Check Your Thread: Sewing More Sustainably

• #208: Challenging Consumption and Perfectionism with Jeanna Wigger

  PSA: The Winter of Care and Repair challenge is kicking off on 21st December! I used its imminence as an excuse to talk to the challenge’s creator, mending expert and author Jeanna Wigger, about the wider impact participating has had for her. Jeanna tells me how it’s helped her shift her consumption habits, challenge her perfectionism and reframe her ideas around productivity. Maybe it will do something similar for you! Support the podcast over on Patreon! Access and download the FREE WOCAR tracker sheet. Photo credit: Elaine Pieczonka. Jeanna Wigger can be found @thepeoplesmending on Instagram. Jeanna also has an excellent Substack which includes this explainer about WOCAR. Listen to my previous conversations with Jeanna: Ep. #115: Winter of Care and Repair with Jeanna Wigger Ep. #132: A Season of Mending with Jeanna Wigger Ep. #135: How to Triage Your Mends with Jeanna Wigger Ep. #163: How to Effect Change This Winter with Jeanna Wigger Ep. #190: The Four Tendencies and Sewing with Jeanna, Kim & Lise  Ep. #191: Stitch It, Don’t Ditch It with Mary Morton & Jeanna Wigger Find and order Jeanna and Mary’s book, ‘Stitch it, Don't Ditch it’: Katrina Rodabaugh, author of ‘Mending Matters’, played a key role in Jeanna’s mending journey. Jeanna’s men(D)iagram! Click through to read her explanation.

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• #207: Style Shifts and Sustainability with Lindsay Ashworth Fraser

  We all experience shifts in our personal style. Usually, those shifts are gradual, but occasionally they can happen rapidly. My friend, freelance musician and singer, Lindsay Ashworth Fraser and I are both at a style crossroads ourselves. In this episode, we talk about where we’ve found ourselves stylistically, what brought us here, what’s next and how to ethically pass on the items that are no longer serving us. Support the podcast over on Patreon! Lindsay Ashworth Fraser can be found @lindsayashworthfraser on Instagram. You might have heard Lindsay in the previous episodes: Ep. #180: Secrets of Successful Destashing, Part 1  Ep. #181: Secrets of Successful Destashing, Part 2 Check out the episode of Love to Sew podcast that got Lindsay thinking about the three-word method of definition your personal style: Ep. #108: Create your Dream Wardrobe by Love to Sew podcast The green jumpsuit Lindsay wore to the cinema to watch Wicked with her choir: A pattern that was a key turning point in a previous style shift I had was the Luna Pants pattern by Made by Rae:

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• #206: How to Sew More Sustainably for Kids

  Is there any point in trying to sew more sustainably for kids when they’re just going to grow out of their clothes in five minutes? Of course there is! And there are a TON of ways to do it. From pattern and fabric selection, to ensuring durability and repairability, in this solo episode we cover ways to create clothes that the kids you’re sewing for will love to wear, for as long as possible. Support the podcast over on Patreon! Check out related episodes: Ep. #11: Sewing Vs Kids Ep. #33: Encouraging Kids to Sew Ep. #75: Go Recreate with Linnea Larsson Ep. #122: Zero Waste Sewing for Kids with Liz Elliot Apple Tree Pattern Co. has a ton of ‘Grow With Me’ styles, including this cool Dolman hoodie pattern: Check out the ‘outgrown’ extend system by Columbia clothing company: Buttonhole elastic is great for making adjustable waistbands: My son’s ‘Pig from Bunny Vs Monkey’ World Book Day costume with leggings that he now uses as PJ bottoms: The ‘Looshkin’ costume that became a regular sweatshirt when the white tummy was removed: No shame in buying a ready made patch to make a garment more wearable to a child!

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• #205: Selling Fabric More Sustainably with Tanya Brooman

  Does shopping for natural fibres and more sustainable fabrics mean that you’re limited to solid colours in muted tones? Do you have to ignore your love of vibrant colour and bold prints? My guest today would answer “NO!” to both these questions. Tanya Brooman from Bornella Fabrics tells me about the sustainability ethos that underpins her fabric business, and what most frustrates her about the fabric industry today. Support the podcast over on Patreon! Tanya Brooman is the owner of Bornella Fabrics. You can also follow them on Instagram @bornellafabrics. Tanya appeared in the previous episodes: Ep. #110: Knitting & Stitching Show 2023 Ep. #144: London Destash Fabric Swap 2024 Ep. #202: London Fabric Swap 2025 Tanya has a useful webpage on ‘Sustainable Fabric Lowdown’. If developments in fabric production interest you, check out this episode: Ep. #50: The Future of Fabrics

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• #204: The Sewing Machine, A Novel – Kat Camfield with Natalie Fergie

  Guest interviewer, Kat Camfield, is talking to author Natalie Fergie about Natalie’s incredible historical novel, The Sewing Machine. Based on real, historical events that took place at the Singer Sewing Machine factory in Scotland, the novel follows two families: one belonging to a worker at the factory who went on strike, the other belonging to the owner of one of the sewing machines that the striker helped make. If you’re interested in sewing as a lens through which to look at social history, then you’re going to find this conversation fascinating. Natalie and Kat also geek out over vintage sewing machines and their sizable collections! Support the podcast over on Patreon! Kat Camfield is a sewing teacher and sewing retreat organiser living in Victoria, Canada. You can follow Kat on Instagram @cooperativekatsews. Hear Kat on previous episodes of CYT: Ep. #196: Eco Printing - Kat Camfield with Carly from Lorelei Textile Design Ep. #200: Making Check Your Thread - with Zoe & Kat, Part 1 Ep. #201: Making Check Your Thread - with Zoe & Kat, Part 2 Learn more about author Natalie Fergie and her books: The Sewing Machine and 25 Library Terrace: Watch the silent film ‘Birth of a Sewing Machine’ from 1934. Look up the model and age of vintage sewing machines via the International Sewing Machine Collectors’ Society website.

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