Wendy Ward - How to Sew Sustainably: Recycling, reusing, and remaking with fabric

HOW TO sew
sustainably

HOW TO sew
sustainably

RECYCLING, REUSING, AND REMAKING WITH FABRIC

wendy ward

Published in 2021 by CICO Books

An imprint of Ryland Peters & Small Ltd

www.rylandpeters.com

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Text, illustrations, and patterns Wendy Ward 2021

Design and photography CICO Books 2021

The designs in this book are copyright and must not be made for sale.

The authors moral rights have been asserted. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.

A CIP catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress and the British Library.

ISBN: 978 1 80065 023 7

E-ISBN: 978 1 80065 104 3

Printed in China

Copy editor: Katie Hardwicke

Designer: Geoff Borin

Photographer: Julian Ward

Stylist: Nel Haynes

Editor: Martha Gavin

Art director: Sally Powell

Head of production: Patricia Harrington

Publishing manager: Penny Craig

Publisher: Cindy Richards

The measurements in this book are given in both imperial and metric. Please follow one system throughout and do not mix the two.

CONTENTS

TECHNIQUES

INTRODUCTION

I made my first garment out of leftover fabrics back in 2005. I wanted to make a T-shirt but realized that I didnt have enough of the fabric I wanted to use, so I made half the T-shirt from the original fabric and the rest from leftover fabrics that I pieced together from my stash.

This approach to my sewing and to fashion in general probably began in the late 90s, when I wrote my fashion degree dissertation about the social and environmental damage caused by the fashion industry. That dissertation led me to work for a small brand producing clothes made from organic fair-trade cotton, to complete a further Master of Arts degree exploring ways to recycle textiles, and the start of my lasting passion for sustainability in textiles, fashion, and sewing.

If you are a maker of any kind you will doubtless harbor a large fabric collection or stash, and an ever-growing cache of fabric offcuts, leftovers, and scraps. Im going to show you how to use that fabric, as well as discarded home textiles and used clothing, to create new items to wear, to decorate your home, or to simply use as art for your walls.

Craft can sometimes feel like a rarified activity available to only a limited few. Materials and equipment can be expensive and making things requires space. It doesnt have to be that way. I have tried to include projects of all sizes and complexity in this book; some that will require a kitchen table-sized area on which to work and cut out, some that you can easily do sat at a small desk or on your bed or the sofa. Many require a sewing machine, but Ive also included some hand-sewing projects, textile collages for a bit of meditative sewing, and some easy ways to patch and mend damaged textiles.

Most of the clothing projects in this book are unisex and all of them can be made for children. They are based around a minimal waste approach to cutting your cloth, a technique that is centuries old and has its origins in the days when fabric was a precious resource and not a scrap could be wasted.

Fabric really is still precious but globalization, consumerism, and fast fashion have robbed many of us of that connection to the scarcity of materials and the desire to be rooted and connected to our stuff. A direct consequence has been the loss of the knowledge and skills we once all had to adapt, repair, and prolong the lives of our clothes and textiles. Fast fashion has taken away the need, consumerism has taken away the desire.

WHY DO WE NEED A SUSTAINABLE WAY TO SEW?

Maybe you have recently given up on your fast fashion habit, but have you just replaced it with a fast sewing habit? Over the last few years I have witnessed the habits inherent in fast fashion starting to creep into the worlds of craft and home sewing: social media posts showing off fabric hauls and generating online frenzies, making you sew that latest pattern or buy the last few yards of cheap fabric even though you know it wont suit you.

Why dont we subject materials for home sewing to the same scrutiny that some of us subject the materials used for ready-to-wear clothing? They are produced using the same, often environmentally damaging, manufacturing methods, the same opaque and complicated sourcing chains, and the same over-production habits.

Sewing in a sustainable way is a much more mindful approach to your makingit encourages us to be much more aware of what we have, how we can use it, and what we really need. And last but not least, to slow down a little and take pleasure in the joy of makingcreating something with just our own two hands and some simple equipment. Even after my many years of making that still seems a bit like magic to me.

TIPS FOR A SUSTAINABLE SEWING PRACTICE

Here are my four key pointers to starting a more sustainable sewing practice:

1. Think before you sewwill you use or wear what youre about to make? Do you need it? Are you making it because youve seen lots of other people make it and feel you dont want to miss out? Think about your make in terms of price per wear or use. Is it going to earn its place in your closet or your home?

2. Think before you buy fabricask yourself how it was made, what fiber is the fabric made from? If its a bargain, why is it a bargain? Someone somewhere will be paying the true cost. Is your supplier transparent about where and how they source their fabrics?

3. Use it wiselytreat fabric as the precious commodity it is; if youre using a whole piece of fresh cloth, use every square inch.

4. Leave no wastekeep and use your leftovers.

SOURCING SUSTAINABL EMATERIALS

Quality over quantity is my mantra when it comes to materials. Here are some tips Ive learned over the years to help you to source good quality materials in a sustainable way.