2019 Fashion on the Ration Challenge

Laura_Elsewhere

Crafty_Lisa_Hampshire wrote: »

The one thing that I do think about though is the fact that I really do like my sewing and although I am stopping buying clothes from the High Street I do still buy fabric to make things with. This seems to also have a negative impact on the planet so I am not sure how I am going to get round that fact as I cannot imagine not doing my sewing - I would go insane if I didn't do sewing, its my happy place.

Well, for one thing, you can actively seek out fabric that isn't brand new - which is often, ironically, actually brand-new Ask around, look on local Freegle type sites, etc... an example: I have a stunningly beautiful length of wool fabric for a skirt - it's really fine wool, so it moves and hangs beautifully, not at all heavy or thick, almost more like satin only made from wool with a delicate faint sheen. The colour is the rich red-tinged-with-purple that you get if you've ever made plum jam, or stewed plums for a crumble, the colour the froth is when it bubbles up. It's just under 3 metres, and mostly 36" wide, although one end has a piece cut out - but plenty for a skirt I have planned, even in my large size and my preference for full, long skirts.
It was free (I paid postage, about 6 quid iirc) because someone on a forum was clearing her attic and had come across it - she couldn't remember when she'd bought it but she knew she'd got rid of her sewing machine 20 years ago, so...! In fact when it arrived, she'\d included the 1980s dress-pattern, the top-quality colour-matched thread, the buttons and the lining!

So you can actively seek out that kind of thing - second-hand fabric doesn't have to mean faded or tatty, it can be in immaculate condition.

And also, you can work out how to make your own-making clothes the best they can be. Add linings to trousers, or half-linings, to help them wear out less quickly. Use techniques like Hong Kong seam finishing or using felled seams to enclose all raw edges on the inside, which improves longevity. Reinforce stress points with tape on the inside (ie 1/4-inch organza tape on the inside of a cardigan from neck to shoulder, which helps take the weight of the garment and help stop it going saggy or the seam starting to gape, etc.) - all the things that couture houses do, which make their garments last years and years...

Finally, look at using natural fibres so you sweat less and wash the garments less, and so the garments shed less in washing so pollute less. Get a fine-mist spray bottle and use vodka-and-rosewater to spray the inside of a garment and hang it up inside-out. If you think about it, most good trousers in the past were never, ever, ever washed. Stains or spills would be spot-treated, and the garments aired well, hung up, etc. So in theory we should never need to wash trousers - yet we all do. Same with skirts - even cardis and jumpers only need washing once or twice a year really. It's only what's against our skin that should need washed often - so make that from the most eco-friendly laundry-friendly natural fibres, and make everything else out of fabric that can be aired and hung, and damp-sponged, or hung in a steamy bathroom, and save the planet's resources that way...

I intend eventually to end up with the majority of my clothes of my own making, and I hope they will last for many, many, many years, and maybe even be in good enough condition for someone to sell them after I've gone.

The best quality of fabric (not always the most expensive), and the best skills of making, and you will be actively helping to reduce the toll on the planet... none of us can do everything all the time, after all!

Nonnadiluca

Crafty Lisa, presuming you live in Hampshire, if you are ever in Lymington, the local hospice, Oakhaven, has a craft shop on St Thomas St. There's loads of really good quality fabrics, wools, and all sorts of things craft related at very affordable prices. As all items are donated, you never know what will be there which makes it even more exciting!

Crafty_Lisa_Hampshire

Nonnadiluca wrote: »

Crafty Lisa, presuming you live in Hampshire, if you are ever in Lymington, the local hospice, Oakhaven, has a craft shop on St Thomas St. There's loads of really good quality fabrics, wools, and all sorts of things craft related at very affordable prices. As all items are donated, you never know what will be there which makes it even more exciting!

I haven't been to Lymington for many years but I will look out for that if I am now. Thank you.

Crafty_Lisa_Hampshire

Laura Elsewhere - There is a lot there to think about. Thank you. I don't usually like ordering stuff (even fabric) online as I like to have a proper feel and look at it but I will consider it. I have been passed fabric from people who have found random bits in their homes - only scraps but I have made use of some.

CAFCGirl

Hello all,

I've found a free capsule wardrobe workbook type thing for free online, and I'm working g my way through that today. I've done another cull of my clothing, and I've been looking at things from the capsule perspective as opposed to the Kondo style approach I did before.

Today has been working on my colour palette and my style descriptors. Next up will be listing what remains, what outfits I can build from them as they are, and selecting a couple of pieces to source which will generate further combinations.

Also helped me figure out that what I may like (because it envisions the type of person I'd like to be) isn't necessarily what I like on my body. I'm only small stature wise so a lot of stuff has been swamping me sneaking me feel dowdy. I can still be "that' person whatever I'm wearing - all very eye opening for a Monday LOL

thriftwizard

Oooh, Nonnadiluca, thank you for that; I'm not that far from Lymington, as it happens!

Secondhand fabrics are my stock-in-trade too; I specialise in Indian & Japanese stuff, both in fabric form and as "vintage" clothing, and wear it whenever I can because the fabrics are so beautiful & soft to wear. My summer dressing gown is a cotton yukata - a lightweight kimono, basically - and I often wear a silk haori jacket over jeans during the day or a dress if we're going out of an evening. I own a number of those double recycled-sari-silk wrap-around skirts, which are wonderfully practical for holidays as they pack down to nothing, give you two looks for the price of one, & don't need ironing.

Being an odd shape & not terribly tall, I find the new clothes in the shops here (that fall within my budgetary range) extremely uninspiring and usually pretty unflattering too. Clothes from other cultures are often much more accommodating to non-beanpole figures, and the fabrics are - well, just fabulous!

PipneyJane

CAFCGirl wrote: »

Hello all,

I've found a free capsule wardrobe workbook type thing for free online, and I'm working g my way through that today. I've done another cull of my clothing, and I've been looking at things from the capsule perspective as opposed to the Kondo style approach I did before.

Today has been working on my colour palette and my style descriptors. Next up will be listing what remains, what outfits I can build from them as they are, and selecting a couple of pieces to source which will generate further combinations.

Also helped me figure out that what I may like (because it envisions the type of person I'd like to be) isn't necessarily what I like on my body. I'm only small stature wise so a lot of stuff has been swamping me sneaking me feel dowdy. I can still be "that' person whatever I'm wearing - all very eye opening for a Monday LOL

Ooooohhhhh.... Link, please, to the capsule wardrobe workbook - it sounds like a really good resource. I love capsule wardrobes!

- Pip

Laura_Elsewhere

I had to go to the brilliant Edinburgh Fabric Shop yesterday to get some things for my parents, and was unable to resist buying myself just a teensy tiny single metre of something...

So I got one metre of cream cotton sheeting to make tops with

3 coupons, and it's 280cm wide

Clever thinking, or clever thinking?! Hah! I intend to make plain slash-neck short-sleeved or cap-sleeved tops, with colourful trim on the hems/edges. Normally I wouldn't use plain pale fabric for a top because I know I will throw my meal at myself as soon as I wear anything plain and pale - but I couldn't resist buying *something*, and it will be very very washable, so...

CAFCGirl

Hopefully this works.https://www.vettacapsule.com/blogs/blog/the-complete-guide-to-creating-a-capsule-wardrobe had to give over my email but so far I've had the link email and no other gumph

I separated my culled clothes out and dropped a bag of things down at my spiritual\wellbeing store for another customer I've met through there as she's about my size and wears that style stuff (although she's very tall) and she popped in whilst we were there and was deeply touched I'd thought of her. So feel good factor boost there.

Came home and finished looming a charcoal grey hat with a slight slouch for myself as it's one of my base colours for new wardrobe.
Found a few pieces online that fill gaps in my capsule but I need to outfit plan on my workbook first to see if they really fill holes or I'm thinking they will LOL

Laura_Elsewhere

CAFCGirl wrote: »

Came home and finished looming a charcoal grey hat with a slight slouch for myself as it's one of my base colours for new wardrobe.

I do love greys - maybe it's as I'm changing with age now I'm 50, more silver in my hair, my skin altering in tone, whatever it is, it's definitely making me explore greys more! Some warm rich greys are really nice, aren't they? Charcoal grey is definitely one of my favourites, along with that dark-slightly-pinkish grey, and the rich gunmetal, warm pewter... not so keen on pale greys, I admit, maybe still too sharp a contrast for my skin as yet?

I have had a grey dupion silk skirt for everyday winter wear for three years now (yes, through the woods, on muddy paths. foraging for blackberries - surprisingly sturdy stuff!) but it is now very worn and it does turn a bit yellow with exposure to air (ironing it dry after washing is a useful tip, but I didn't know that til recently), so I managed to get some dupion silk on eBay several years ago, but it's a very much paler grey, sort of chalky, so I'm planning to Dylon machne-dye the pale grey and make a new winter skirt. The old one was simply box-pleated onto a narrow waistband, with a button and loop, and big pockets of course! Mid-calf length. It billowed beautifully but didn't flap around and swirl wildly...