Check Your Thread: Sewing More Sustainably

For the 52nd episode of Check Your Thread, I’m speaking with a fascinating and multi-faceted creative named Bella Gonshorovitz. Originally from Tel Aviv and currently living and working in London, Bella is a fashion designer, maker, author and collaborator who has recently had her first book published. ‘Grow, Cook, Dye, Wear - From seed to style the sustainable way’ is about creating garments that are infused with experience, personality and meaning. We cover her enthralling career to date, including her collaborations with female artists to create personal collections of clothes for them. She also talks us through what she’s growing in her allotment, and the wonderful characters who have supported the creation of her book. And finally, Bella introduces me to two powerful ideas that are deeply connected to sewing more sustainably that I’d never considered before. 

Support the podcast over on Patreon!

Find Bella Gonshorovitz via her website HERE, or on Instagram @bella_gonshorovitz

Buy Bella’s book, ‘Grow, Cook, Dye, Wear - From seed to style the sustainable way’ HERE.

Discover Bella’s former employer in NYC, ThreeASFOUR HERE. 

Bella is a regular collaborator with artist and sculpter Cathie Pilkington (see Cathie’s work HERE). They worked together in an installation called GoodBedBadBed see below:

The centre for sustainable fashion in London is HERE.  

Learn about sustainable fashion pioneer Kate Fletcher HERE.  

Bella’s onion dress:

Mr Sadiq is Bella’s allotment mentor:

Allotment Fashion Week! Mr Sadiq and Dean:

Listen to Episode #13. Natural Dyeing with Amy Taylor HERE. 

Support the podcast over on Patreon!

Image source: Fabrications 

Find out about all aspects of Barley’s business, Fabrications, HERE. 

It can also be found on Instagram @fabricationshackney.

The full schedule of events taking place at Fabrications, including the fortnightly craft club, can be viewed HERE.

Find the various London locations of the Library of Things HERE. 

Image source: Fabrications 

Discover Barley’s incredible upcycled bags and accessories HERE. See one of her cross-body bags made from a men’s suit jacket below:

Image source: Fabrications 

Listen to Riccardo’s podcast episode, #7: Experimental Sewing with Riccardo Guido HERE in which he talks about his work with Barley making sweatshirts from scraps (inspired by the work of Zero Waste Daniel HERE). 

Riccardo and Barley are both big fans of Wendy Ward’s work. Listen to Wendy’s podcast episode, #2: How To Sew Sustainably with Wendy Ward HERE.

Find Wendy Ward’s books that include a number of patterns Barley uses in her classes HERE.  

Learn more about Barley’s incredible Remember Me service HERE.

See the fantastic curtain made from ties in the makers’ space below:

Find out about the incredible quilting tradition of Gees Bend, Alabama HERE. 

Barley is inspired by artist Lucy Orta (HERE) who has worked with clothing and homelessness HERE and HERE and with food waste HERE.  

In Episode 50 I report back from my recent visit to the Future Fabrics Expo in London. I got to discover what fabrics, fibres, textiles and haberdashery with more sustainable credentials are already on the market. Plus I learnt about some exciting new products and technologies currently in development that offer creative solutions to some of fashion’s biggest issues. I share all this plus my predictions and hopes for garment making fabric going forwards…

Support the podcast over on Patreon!

Find out more about the Future Fabrics Expo HERE.

The event is organised by The Sustainable Angle HERE. 

Bananatex make fibres from the Abaca banana plant leaves HERE. See some unprocessed banana plant fibres below:

Piñatex is a company doing something similar with pineapple plants HERE. See the manufacturing cycle for these leather-alternative textiles below:

Image source: Piñatex

Orange Fiber is an Italian company working with Tencel producers Lyocell to make fabrics by combining citrus by-products and wood pulp HERE.

The fibre and fabric innovations display:

Ecovative are producing leather alternatives using mycelium HERE. See the resultant product below:

Image source: Ecovative 

Fulgar chemically recycle used tyres and other waste products to create fibres similar to those created from virgin fossil fuels HERE.

Jess Redgrave explores the potential use of sunflowers in fashion. Find out more HERE. See examples of fabrics dyed using pigments derived from various parts of the plant below:

Learn more about the ‘Living Ink’ created from the by-products of algae HERE. 

Listen to Clare Press’s podcast The Wardrobe Crisis HERE. 

Three of my favourite episodes include:

Ep.150: Liz Ricketts - Waste Colonialism and Dead White Man’s Clothes. 

Ep.131: Aditi Mayer interviews Alok Vaid-Menon - Degendering Fashion.

Ep.104: Adam Minter on Recycling, Reuse and the Second Hand Economy.

Textile activist Shams el-Din Rogers is back on Check Your Thread! In this episode, #49, Shams shares more powerful and thought-provoking ideas focusing on sewing as it relates to sustainability, economic self-sufficiency, feminism, gender/relationship dymanics and cultural appropriation. For example, she encourages us to question how and why those of us who have periods have become reliant on disposable menstrual protection, subsequently handing over money to manufacturers every month from our first period through to menopause. She also explores what can happen in relationships when your art/craft resides in the domestic sphere. This episode is not to be missed. 

Support the podcast over on Patreon!

Find Shams el-Din Rogers on Instagram @shamseldinrogers.

Shams is pictured below with her husband Michael:

Read about the Days for Girls charity HERE. 

Another great organisation who you can make and donate reusable sanitary pads to is the Pachamama Project who send them to refugees around the globe HERE. 

Find a free range of washable sanitary pads patterns by Luna Wolf HERE . Don’t forget to buy them a cup of tea using the donation link if you use this resource. Read my road test of this pattern HERE. 

Listen to Episode #29: Handmade Period Pants with Yelena Buck HERE. Read my blog post about making washable period pants HERE.  

Episode 48 gets stuck into the sizable ‘sister’ topic of how to knit more sustainably! I had the pleasure of talking to knitting podcaster, community leader, marketing expert and former yarn-shop owner, Saskia de Feijter from Ja, Wol and A Smaller Life podcast as the second part of our recent podcast swap. She explained to me how as a beginner knitter, I could approach knitting from a more sustainable angle. Then we dug into the similarities between our respective crafts and communities, and also the differences (spoiler: there aren’t many!). I particularly loved exploring the topic of stashes and resource accumulation, as well as Saskia’s awesome tips for using up leftover yarn. Saskia is such a fun, interesting and knowledgeable person, and I think she has the loveliest voice! 

Support the podcast over on Patreon!

Find out more about Saskia, her business, her Ja, Wol knitting community, business mentoring and podcast HERE. 

Listen to Episode #34 of A Smaller Life featuring me HERE. 

Author and designer Anna Matlz has a website HERE. Her knitting book ‘Marlisle’ is pictured below:

Saskia recommends UK women owned yarn brand, The Grey Sheep (formerly known as ‘Little Grey Sheep’) is HERE. 

I bought my kit to knit my first cardigan from We Are Knitters HERE. See below for the finished project. 

An interesting and heartbreaking explanation of mulesing from the RSPCA can be read HERE.  

Listen to Episode #29 of A Smaller Life called My Conscious Wardrobe HERE. 

Saskia belongs to the Topstitch Makers Sewcial Community HERE. 

Discover ‘The Act of Sewing’ book by Sonya Phillips HERE.

Saskia has also made the Estuary Skirt pattern by Sew Liberated HERE. See below: 

The Instagram hashtag Saskia started is #knitpile. 

The popular Ravelry community can be found HERE.  

Find Dutch indie dyer Ovis et Cetera HERE. See my favourite colour of their yarns HERE, pictured below:

A fantastic, inspiring collection of ideas for leftover yarn from the Ovis et Cetera blog is HERE. 

Find the London-based Wild and Woolly shop HERE.  

This episode is something of a love letter to my favourite mending technique: patching! Mending with patches is a beginner friendly option for giving most types of clothing and fabrics a longer life. Depending on your choice of patching fabric, it can be a bold statement, or a subtle repair. It offers plenty of opportunities for creativity, it can be achieved without a sewing machine AND can be deployed when other mending options fail you. Expanding on the patching sections from my book, ‘Mend it, Wear it, Love it!’, in this solo episode I offer up ideas for creative patching and share practical advice on achieving a successful repair. Plus I talk through the steps for two different approaches to patching for those who are new to garment mending. 

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The step by step techniques outlined in this episode are adapted from my book ‘Mend it, Wear it, Love it!’ which you can find HERE. 

List of materials and equipment you’ll need for basic patching:

Fabric to make patch 

Fabric scissors

Iron

Tape measure

Fabric marking tool

Hand sewing needle

Thread (colour to match or contrast with your patch)

Safety pins (use regular pins if your fabric is likely to be damaged by safety pins)

Thread snips or small scissors

A basic running stitch technique is shown in THIS VIDEO. 

A basic whip stitch technique is shown in THIS VIDEO. 

Examples of Sashiko-style stitching that I have previously attempted:

Daisy Braid, AKA DIY Daisy, produces fantastic garment-making tutorials. Available via her website, and in a newly released book called ‘Sew It Yourself’, Daisy has made drafting and sewing simple, stylish garments incredibly accessible. By removing the need for prior experience of drafting or even using sewing patterns, Daisy’s designs can be created for bodies of any size with just some basic sewing skills. In this conversation, she tells me about her journey from being an op-shop obsessed teenager to a published sewing author, why her designs err towards minimal waste and the motivation behind her #nomakemarch challenge. 

Support the podcast over on Patreon!

Find out more about Daisy via her website HERE and on IG @_diydaisy. 

Details about her book ‘Sew It Yourself’ are HERE. 

Daisy’s former works place in NZ is The Fabric Store HERE. 

The Stephanie Top project in her book is based on the Rectangle Top tutorial on her website HERE. 

Daisy’s Stephanie top variation worn as a jacket:

An example of Daisy’s patchwork:

People who inspire Daisy include:

For Episode 45 I have a fascinating talk with Noah Hirsch, a maker, artist and scavenger based in Washington, USA. Both in his employment and in his spare time, Noah works to keep materials, particularly textiles, out of landfill. Noah tells me about the motivations behind his activities, his approach to repair and reuse and how to talk to others to inspire them to keep items in use for longer. In particular, I love hearing about his dumpster diving trips and the Sunnyland Free Pantry that he keeps stocked with mended clothes for members of his community in need of warm clothing. 

Support the podcast over on Patreon!

Find Noah Hirsch on Instagram @yung_curmudgeon

Noah works at a non-profit textile diversion enterprise called Ragfinery. Find them HERE and on Instagram @ragfinery_.

Find the awesome Clotheshorse podcast that aims to decode and demystify the clothing industry HERE. 

This frequently mended flannel shirt (see below) is the oldest item in Noah’s wardrobe that is still in regular rotation. 

Mending Bloc, the mutual aid clothes-mending group from Portland, Oregon, that inspires Noah can be found HERE.

Follow the Sunnyland Free pantry that Noah stocks with clothing on Instagram HERE. 

The patching technique that Noah was describing, we’ve since realised, is reverse applique. See an example that inspires Noah below:

A mend of Noah’s using the same technique:

As this year's Me-Made-May challenge draws to a close, Episode 44 offers us all an opportunity to gain insights from the experience. In this solo episode I share my thoughts and observations on what was different about this year’s challenge. Plus, I launch my free resource, the Me-Made-May and Beyond worksheet, which will help YOU capture your experience and take away key lessons from your challenge. These lessons can inform your future making plans, raising your chances of producing items you’ll love and want to wear again and again. 

Get your free worksheet by signing up to the Check Your Thread newsletter at the bottom of the home page HERE.

Already a CYT newsletter subscriber? You'll get your download link sent direct to your inbox.

For Episode #43, I’m speaking with experienced clothes-maker Kate Ng, who has spent years learning and thinking about conscious clothes making, and how to communicate these ideas. Through her wonderful blog and Instagram account Kate has dedicated untold hours to battling over-simplified messaging and greenwashing in ‘sustainable fashion’ and ‘sustainable sewing’. In this episode we also learn about her observations so far of the sewing scene in the Netherlands (her current home), the epiphany she had around fabric purchasing, and the inspiring IG challenges and hashtags she co-created. Kate always operates with intelligence and nuance, and the shift in her perspective to a healthier balance between ethics and the joy of making is a perfect example of this. 

Support the podcast over on Patreon!

Find Kate’s blog, Time to Sew, HERE and her Instagram account @timetosew. 

Fibre Mood, the sewing pattern and magazine brand that Kate has worked for is HERE.

More info on the Social Sewalongs Kate sometimes hosts can be found HERE.  

CocoWawa Crafts, sewing patterns designed by Ana, who currently lives and teaches in Amsterdam HERE. 

Take the Four Tendencies quiz HERE. 

Kate’s latest blog post, 5 Ways to Think About Your Fabric Stash is HERE.  

Kate’s favourite, The Kite Fold Tee by Made It Patterns can be purchased HERE (pictured below). 

Awesome Dutch pattern company, Misusu Patterns, with designs that are well suited to scrap busting HERE. 

My favourite Luna pants pattern by Made By Rae is HERE. 

Find previous-guest Wendy Ward HERE and on Instagram @thatwendyward. And listen to our conversation for the podcast in Episode #2: How to Sew Sustainably with Wendy Ward HERE. 

Kate’s other sources of inspiration: