Let's spin a tale about our clothing, as they tell a story interwoven with identity, class, and self-expression. We'll unravel the stained truth about fashion’s impact and stitch together a future that mends our broken connections.

DIY Solarpunk vest posted on Mastodon.

In a world of $2 T-shirts and $10 jeans, one Global North man’s trash is no longer another Global South man’s treasure. It’s just trash tossed around the world until it hits the ground. A business model that gets consumers addicted to excessive amounts of stylistically homogeneous clothing that is trendy but quickly depreciates in real value—clothing that lacks the embedded value that once made clothing worth keeping, repairing, reselling, upcycling, or recycling—that’s a business model that consolidates profits in the pockets of a few businessmen, leaving us to clean up their mess.

FreeSewing is open source software to generate bespoke sewing patterns, loved by home sewers and fashion entrepreneurs alike.

Mastodon instance: FreeSewing.social

Source: sarumomorchella on deviantart

The new textile was designed to combat the urban heat island effect, reflecting both the sun’s heat and the heat that bounces off of buildings and streets.

On a Saturday in February, high school senior Kaylee Lemmien sifted through racks of dresses at Tinker Tailor, a small shop in downtown Elk Rapids, a village of about 1,500 people in northern Michigan.

“I’d call this a mermaid, sequin, light blue gown with a tulle skirt. It’s got a lace-up back, kind of open,” Lemmien said. “Very pretty.”

Tinker Tailor usually alters clothes, but on this day it was selling them — prom dresses, to be exact. Gowns in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors — short and long, neons and pastels, satin and sequins — lined the racks. The garments were donated and consigned by people around the region, with the goal of giving them a new life at the Elk Rapids High School prom in May. Called Sustainable Style, the secondhand shopping initiative takes aim at fast fashion.

French lawmakers advanced a bill that seeks to rein in fast fashion’s impact on the climate, labor rights and the economy. The bill would ban certain “ultra-fast-fashion” companies like Shein from advertising and penalize them by up to 10 euros per individual item of clothing. It also would force fast-fashion retailers to include information on their products’ reuse, repair, recycling and environmental impact next to the product’s price.

“The age of plastic began because it mimicked other things, and the functionality was so good that it became its own thing,” fashion designer Uyen Tran told Grist, when we interviewed her for our 2023 Grist 50 list. In 2020, Tran founded a company called TômTex to create bio-based materials that can replace synthetic fabrics as well as leather and suede. She believes that a wave of new materials is ready to outcompete plastic-based textiles. “I think biomaterial is on the edge of becoming its own thing as well. Just give us a few more years, and you will see.”

In this newsletter, we’re rounding up a handful of the materials — from apple waste to artificial spider silk — that are already on the market, offering a glimpse of a plastic-free future for our textiles.

I bought this machine from the 1960s (cost: ~5 Big Macs). I did not clean it or oil it as I wanted to just see if it works.

It made a straight line without issue. Then for the 2nd straight line I spun the wheel manually (no motor) to see things work in slow motion. The top thread got bundled below the plate. I cleared that & started over. Then went to the narrowest zig-zag setting and the needle broke. I think I used the motor for the zig-zag.

I’m just starting to learn. I know from videos that pushing the fabric while the needle is down can bend the needle and put it in harms way. I don’t think I was pushing or pulling the fabric when the needle broke. So I wonder what would cause this-- does this mean the timing is off and needs adjustment?

I’m not enthusiastic about doing much experimentation at this point because needles seem pricey enough that I don’t want to break man

(view this in gemini too! gemini://okasen.smol.pub/how-a-dress-becomes-a-sweater)

I just want to share this sweater DIY project I did last night in a furious anger at fast fashion. If anyone wants specific construction details, I can try to provide answers to questions! But in general, it was very slapdash and haphazard and I don't recommend anyone just jump straight into turning one piece of clothing into an entirely other piece. It takes a lot of practice and... battle-hardenedness... to not give up or be too perfectionist with this kinda stuff. So if you're already a sewist, give something like this a go! If you're not a sewist: become one!