Happy Halloween!

It's been quite a while since I have been crafting, but I have a good reason! ish. I was away for the summer in Greece and then started medical school about a week after returning to the US. However, I did pack a few items that I made and when I wore them, I got some nice compliments...and found out that some friends took sneaky pictures because they wanted to recreate this shirt.

 Anywho, I have been stocking up on giant shirts and random fabrics for when I have time to dabble.

Luckily, Halloween gave me a little relief from work to make myself a simple costume. I bought myself a bedsheet from a thrift store and made a skirt similar to the circle skirt. I tried to make it a no-sew kind of project, but I messed up my measurement and cut out a waistline a bit too large. So, I made an elastic band and sewed it up. Here's my finished skirt and costume.

  

I wish I had a tambourine, but I was trying not to spend a lot of money.

Happy Halloween! [in case my costume was TOO minimalist, I'm a gypsy]

Mini-Kimono Top

Earlier this year, I made myself a half-kimono top with leftover scraps and upon seeing it, my little sister wanted one of her own. I finally got around to making it! Hopefully she doesn't have a growth spurt out of nowhere and no longer be able to wear it...





Zoom-up of the side. I sewed it a bit too small so I had to take it out and make it wider. Hopefully it works better now...otherwise, she'll need help taking it off hahaha

SPACE!

Band shirt & old t-shirt a friend gave me

+

inspiration

=

rockin' t-shirt dress!

I'm back

I decided to share clothes that I make on this blog, but without a time commitment. I don't use patterns when I sew so it takes me a lot of time to make anything. I also don't have a mannequin to work on and I usually have to stop every 15 minutes to try on what I've done [so much time!!] I could go buy one...or, even better, make my own! I found a tutorial for a DIY dress form from Threadbanger. When/if I make one, I'll share :]

Since I'm no longer doing my thesis, I can take my time making whatever I want instead of trying to complete something once a week. More time = experimentation! I went to JoAnn's and was browsing sale fabrics when I chanced upon some really cute chiffon. I've never sewn with this type of fabric before, but there are so many cute items of clothing made of chiffon that I wanted to give it a try. [I forgot that it needed lining since it's sheer so the project was postponed until I was able to make another trip to JoAnn's.]

My fabric:



I was very indecisive about what I was going to make, but decided on a ruffle skirt after seeing these:



So, my version!



First mini skirt I've owned, and it's handmade to boot! :]

In retrospect...

As of today, my thesis is officially over. The past four months flew by rather quickly and I didn't really have time to truly explore the ideas my thesis was based upon. There is a lot of literature available for sustainable consumption and downshifting/voluntary simplicity. Even though I feel that I could have read more, I did stick with my original proposal and rules.

I tried not to buy any fabrics or clothing items unless absolutely necessary. If I did, I would try to buy handmade or environmentally friendly items. Although I did not buy much, I learned that many of the eco-friendly clothes and fabrics were more expensive. Does this mean you have to be of a certain economic status to practice environmentally friendly habits? Of course not! However, it does mean that you would have to change your spending habits and be creative.

At first, it was easy to forgo purchases and keep up with weekly projects. I had my pile of fabrics and several ideas from DIY websites to keep myself busy. After a while, I became accustomed to not spending money on certain items, namely, clothing and fabrics. I did not feel the need to go shopping and if I found myself in a clothing store, I would refrain from buying items because I knew that I could make something similar for less.  Even so, it started to get difficult after a couple months. Most of the projects I came across were not feasible with the fabrics I had on hand (mostly T-shirts.) However, having my sewing projects connected to the overarching theme of sustainability made me try harder. I was only altering my consumption practices and, if I couldn’t do that, would there be hope to change other aspects of my lifestyle to follow sustainability ideals? By completing this project, I found that I was able to adapt and make items from very limited amount of material.

For the most part, I followed clothing sustainability practices more so than the ideals of voluntary simplicity. As a student, I can’t really cut down on schoolwork to focus on other aspects of life. However, I can spend my time enjoying life, sewing or otherwise. I spent less on certain items due to this project, but the time and effort I put into my projects resulted in a far more rewarding experience than simply buying the item. I found that I sometimes relieved stress by sewing and even though some projects took the better part of the day to complete, I enjoyed (almost) every minute of it. For me, the takeaway message of voluntary simplicity (and the less extreme form known as downshifting) is to find happiness in activities that have little to no monetary value.

Even though I did not make a large impact, I raised awareness of these ideals for myself and for those around me (i.e. friends who saw me wearing clothes I made.) Sustainability is not finite and the literature is constantly changing. Although my thesis project has officially come to an end, I have only learned a general overview of sustainable consumption. This topic is very interesting to me, and I hope to continue educating myself on these issues. I already have a large number of articles on clothing sustainability, which I am slowly reading through. However, this movement encompasses so many topics that it can be hard to keep up. Regardless of the sheer amount of information, the goals are the same; live in such a way to keep the environment and economy viable in the long term.

I am not sure if and for how long I will maintain the blog, but I know for certain that I will try to keep practicing sustainability in some way, shape or form in my life. By learning to reduce my consumption, I learned to re-prioritize my time and use it to enjoy what matters to me. I’ve learned a lot about sewing, and, though Florida weather makes hats and scarves a very rare occurrence, I re-learned the art of crochet. I spent so much time learning to use my sewing machine that I’m going to continue sewing for as long as I can. Plus, I still have a large pile of old shirts and remnants. But this doesn’t mean I will put spending on hiatus indefinitely. Instead, I will try to research different companies and support those that hold my ethical standards. Good-quality items are more expensive for a reason; they are made to last a lifetime, not with an end in mind.

As Kim from New American Dream, a center promoting responsible consumption practices, puts it, “Here’s to the old, the renewed, and the new with the promise of becoming well-worn.”

P.S. Here is how much fabric/old shirts I still have O_o

3 different piles!!

Green Fashion?

As my thesis project is coming to a close, I find that my first purchase [clothing-wise] is fitting. While shoe shopping for Easter, I  saw the following statement printed on a shoebox lid: we haul our groceries in reusable bags. we hold onto that can until it finds a recycling bin. we are passionate, engaged, and connected-to people and to our planet. we appreciate smart design. we believe that fashion is a reflection of who we are and an expression of how we live. we know that going green is a journey and every step counts-so together we can take those steps in shoes designed to leave a smaller footprint. we are all zoe&zac.™

The pair of shoes looked exactly like the other shoes I was trying on, but was created using organic and/or recycled materials. Needless to say, I bought that pair of shoes.

After looking into the brand a bit more, I found that the designer, Summer Rayne Oakes, also participated in a pilot project for the month of March at The Uniform Project. What a coincidence! I check the site every so often to read up on the pilots and see what causes they are supporting, but I've never followed up on the person conducting the pilot.

Summer Rayne Oakes is a model at NEXT, but also works as an activist for sustainable fashion. She co-founded Source4Style, a marketplace for designers to search for sustainable materials around the globe and, as mentioned, co-launched eco-friendly shoe lines at Payless ShoeSource.

It's awesome to see companies trying to make eco-friendly products available to more people. Most people I've talked to about sustainable clothing believe that such fashion is for the rich as a lot of the clothes are sold in boutiques or small shops. The "green" clothes also cost more since the production of materials tends to run higher. However, if more companies start marketing these products, then the sustainable fashion industry  will be supported and can make their prices reasonable. Granted, the price tag at face value will still be higher than what we normally pay for our items, but it shows the real price of the product with little to no hidden environmental or social costs.

Infinity Dress

The infinity dress has been around for a long time and I've seen several different tutorials that explain how to make it. The only reasons stopping me from making this dress was the large amount of fabric required...and a few confusing details. Luckily, I stumbled upon yet another tutorial that gave extra tips and tricks to making this dress. Although I wanted to have all my projects be reconstructions or made from items I own, I decided to go and buy fabric to make this dress.

In essence, the dress is a banded circle skirt with two extremely long straps that can be wrapped however you wish. As the straps are long and thin, the same long piece of fabric can make straps for at least 2 of these dresses. This week, I made my mom's dress.

To me, this dress is like the epitome of simplicity and sustainability. It can be made rather easily [once deciphered] and will be worn for years to come. For those who worry about wearing the same dress twice, this one can be manipulated to be different each time.

Floral Tote

I've been meaning to make myself a bag [tote or legit backpack] for quite some time-since I made tote bags for my friends a couple christmases ago, to be honest, but I never got around to it. However, I figured it was high time to make something as my fabric pile was not going to get any smaller. I decided to go ahead and make a tote bag as it is much simpler and I already bought the fabric needed last year.

I made it from what I remembered of this tutorial from Skip to my Lou, but I took some liberties. I added pockets to both the inside and outside of the bag. I also made the straps have two different sides and purposely made them mismatch.



The front pocket has two compartments while the inside pocket is divided.

The bag is HUGE!

Experiment with Silk

It's been a really long time since I made a project from scratch so I figured it was about time. One of the easiest things to make, in my opinion, is a dress. I've been looking through Etsy for ideas and finally set my eyes upon these dresses from MyLolaFashion. I had several fabrics to choose from and took a poll from my friends.



Fabric #1 was the winner. And so, the fun begins!

Shoulder Alteration

Ah! It's so sunny!!



I bought this dress a couple years ago [think Fall 2009] and, even though the top was a little large and hung way too low on me, I wore it to my cousin's baptism. After having to pull it up every few minutes, I threw it away to the deep recesses of my closet. However, a few events on campus made me rethink this decision. I mean, it's a nice dress and I ought to wear it if I spent my money, right? So, I got to work.

Comfort Cat

My friend has been having a rough few days, so I wanted to make something to cheer her up. I really didn't know what to do, but I came across a crochet cat bookmark that I thought was cute and chose it. I ended up shortening the tail because I felt it was too long and I added a small heart.



Cats are <3. Cheer up!

Slouch Hat

I crocheted a slouch hat for my friend's birthday back in March and then decided to make one for myself [and yarn was on sale when I went to buy a skein for her hat :D]

The weather has been crazy this week in the Tampa Bay area, but after the crazy rains yesterday, today was beautiful! The night was semi-cool so I figured it'd be a perfect time to wear my hat. My parents said I looked ridiculous, but I like to think I looked pretty good ;)



My nom nom nom-ing isn't very photogenic, but the sushi was DELICIOUS!



And, just for kicks, my little sister's doodle of me.

Happy Friday [&April Fool's Day]!

Bad planning?

The temperature fluctuates a lot here, so I planned on making a 3/4 sleeve tee. I was going to combine these two shirts to make a baseball tee...

...but after chopping off the sleeves of my shirt, I was lost. I quickly realized that the polka dot sleeves would need to be wider to make a baseball-styled sleeve.

So what to do with a sleeveless shirt like this?

Fold in the upper portions to make tubes and sew, of course! I also revisited the Sesame Street fabric [from my Asian New Year project] and cut out a strip to make the straps of the new tank. Thread those through the tubes and BAM!

New tank top for the now ridiculously hot weather...but not really. When I checked the weather this morning, it was high of 83 :] SCORE!

Except it was rather windy outside...

But luckily winds don't penetrate into the library. Yay for uninterrupted studying!

Side note: My microbiology professor states, "All great scientists have pictures of themselves staring intently at something."

Case in point: Joshua Lederburg & Edward Tatum

[If only I had real agar plates handy...]

More Ruffles!

Like last week, I was in a ruffled shirt mood, so after searching google on ruffle shirts last week, I had a few sites bookmarked.



This Homemade J Crew tutorial looked really simple and, lucky for me, I had a long sleeved shirt handy. When looking at the real J Crew shirt, I saw that the ruffles extended on the collar so I decided to follow that instead of the tutorial--I just thought it looked odd not attached to the top of the tee :P

P.S. This works better when you use a well-fitted tee since the ruffle makes the front heavier. The shirt I used was made to be loose so the front sagged and looked weird with the addition of the ruffle. Simple solution: take in the sides to make it a tighter fit using pre-existing tee as a template.

P.P.S. I forgot to take a picture of this shirt when I was out and about so the lighting is so-so.

----EDIT----
I did have a picture of me out and about. I watched a film from the Gasparilla Int'l Film Fest at a fancy movie theatre, CineBistro. Lighting is still meh, but I must share because that chocolate cake was DELICIOUS!

Happy Friday!

Simplicity...cont'd

I tend to equate simplicity with country living. You work hard during the day and kick back when the sun goes down. Nothing too fancy, but you have what you need and everything you need is enough. But, when was the last time you stopped and thought, “I’m happy with my life and need nothing more?” This hardly ever happens because we are in constant want of something-anything, really-like Bill McKibben’s “grasping machine.” There are several reasons behind our consumption, but how legitimate are they? I find that many people buy items just because it’s on sale, it’s cute, everyone has it, the brand is well-known, etc. Are these items necessary, or do we buy them to make ourselves look better in the eyes of our peers? It seems to me that the latter is true more often than not. If so, our lives are controlled and defined by our purchases.

I don’t like the sound of that.

Our idiosyncrasies exist because we are not created from the same mold. So, why do we follow trends and buy items to fit in? We should embrace our individuality. Even though I’d love to follow through with my creative whims, I still find myself stalling. I start thinking of what others will think and feel less confident in my self-sufficiency.  It’s easier to stay within the societal norm than be seen as unusual. We don’t like situations that are glaringly different because we do not know how to react; the same goes for people. I know that whenever I see someone who looks or dresses different, I make some judgments. Sometimes, I’m more curious about him/her, but at the same time, feel as though I’m not living up to my full individualistic capabilities. Other times I think the person is eccentric, odd or a misfit. And sometimes, I begin to wonder how they can look so different and receive stares from the public without batting an eye. Personally, I don’t like the feeling of people giving me attention, so if I were to stick out like a sore thumb, I’d be very anxious. Whenever I make a new shirt or dress and wear it in public, I feel more self-conscious as if people just know that what I’m wearing was made from recycled fabrics. Being accepted may be more important than expressing your self. There’s a fear that you will be ostracized or ridiculed by the public for being different. It helps if you have a support system; online communities are sprouting up everywhere you turn because as humans, we feel the need for reassurance and acceptance: to know there are other people in the world who live in the same manner.

A less extreme, and less judgmental option to spending [next to] nothing would be to downshift. Living on less, but not in austerity. With the economy in recent years, many have already cut down on their spending. People have begun to create with their purchases instead of purely consuming. Some find this a hassle, but others find enjoyment in their handiwork and have a new sense of satisfaction. Although they may have less, the time and effort put into the products results in a far more rewarding experience than simply buying goods.

Maybe I will start focusing on the positive aspects of living simply and begin my journey into a similar lifestyle. I’ve already taken a few steps, it just needs a leap of faith.

Le Sac Dress...Shirt

I made a Le Sac dress from American Apparel after seeing several different tutorials.



I actually made it a while ago, but never wore it because I realized that it wasn't wide enough or long enough to be worn in the several ways possible.



Since I would never wear it as a dress, I decided to make it a shirt. I cut off some length and undid a few seams so the edges would end in a slit. I also decided to make them uneven so that the front length would be a bit shorter than the back.



I wore this to my friend Melinda's 21st birthday party at a greek restaurant full of napkin-throwing and plate-smashing. :]



[I forgot to take a picture of the whole thing, but at least you can see how I wrapped the straps and tucked in the edges]

Experimenting with Ruffles!

I've been seeing a lot more ruffly shirts these days and decided to create one of my own...and let me say that searching for "ruffle shirts" on Google is not a good idea. I was a bit overwhelmed. Luckily, I remembered that I found a ruffled shirt that I really liked recently while perusing Free People Clothing.

Nice and simple, right?

It would have been if I had a tank top handy. Unfortunately, I had to make my own. I used an existing camisole as a template and sewed up a quick tank top using the bottom of two white shirts.

I used the bottom of the shirt to make the straps by cutting on the dotted line.

I made the ruffles from cutting ~1 1/2" strips of fabric out of a cream shirt. I made the strips ruffly before placing them on the tank , pinned, and sewed! In the midst of sewing, I didn't look back at my original inspiration so it turned out a bit different.

Either way, I was pretty happy with the result, especially since I finished just in time to go to the Dali museum! The outside looks really cool...

...but the inside looks even better!

Spiral staircases are the best :]