As a sewist you probably own a lot of clothes and fabric. If I look at my own clothes, I have those that I made and love and actually wear outside the house, then the clothes I’ve made and like but don’t fit with anything else in my wardrobe or don’t actually fit my lifestyle (frosting anyone?), then the clothes I bought and love, the ones I’ve bought and still love but don’t wear because they change shape, they’re difficult to iron or I just keep postponing their wear for “a better occasion”, the ones that were a gift, the unfinished sewing project and last but not least the clothes that I’ve said I’ll refashion.
That’s a lot of clothes.
Do I need all those clothes? Definitely not. Here are 3 inspiring reads about simplifying and understanding how we could own less to get more from the things we own or make:
The case for fewer—but better—clothes by Keila Tyner. Even though Keila focuses on the North Americal market, I think this is still true for a great part of the rest of the world: we buy more than we need, we buy more than we wear, we buy more than we can store. This could also be the case for sewists: because making clothes is so easy, there’s no need to limit the amount of clothes you have. Does minimalistic sewing exist?
33 Things to Eliminate From Your Closet by Courtney Carver. Project 33 challenges people who want to simplify, declutter and who know, maybe find new inspiration to live with 33 items for 3 months. The idea is that by owning less and keeping only what works and what you love you’ll be able to focus on more important things in your life than tomorrow’s outfit – while style looking your best. Not sure what to keep? Start with the things you could take out.
An 8 week checklist for simplifying your home by Trina from Beginner Beans. If you liked Apartment Therapy’s Home Cure, you might also like Trina’s version, that focuses on simplifying your home and your life. Not directly sewing related, but I am sure your sewing studio would benefit from a bit of simplifying… I know mine does.
What about you? What are you going to donate, give away or simply remove from your closet this weekend?
I have been super good a couple of months ago and I gave away quite a few projects. And I now try to sew only things I would wear. Now, we will see how I stick to it 🙂
It sound like a good start, Laurence 🙂 I’ve stopped buying clothes myself since last September and I am trying to be more mindful about what I sew in general. Not easy, but worth it.
Thanks for the recommendations! The eight-week simplifying plan looks really interesting… I’m going to take a closer look at that!
I think this is very much connected with the idea that our space influences our creativity. By having more space to think, by loving your home more, you should also feel more inspire to create more.