One of the greatest feelings in the world is to feel comfortable and confident in the clothes you wear. I have found it such a fun experience to develop my own sense of style, and although I cringe looking back at some of my old outfits, I think it’s beautiful to see our styles change with our interests and personalities as we grow up. The clothes we wear are such a valuable form of expression, combining statement pieces and wearable art that can serve as a physical representation of the things we love and hold dear to us.
Unfortunately, clothes are also a form of capital, and in recent decades, they have become more transactional products, tied to growing consumerism and textile pollution. In the fashion industry’s haste to sell clothes that match the latest trends and dominate market competition, many companies promote increasingly excessive consumerist trends and practices, which has contributed to us losing the ability to truly cherish our clothes.
You know when a shirt doesn’t fit the way you want it to, perhaps too tight in some places and too loose in others? Or when you outgrow a pair of jeans but can’t seem to let it go because they’re your favorite? Maybe it’s time to donate or trash it and buy something new, right? Maybe not! I’m here to convince you why now is the perfect time to start sewing and upcycling your old clothes, rather than getting rid of them. As consumers, we have all gotten used to faster cycles of buying and disposing of our own clothes alongside fast fashion seasonal trends. What’s most unsettling is that even with the growing popularity of more eco-friendly alternatives, such as second-hand donations to thrift stores, millions of pounds of products end up in landfills anyway, and still contribute to rising textile pollution.
Now, sewing might seem daunting and scary, time-consuming and expensive. And I’m here to tell you that, while at times, it can be all those things, it can also be exciting, meaningful, inspiring, and of course, help you give new life to the things you love. So if you ever have a piece of clothing that seems like it’s on its way out, stop and think about all the possibilities to transform it into something you want to keep forever. As you begin your sewing journey, here’s 5 tips that can help you along the way!
1. Make as many mistakes as possible
You simply don’t know what you don’t know. Styles of fabrics might cinch or crease differently than expected, and figuring out what to do as soon as possible is often discovered through learning what not to do. I would recommend starting small, maybe by doing the easiest section of a piece or using practice fabrics first, and then working your way through the entire project gradually.
2. Be Cheap
Buying a whole bunch of tools, fabrics, and materials can get expensive really quickly, especially if you’re not exactly sure what you’re looking for or how much you need. My recommendation, especially with fabrics, is to look first through unused clothes or fabrics currently available in your home and then at thrift stores that are stocked with a variety of clothes, curtains, and other materials. Oftentimes, you can find some pretty durable fabrics for generally under $10 each, that you might not feel as upset about deconstructing and altering in the place of clothes you already have, especially ones that might’ve been more expensive.
3. Always cut more fabric than you need
If you’re anything like me, measurements somehow always get botched and end up widely different than as they originally began. When this happens, projects can take double the time with the extra effort of redoing a cut or aligning more fabrics to fix the design. Because of this, I would say it’s practically a requirement to cut more fabric than you think you need. If that’s not feasible, at least anticipate that the dimensions of your piece will be slightly smaller or different because of the usual seam allowance that tends to be around an inch. The extra fabric can easily be cut off later and repurposed for the next project, or you can use those scraps for extra practice with different designs.
4. Lean into Experimentation
I think it’s really important to be adaptable and a bit spontaneous in the process of sewing and creating new pieces, because there’s always more to know and the opportunity for one look to be built in a million different ways. Absolutely, have an idea of what you want to do before you start, but don’t be afraid to change your plan if things start to go a little different than you originally envisioned. Social media is a great tool as well for inspiring new looks and providing information for sewing tips and tricks, whether you use Youtube tutorials, Pinterest inspo, or Tiktok videos. At the same time, I think social media should be used as a tool, and not a teacher, especially in instances where you can’t find exact patterns to replicate. I sometimes go down a rabbit hole of trying to find an exact video that will teach me how to do something specific, but the reality is that sometimes our vision for one piece can’t be laid out through someone else’s advice. So don’t be afraid to trust in your abilities and in the sewing process!
5. Just Start!
Whether the project is something small, like sewing up a tiny, annoying hole in your favorite jeans pocket or upcycling old fabric into a piece of clothing you’ll actually wear. Whether you are working with hand sewing or navigating a sewing machine, I feel like oftentimes the hardest part is finally deciding to take that idea and put it into motion. There’s a lot that goes into sewing, especially with larger projects: sketching out the idea, the prep work, finding the proper fabrics, threading the machine, cutting all the pieces, and sewing everything together. And on top of everything else we do in our busy lives, it probably feels easier to leave these sewing ideas in the drafts. But I would say that the gratification you feel after completing a sewing project is absolutely second to none. I hope these tips are helpful and I wish you the very best on your sewing journey!