Literally, Wearing a Square

Curiosity overcame me during the week, and I tried out the square-shaped top I had in my sketchbook, originally from Pinterest. I was very interested to see what it would look like on a body. For fabric, I had some striped soft double-knit that Mum gave me. The stripes are narrow on one side and…

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How I came to write the Zero Waste Sewing book

Last week, the Zero Waste Sewing book turned 3. Many thanks if you’ve bought a copy or borrowed one from the library. I hope you enjoyed reading and making things from it. I thought you might be interested in how I came to write this book… Back in 2016, I happened to read about zero…

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Presenting the Zero Waste Bra Pattern

Here’s the pattern for the zero waste bra I’ve been working on. The previous posts about this project are: June 2021 when I thought I could make a bra; this led to a zero waste bra in one size but I put the project aside; then I picked it up again some weeks ago; last…

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Let the Bra Making Commence

This week, the story continues with the zero waste bra pattern I dug out of the zw archives for another whirl. My teen asked me to have another try making her a zero waste bra, so I’ve revisited the pattern. I’ve been on hold with this project until now because the bra haberdashery I ordered…

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Revisiting the Zero Waste Bra

It brought a certain joy to my heart when my teenage daughter asked if I could have another stab at making her a zero waste bra. Challenge accepted! It’s been 18 months since I attempted a zero waste bra. (See the two blog posts on this: the first one, and the second one with the…

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Zero Waste and Fabric Economy

Sometimes I hear the throwaway line: zero waste patterns often use more fabric than regular patterns. Maybe that’s the person’s experience (or they’re repeating something they’ve heard), however, my own observations show the opposite. Actually, I didn’t notice just how economical zero waste patterns could be until I’d made lots. Sometimes the fabric savings are…

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June, July & August: A Year of Zero Waste Sewing

Hi Everyone, Almost a year ago, I started a new book project, A Year of Zero Waste Sewing – A year of exploration, making and musings on zero waste patterns and clothes, to be published in instalments as a zine. The first one is complimentary – read about this project and download your free copy…

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Making Wendy Ward’s zero waste trousers

Some time ago I bought Wendy Ward‘s new book How to Sew Sustainably. Actually, I borrowed it from the library and liked it so much I bought a copy. I really liked the trousers and dress made using the same cutting concept, and wanted to try them. Cleverly, the dress is the trousers turned upside…

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Xanthea as a Dress: Free Pattern Update

It’s been a long time brewing, but finally I’ve nailed a dress version of the very popular Xanthea top. Xanthea is a zero waste, bias cut t-shirt for wovens or knits. It comes in 19 sizes, to fit up to a 117cm/70″ bust, and it’s very economical on fabric. It has a long sleeve option,…

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The Wardrobe and the Zero Waste Archive

On a whim, I cleaned out my wardrobe yesterday. Actually, what happened was, I pulled out a garment to wear and saw an insect (not a moth) crawling on it. That galvanized me into action! I confess I own a large number of clothes. Most are homemade, with a sprinkling of op shop and RTW.…

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