsense). These make an excellent middle layer for a quilt. I got this idea from an old duvet cover that was freecycled to me. It’s seriously old! It has crimplene blocks in it! So I figured it was safe to start with… I couldn’t mess it up. I simply cut the duvet cover to the size of the blanket, as well as a backing fabric, and sandwiched them together. It was quick and simple, and while I personally would not have chosen the fabrics on this quilt… we fight over it!!! I need to make a second one Quilts are more fun to make in winter, so that becomes a seasonal project. In this process, I learned to make pinwheels and some other quilting techniques… and there’s much more to learn.
Quilts (even baby quilts) tend to be a large project, so inbetween I like smaller projects. Bags fit into this. Old jeans (which seem to always “blow out” in the crotch) get made into shopping totes. This lead to an interesting conflict. For me, the hardest/worst part of making a bag was the strap. Firstly, why make 2 when 1 will do? So my bags have a shoulder/cross-body strap. Secondly, turning them through is an exercise of more patience than I typically have. Cue a shift in mindset… I changed “straps are my worst” to “what if the strap becomes my signature piece”? (At this point I had 10 bags completed, except for straps). Using the strip-quilt technique and sewing various scraps into a long enough strap – bingo! A unique strap that was fun to make! Problem solved.
Then I joined some sewing groups on Facebook and got tons of inspiration! Shiree from Shhh.ReCreations has made a Coat-of-Many-Colours. This was always my favourite bible story. Even if I tried to replicate it, it wouldn’t ever be the same. Not least because she’s in Australia and I’m in South Africa – so we start with different fabrics. But it’s shown me that all the techniques I’ve learned above can be used in a garment. I’d still start with a pattern, which is my personal preference currently. But quilting or layering or patchworking pieces onto the underlying pattern piece… the options are endless. Now when I go past clothing stores I can’t imagine why I ever chose to wear mass fashion, when I could be totally unique. So I’ve started my own Coat-of-Many-Colours, and I can tell you… it’s harder than it looks. I doubt I’d sell it. If I did, I’d price it HIGH cos it takes hours! And creative energy!!! I’d almost call it a spiritual experience. So it’s rewarding for sure, maybe more so for the maker than a buyer. I’m looking forward to completing the project, which is likely to take a few more weeks.
Basically I make what I want to…what I am inspired to or maybe even compelled to. Often I’ll be doing something else, but in my head, I’m thinking of patches to put together.
I’m not considering making for sale… but I could be persuaded… with cash. Yet here’s my disclaimer – I make to fit me (my size). Nope, I don’t do alterations. If I look at this D&G skirt at Harrods https://www.harrods.com/en-us/shopping/dolce-gabbana-patchwork-taffeta-maxi-skirt-16847103 on sale for $4695…
yeah… while I don’t have the D&G label, why should I skimp on my pricing.
Someone shared a photo with me of JLo wearing a D&G patchwork PRINT dress… totally missing the point! Prints mean it’s the same fashion waste-creating process as all the others. True patchwork should be using up excess scraps! Like Zero Waste Daniel does. He has the advantage that he was in fashion before launching on his own… and his followers followed him. I’m grateful for his influence in this effort. We need to make this kinda style cool globally. Considering the global shift since March 2020, I suspect everything is gonna change… and the sooner we adopt new/better/environmentally friendly options, the better for all of us.
While my sewing is personally fulfilling… it’s not paying the bills… I’m venturing into affiliate marketing to do that… so please click on the adverts on this page (it also helps me see that they’re working)
Originally posted 2022-11-20 06:49:15.