Everyone who knows me knows how special my mother is to me. A group of my new sewing friends including Charlotte Duzong, an upcycling artist and zero waste pro, decided to work on an upcycle challenge for Mother’s Day, so of course, I decided to make my mom a dress. My initial idea for the challenge was an apron, but my mom “doesn’t do aprons”. She is sassy and loves to dress up. I was determined not to spend any money on the project. I scoured my fabric stash and found a few yards of grey/silver velvet knit that I was blessed to get in a mystery box from Fabric Martalong with a ribbed knit fabric that I had laying around from Boho Fabrics. I used the Turner Dress pattern from Cashmerette.
This project was pretty easy because the pattern only has four pieces. We were both pleased with the results. My mom is always cold so I figured the fabric choice would be soft and cozy against her skin while coupled with the pattern offers styling versatility. She can dress this up or down. She is the queen of accessorizing so I know she will work it out.
My mom has been so supportive of my new sewing adventure and she loves the pictures that I post of my finished projects so I decided that we should do a photoshoot. She was game and we had a great time. She’s a real ham and got into it.
This project resulted in a great bonding experience with my mom and didn’t break the bank. Spending time with family is more valuable than spending money on cut flowers that will die in a day or two or trendy things that will just pile up in an already overcrowded home. My mom is more likely to wear this dress than if I bought her one off the rack because she knows it was made with love and she will be reminded of our good time creating it.
Peace,
LESSONS LEARNED
As a new sewist I have been lead to believe that purchasing deadstock from fabric stores was good for the environment because it keeps unsold/unused fabric out of landfills but I have recently learned that there are better, more sustainable options such as:
- Not buying as much fabric, eliminating the need to manufacture more
- buy directly from small artisans who create small batches at a time
- buy second hand clothing and fabric (my personal favorite)
RESOURCE
Virtue and Vice, Deadstock Fabric is NOT as Sustainable as You Think
Remnants Magazine 