Check Your Thread: Sewing More Sustainably

What are the unique challenges that designing zero waste sewing patterns for children throws up? And the ways in which it might actually be easier? In this episode, Liz Elliott, the designer behind Thread Faction Studio, gives us a fascinating insight into her business and processes. We also discuss navigating life when your role as a parent and as a business owner are entwined. 

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Sew 4 Bub was Liz´s first blog where you can still access some free patterns.  

Like every ZW pattern designer, Liz was inspired by The Zero Waste Fashion Design book by Holly McQuillan and Timo Rissanen.

See the ZW pattern look book on Thread Faction Studio website. 

I’ve previously made the ZW Utility Jumpsuit pattern (my version) and the ZW Cap Sleeve Tee pattern (my version).

Image source: Thread Faction Studio.  

Liz is a big fan of previous-guest Birgitta Helmersson’s book, Zero Waste Patterns. 

Listen to my conversation with another Australia-based ZW pattern designer, Liz Haywood:

Find some of Liz’s previous ‘Hatchlings Patterns’, including grow-with-me baby/toddler styles, in Liz´s Etsy shop.

Listen to previous guest Alexis Bailey talk about her ZW pattern journey:

Do you enjoy hearing the whys and the hows behind other people’s sewing projects? Previous-guest, Judy Williment-Ross, is one of the most prolific, resourceful and creative makers I know. In this episode, Judy talks us through the ideas and development behind some of her more recent projects. She also shares her secrets to creating professional looking garments out of op-shop finds and fabric scraps. 

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Follow Judy Williment-Ross and her creative journey on Instagram @judywillimentross. 

Judy´s previous appearance on  CYT:

Check out The Epic Dress.

Judy has shared about the process (and again) as well as the finished version of her Scrappy Jacket. 

Her Scrappy Pouch was proof of concept. 

The logical step, after working with suit trousers and button up shirts was, of course, ties! The result being the All Tied Up Dress:

Next up was a plethora of Blanket Coats! Including her pal Rhonda’s. 

Judy started adding ‘My Mum Made It’ labels to her daughter’s garments:

Judy’s Waste Coat is made using the scraps leftover from the All Tied Up dress:

Judy’s previous waistcoat project used a pattern from 1895. 

Does this look like a bog blouse?! 

Holly McQuillan’s spiral trousers concept has also been made by previous-guest Liz Haywood. 

Georgia´s professional upcycled and handmade wardrobe:

We chatted about my patchwork denim quilted jacket.

Do you know what your sewing machine needs to stay in good working order? What equipment is required for that? What issues can be tackled at home, and when should we call in the professionals? And what’s the best way to become the professional, if that’s of interest to us? These are just some of the questions my guest, sewing machine technician, Bizz McKilligan, answers in today’s episode. Bizz is also the owner of a shop called The Green Thimble, that recirculates secondhand sewing equipment and fabric. She shares the long and interesting journey she went on to arrive in that situation. 

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Bizz is the owner of The Green Thimble, an online and bricks and mortar sewing shop in Victoria, Canada, that helps to recirculate existing sewing resources.  

Follow them on Instagram @thegreenthimble.ca.

If you haven’t already, listen to:

Find out about the many ways in which The Green Thimble endeavours to be a more-sustainable business. 

Bizz recommends the Bernina 830 Record if you are looking to purchase a robust and easy to fix machine. I now desperately want one!

The Green Thimble has a wonderful, supportive relationship with The Makehouse Co-op, also in Victoria, Canada.  

Do you have a system for organising your fabric stash? I didn’t until recently. In this episode I’m sharing my own method of organisation that I’m calling the ‘seasonal stash’. This system is allowing me to unlock the potential in what I already own, whilst stopping it from feeling overwhelming. Could the ‘seasonal stash’ system help YOU?!

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(image source: Mel Poole via Unsplash)

**CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE FREE DOWNLOADABLE PDF VERSION OF THIS GUIDE**

The Seasonal Stash Guide

This is a simple step-by-step guide for implementing the Seasonal Stash system for sorting and organising a fabric collection. It won’t take you long to implement, and once set up, requires little maintenance. 

This will help you to:

Sounds good? OK let’s do this!

The first three steps I’d recommend for whatever system of stash organisation you want to implement. 

Step 1) Gather your fabric. 

Gather it all in one place to sort and organise. Ideally, we also want to be storing it in the same spot as well going forwards. If at all possible, keep all your fabric lengths together in the same room, if not the same cupboard / set of shelves / collection of storage tubs.

This will prevent you from:

Step 2) Edit.

To paraphrase William Morris: have nothing in your stash that you do not believe to be beautiful or know to be useful. Just hold each item and answer, honestly: Do I think this is lovely and / or  is it useful? If so, am I actually going to sew with it?

Tips to help the editing process:

After the editing step you should be looking at only the pieces that:

Step 3) Set aside anything small or scrappy. 

Think about what that means to you. Some examples of definitions may include:

Whatever your definition is, put aside those pieces to be stored separately. Scraps and leftovers are a great resource for sewing, however, finding uses for them will be much easier if they’re not wedged in between the longer and weightier lengths.

**Note: the only exception to this might be if you have scraps of one of the lengths of fabrics in your collection. You might be able to cut some pattern pieces from the scraps when you come to use the length, so you should probably store those scraps with the rest of the length**

If you have any garments that you’re keeping to either refashion or harvest fabric from, separate those out too. 

Step 4) Separate your fabric into 3 piles. 

Currently you’re just dealing with your main stash of garment-sized fabric lengths. Once again, go through them piece-by-piece and place them into one of three piles.

Pile #1: 

In this pile place the fabric pieces that are suitable for the season you’re currently in or are about to transition into. Only include the pieces that you have plans for, even if those plans are fairly loose. 

Pile #2: 

In this pile place the fabric pieces that are suitable for the next six months to a year (basically fabrics suitable for a season or two ahead of what you’re currently experiencing). Again, only include the pieces that you have plans for, even if those plans are fairly loose. 

Pile #3: 

Everything else! Because you have already done the work, at this point your stash only contains items you genuinely want or can see are useful. Therefore, the pieces in this pile deserve to be here, you just don’t know what to do with them yet. 

Step 5) Positioning the piles:

Depending on how much fabric you own and the shape / size / orientation of your storage situation, each ‘pile’ might actually be multiple piles. 

Step 6) When the seasons change:

When a season comes to an end, it’s time to rotate the fabric around. Follow these sub-steps:

**When to swap things over**

Finally, a note on when to do Step 6. The timings I’ve suggested above require swapping your fabric round every three to six months. However this whole system is, of course, entirely open to interpretation and customisation. You could make your ‘sewing seasons’ shorter or longer. Or you may decide to to swap things over and reevaluate when you discover the pieces in Pile #1 aren’t inspiring you. You always want to be looking at a collection of fabric that you’re excited to sew with!

Happy Sewing! 

Could you go for a year without buying fabric? Or even a couple of months? I speak to Lise Bauer about what Last Sewist Standing, the ultimate stash busting challenge that she created, can do for you. In this episode, the second in the Fabric Stash mini-series, we discuss shopping habits and motivations, perfectionism, habit building, resourcefulness, community, accountability and so so much more. Plus you NEED to hear how Lise’s own challenge went this year. As you can hear in the episode, I was SHOCKED!

Support the podcast over on Patreon! Lise and her fabric-of-shame!

Follow Lise Bauer @miss.taeschli on Instagram.

Check out the IG posts relating to the #lastsewiststanding challenge.

I first discovered the challenge through regular-guest, Shams el-Din Rogers, the ‘unofficial winner’ of the second year of the challenge. 

The ‘unofficial winner’ of the first year of the challenge was Wilma Gerlsma @vladivos.

Discover many of the participants through the comments on Lise’s most recent check-in post.

Wilma wrote an excellent blog post about her relationship to fabric and fabric buying. 

Lise is on a roll, making pouches for everyone she knows! 

Lise is using the Pipa the Pouch pattern by Sewing Patterns by Masin, which is free when you sign up to the newsletter. 

Image source: Sewing Patterns by Masin 

You can read my road test of the Pipa the Pouch pattern on my blog as part of my Free Pattern Friday blog post series. 

Would you like to bring your sustainability values and your sewing life into closer alignment in 2024? If so, one key area to focus on is materials. In this episode, CYT listeners share their fabric-related goals for the year ahead. Which ones resonate with you? 

Support the podcast over on Patreon!

Check out the ‘Introduction to Garment Fabrics’ guide. 

Find the Stash Hub app on their website, on IG @stash_hub, or in your smart phone’s app store. 

Learn more about the #lastsewiststanding challenge via its creator, Lise Bauer, AKA  @miss.taeschli. 

Read the blog post by Modern Sewing Co. that inspired Amy Dyce’s approach to planning her autumnal sewing. 

Image source: The Modern Sewing Co.

Would you like to get more creative with your fabric scraps, but you’re just not sure how to approach it? You could be missing out on a whole heap of fun, if only you could learn how to be more receptive to their potential. My guest this week is improv quilting artist and teacher, Sherri Lynn Wood. Sherri Lynn defines the two types of creativity as ‘active’ and ‘receptive’. As garment sewers, we are used to actively creating the garments that we’ve envisioned. However, Sherri Lynn encourages us to access the second type by playing with fabric scraps and existing textiles, to see what we can create without a clear idea of the finished outcome. Whether that play becomes a quilt, a garment, or something else…

Find everything Sherri Lynn Wood is involved in, past and present, on her website. You can also follow her on Instagram @sherrilynnwood.

Find all the workshops in the Found Color series. 

Learn about Sherri Lynn’s improv quilters’ community, Bravepatch.

Eli Leon was a scholar and collector of African American quilts. 

Quilters that inspire Sherri Lynn:

Sherri Lynn’s book, ‘The Improv Handbook For Modern Quilters

A Guide to Creating, Quilting & Living Courageously’, was published in 2015.

Sherri Lynn is offering a free warm-up class at the start of the series, which takes place on 6th January 2024. Sign up via her website. 

Sherri Lynn recommends that garment sewers with scraps try strip piecing:

My pieced cardigan that I was wearing during our conversation:

Suay Sew Shop in LA is a fascinating businessthat are doing wonderful things to keep textiles in use for longer. 

Listen to my episodes with improv quilt artist, Heidi Parkes:

My scrap pieced denim dungarees that I was wearing during our conversation:

Wool batting by Fairfields is Sherri Lynn’s preference if she’s buying new batting.

Is your pile of items to be repaired getting out of hand? Do you struggle to find the motivation to tackle it all? My guest, Jeanna Wigger, invented a challenge called Winter of Care and Repair, and it might be just the push you need to get on top of things! We talk about the fun and satisfaction that can be found through acts of repair, as well as the unique challenges and growth opportunities that come through completing a season-long personal project.

Support the podcast over on Patreon!

Jeanna Wigger wearing an outfit of invisibly mended clothes:

You can follow Jeanna on Instagram @thepeoplesmending.

The challenge was previously mentioned on the podcast in my conversation with regular guests Shams:

Engage with other participants via the hashtags #winterofcareandrepair and #winterofcareandrepair2023.

Jeanna and I are both fans of writer and podcaster Gretchen Rueben. Gretchen developed the Four Tendencies personality framework, of which I am obsessed! 

Katrina Rodabaugh, author of ‘Mending Matters’, played a key role in Jeanna’s mending journey. 

Jeanna’s beautifully mended knit cardigan:

Previous guest, Erin Lewis-Fitzgerald, creatively mended this stained toddler top:

Image source: Erin Lewis-Fitzgerald

Additional ideas of what could constitute an act of repair from Jeanna:

- laundry care! level up your stain removal knowledge or learn about alternatives to washing such as spot cleaning or alcohol spritzes to refresh clothes between washes

- depill a sweater with an electric depiller or a sweater comb

- jewelry repair - fix a clasp or replace a battery in a watch (or take those items to a repair shop)

- hand wash and air out wool knitwear

- use a leather treatment on leather handbags, boots, jackets, furniture, etc

- replace worn shoelaces

- clean up or polish shoes

- overdye a garment or other textile that needs a refresh

- alter a garment for yourself or someone else

- repair something with stitches that isn't clothing (like a pillow, bag, dog toy, curtain, etc). Remember, anything with stitches can be mended! 

All the materials that go into our sewing projects have an environmental impact. You’re probably starting to think about more sustainable fabric, and possibly even thread. But we can go further! This episode features the second half of my conversation with Richard Mendham from James Tailoring, a company dedicated to sourcing more sustainable haberdashery. In this part, he tells us about our options for more sustainable elastic, zips and buttons…

Support the podcast over on Patreon!

Listen to the first half of my conversation with Richard:

Find all the more sustainable haberdashery options Richard sources on the website James Tailoring.

Find all their more sustainable elastic options. 

Natural Rubber Activewear Elastic

Organic Cotton and Natural Rubber Fold Over Elastic 

Find all their more sustainable zip options. 

Zips with recycled brass teeth:

Image source: James Tailoring

Find all their more sustainable button options. 

Find all their more sustainable fabric options. 

Learn about what has to be achieved to receive GOTS certification. 

If you’re looking for ideas for quick and cheap sewing projects that make great gifts then this is the episode for you. And if there is a maker in your life that you’d like to buy something special for, or people are asking for gift ideas that they can get for YOU, Grace from Beyond Measure talks me through some of the beautiful and useful items she sells that might fit the bill. 

Support the podcast over on Patreon!

Gifts for makers:

Tool roll tutorial by The Book Hut.

Stowe Bag pattern by Grainline Studio.

Image source: Grainline Studio

Simple Accessories & Clothing Gifts:

Sorrento Bucket Hat pattern by Elbe Textiles. 

Image source: Elbe Textiles

Sandcastle Bucket Hat pattern by Waves & Wild. 

Reversible Bucket Hat pattern by Oliver + S. 

The Orton Bag pattern by Merchant & Mills. (In the episode I have said this is one is free however, it is now a paid-for pattern). 

The byTilly shopper bag pattern from byGraziela Fabrics.

Image source: byGraziela Fabrics

Scrunchie tutorial by Melly Sews.  

Mittens pattern made by using wool knitwear by fibreandtwigs on Etsy. 

Mandy Boat Tee pattern by Tessuti. Read my review of this pattern. 

Luna Tank pattern by Helen’s Closet. 

Dominique Skirt pattern by Tilly and the Buttons. 

Lightweight summer face mask tutorial by Sophie Passmore. 

Homeware Gifts: 

Apron pattern by Tessuti.

Workaday Apron pattern by Merchant & Mills HERE.

Oven Mitt pattern by Bombazine. Read my review of this pattern. Please note that this pattern for previously free, but is now a low-cost paid for pattern. 

Fabric Bowl Cover tutorial by Hearth and Vine. Read my review of this tutorial.

Gifts for Kids:

40 Free Sewing Patterns for Gifts for Kids blog post.

My Favourite Free Children’s Sewing Patterns blog post.

Batman Costume tutorial by Fleece Fun.

Pom Pom Tutu Skirt tutorial by Brit + Co. 

Princess Dress Up Apron pattern by It’s Always Autumn. 

Image source: It’s Always Autumn

Easy Apron pattern by Scattered Thoughts of a Crafty Mom. 

Oven Mitt pattern by Made for Mermaids. 

Gift Wrapping:

Furoshiki Wrapping Cloths tutorial by Wellness Mama. 

At Beyond Measure:

Listen to Ep. #59: Tools for Life with Grace Whowell

Sarah Young animal and people printed tea towels. 

Daruma Yokota Sashiko threads

Image source: Beyond Measure

Daruma Yokota variegated Sashiko Threads

Daruma Yokota Sashiko Sampler Cloth pre-printed with different patterns

Image source: Beyond Measure

Daruma Yokota Sashiko Cloth

Hiroshima Cellulose-head Tulip Pins 

Image source: Beyond Measure

Cohana Wooden Star Head Pins 

Cohana Mini Masu Pincushion

Image source: Beyond Measure

Cohana Silk Braided Mini Snips

Cohana Cast Iron Pattern Weights

Cohana Awaji Kawara Magnetic Needle Rest with Polisher

Image source: Beyond Measure

Dropcloth Sampler designed by Rebecca Ringquist

Hand Sewing Clothing book by Louisa Owen Sonstroem

Listen to Ep. #15: Hand Stitching Clothes with Louisa Owen Sonstroem

100 Acts of Sewing Shirt No. 1 by Sonya Philip 

Awls made in Japan 

Image source: Beyond Measure

Wooden Stitch Rippers 

Tracing Wheels 

Linouiio yarn made in Yorkshire