When I made the choice to reduce my consumption of fast fashion, I also signed up to another pledge. I committed to looking after my existing ready-to-wear wardrobe.
My focus has shifted from trends to joy. Joy of fashion. Joy of garments. Joy of sewing.
I want to achieve something with my me-made wardrobe that many fast-fashion brands do not, and make my garments last.
Fast fashion brands like Shein, Pretty Little Thing, and Boohoo churn out poorly made clothes designed to be worn, wear out quickly, and throw away after six months so that you can buy into the next big trend.
Each piece of clothing is a stepping stone to the next piece and very little consideration is given to the longevity of our wardrobes.
With me made garments we invest time and energy. We put care into every step and create something that we want to wear and we look after it.
However sewing doesn’t mean throwing out your existing ready-to-wear wardrobe, I have RTW clothes that have lasted over 10 years with careful washing and conscious approach to their care.
Caring For Your Wardrobe
A quick test to see if you look after your wardrobe. Do you know what these symbols mean? Chances are you’ve seen them as you hang your clothes out or briefly as they disappear into the washing machine. I know that I didn’t understand them for years. Sometimes I still get confused!
These symbols describe how you should care for your clothes and yet most of us don’t understand them or just don’t read them. However they are the key to caring for our RTW wardrobes. To tell us what to do and crucially what not to do! What temperature to wash at. Whether or not it can be tumble dried. Even sometimes what temperature your iron should be.
Following these symbols prolongs the life of garments and therefore helps us to consume less. This article is not here to berate you, I’m not trying to tell you off because honestly who has time or energy for complex garment care.
When we do get to the point where mending is required, when a button falls off, a zip breaks, seams fray and split, we are more likely to throw the garment away or take it to charity than we are to fix it. The reality is that that is how we’ve been conditioned to engage with clothing and the fashion industry. But we don’t have to. We can choose to look after our clothes properly, we can even refashion our clothes to make new garments we will love for longer.
The Joy Of Mending
Put your hand up if you honestly like mending things. Whether thats for yourself or for others. No? No takers? Exactly, mending is a sewing chore.
It’s not fun, it’s time consuming, irritating and frankly most of us would rather be doing anything except sewing a button back on. Which makes it even more annoying that mending is a crucial skill and one that will make your clothes last almost forever.
Regardless of how boring mending can be it truly is a superpower held by sewists and dressmakers and one we must use. We can do mending easily ourselves if we put our minds to it. We have the knowledge to insert a new zip or fix a fraying hem. If you’re lucky you’ve got a sewing machine like mine that will attach buttons for you with no hand sewing involved!
My Top 5 Garment Mending Tips
- Don’t leave it. If you notice a seam starting to fray, a button becoming loose, fix it then and there.
- For patching tiny holes in garments or reinforcing newly sewn-up rips try adding a bit of iron-on interfacing
- Don’t be scared to refashion. If you’ve got a garment that has a huge rip or hole, why not considering making it into something else so it can return to your wardrobe.
- Consider visible mending with embroidery. It’s a fun way to customise a garment and add a bit of personality.
- Set aside one day a month to tackle the mending and refashion bag. Grab a cup of tea, stick something on the radio or the TV, and get sewing!
So What If I Sew 
This is such good advice. I like the idea of visible mending with embroidery – thanks for the idea!
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