A massive thank you for showing so much enthusiasm for #makeyourstash! Its March which means we can now begin! We have been totally overwhelmed by all the love and we are very excited to be hearing all your thoughts and later on seeing all your makes. After reading all the comments, we have put together our sustainable sewing planning tips for this challenge in case you haven’t started planning your project yet. The key thing to remember is that there is oodles of time, so there is really no rush! Here goes:
Sort out your fabric stash
Some really neat storage solutions we have seen recently:
- Folding fabric in a pile and storing it inside a hanging shoe storage along a wardrobe rail. Or dedicate some shelving space to it inside a cupboard (then you won’t see it!)
- Hanging each piece of fabric on a coathanger along a wardrobe rail.
- Wrapping each piece of fabric around cardboard and labeling the tops so you can see what you have (like you would see fabric on a bolt in a shop) then filing on a bookshelf.
I confess that personally I am Mrs Disorganised. I live in a small 2 bedroom house with a toddler so my solution is 3 giant storage boxes stacked next to my wardrobe. This is obviously less than ideal, but hopefully one day we will move and I will be able to try some of the ideas above.
Courtesy of @madegoods.makegood
Decide what you would really like to have in your wardrobe for the season.
How often do you clean out your wardrobe and assess what you really want and will wear for the season? If you are doing #makenine this year, how closely did you think about what you wanted to make? We think wider wardrobe considerations are important when doing #makeyourstash or any other sewing for that matter – there’s not much point making something out of fabric that you happen to have if the colours, fabrics or style does not make you happy to wear it! You could also go RTW window shopping and to try things on. Then you can assess what you like before spending a load of time and effort on sewing.
Make just one thing
Are you a planner or do you sew on a whim when inspiration strikes? Do you know how many clothes you own? The point is that you probably don’t need anymore clothes, though it is of course nice to sew and enjoy the things you have sewn (that’s why you are reading this right?) But we think it is perfectly fine to pass on the new shiny dress pattern that is all over Instagram and you don’t need to keep up with anyone. The state of your wardrobe and how much you sew is not a competition.
My fabric is too precious to cut
We have had some people say to us that #makeyourstash is giving them motivation to finally use that piece of fabric that holds a lot of meaning and association for them. It is a scary thought to dive right in isn’t it? Especially if you have complicated plans with lots of things that could go wrong. The suggestion here is to make a toile if it is a new pattern, or go back to a TNT. If it is not possible to make a toile, I will generally make the usual adjustments on my pattern, cut a size larger then normal in iffy areas, then keep trying and fitting as I go.
Liberty silk feels too precious to cut
Liberty silk definitely feels too precious to cut
5. Take it easy and sew slowly
The ethos behind the challenge is to help you think about your sewing footprint and reduce it just a little bit by asking you to use what you have. We know some people sew quickly and some sew slowly – but as we said before, there is really no rush and it is not a competition! Take the time to make your garment beautiful on the inside, do some handsewing if you like it, and enjoy the process.
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Till next time, happy sewing
Kate and Pilar xx
Photos by Pilar and words by Kate
6 comments
Thank you for launching this challenge Kate! I’m in – I don’t have Instagram but I blog at https://www.psychicsewerkathleen.com. I’ve been an eco-feminist for more than 40 years and I’m a returned-to-sewing-sewist. I galloped back into sewing in 2013 after leaving it in my twenties. What changes! What accumulations!! Yikes I can hardly believe how much I’ve gathered around me in fabric, patterns, notions, threads in just such a short period of time. The home sewing world has changed drastically. It’s SO much better but also far more tempting. 40 years ago there was Vogue, Butterick, Simplicity (McCalls was sort of edgy and newish). Now with all the indie designers the choice (read: TEMPTATION) is all over the map quite literally. I made a promise to myself at the start of 2018 that I would buy NO MORE PATTERNS OR FABRIC. Have I adhered? NO.
I’m turning into someone I can barely recognize. I’m not a hoarder (quite the opposite) nor am I any semblance of a fashionista 🙂 So I don’t quite know what’s happened. I guess I’m just going to have to work on this unforeseen condition. My husband can’t believe it. The stacks of fabric and patterns are more than I would need in a lifetime (a much longer lifetime than mine at 63!) When I saw this challenge I thought this would be a good process for me. I joined the 2018 RTW Fast which has been easy to adhere to by comparison (WHEW!!) but I really need to get a grip on this crazy pattern/fabric addiction. So I look forward to reading how others are finding this challenge helping them to curb crazy temptations to accumulate sewing items they simply don’t need.
Hi Kathleen! Wow thank you for sharing and being so open about the addiction. It’s easy isn’t it to get addicted and I love your description as an “unforeseen condition”. I don’t think you are alone in this, lots of us out there who got addicted and then at some point recognised the need to tone down. I decided not to join the RTW fast this year as I don’t tend to buy a lot anyway and also I don’t think replacing a RTW wardrobe with a handmade one is sustainable. But maybe I’ve missed the point! Do tell me if I am wrong!
My main goal this year is to sew a whole lot less. That should be easy as my stash (unfortunately) doesn’t mirror what I have mind as what should be in my wardrobe – just poor buying choices! But I’ve decided to have a long holiday from buying anymore so I’m digging through the stash and thinking about it again. Look forward to reading about your projects.
Such great advice! I love the idea of making just one thing. It’s so easy to get down the rabbithole of planning an entire wardrobe but then no sewing gets done!!
Yes indeed! I think it’s good to keep things fluid – we often forget that sewing should be an enjoyable process (and that we probably don’t Need all those new clothes in our wardrobe immediately anyway…)
Last summer, I inherited a fantastic stash from an elderly neighbor. Vintage, modern, all quality fabric. Silk, wool, cotten sateen and some I have no idea exactly what it is. Almost all of it fit inside a four foot by 3 by 2 foot container. We are in the process of adding shelving to the walk-in closet in my sewing room (don’t be jealous – empty nester!). Can’t wait to sort, organize and select something to sew!
Hi Monica, the stash sounds amazing – the neighbour must have had it for a long time! Lucky you indeed, hopefully it is the type of thing that will fit in with the projects you want to do. Remember to tag Pilar and I on Instagram so we can see your makes! Kate x