Tips for Decluttering the Sewing Room

Don’t seamstresses just have a way of collecting? It’s funny, because I have spent a lot of time thinking about only buying things I need to get by. The truth is, as a creative, I’ve adapted some mindless habits of collecting materials and just plain “junk” that I don’t really need.

Every single time I start getting into the flow with sewing, a new wave of junk manifests in the sewing room. I’ve slowly started decluttering! I gave away some clothes to upcyclers, and still have three trash bags of clothes that I’m not wearing! I’ve set them aside to upcycle and alter. The thing is I have nowhere to put them! I was going to donate the clothes, but the struggle is real! When you can think of ten ways to alter or upcycle each piece, it feels wasteful to get rid of them.

Here are some tips for decluttering in the sewing room!

1. Everything was purchased for a reason, but pretty quickly you can find yourself swamped with supplies you never got around to using. What is with Amazon selling sewing supplies in bulk?! Gone are the days when you can just buy one zipper or button. Every time you need one buckle, you wind up with ten! Do you feel me?! If you bought multiples of an item, but still haven’t used a single one, keep a few and then get rid of the rest. You can sell the extra or donate them. When in doubt just throw it out!

2. Accuquilt GO! sounded fun, but I literally only used the thing ONE TIME! Get rid of any flashy equipment that didn’t live up to the hype.

3. I have a bad habit of hoarding scraps! When I sew I cram the excess material and scrap fabric into my polka dot bins, and they sit there for eternity. Go through your hoards of scrap material and only save what you will actually use. Also, if you have scraps in bins from quilting days gone by, it might help to go through that material and pitch anything under a certain size. Let’s say you love working with 4 inch squares. Cut the scrap materials into four inch squares, and pitch anything smaller.

4. Stacks of old magazines and paper products…anyone?! I save all my old magazines…to a point. Eventually it comes time to thin the herd. I got into bookmaking and bought a bunch of old magazines and a vintage catalog. The thing is, it isn’t doing me any good just sitting on a shelf never to be used. Put things where you will use them, and if you don’t plan on using the magazines within the next year, give them the heave ho. For quilt mags and project magazines, scan the pages with projects you want to remember and then recycle the magazines. If you are an artist, keep a collection for collage and put it where you can easily get to it. Then get rid of the rest.

5. My sewing room also doubles as a closet, and all my handbags and random stuff goes in there! You can only fit so much into a space before it is no fun to be in there! Make space for life, and store or donate the things you don’t plan on using again. If you need money, throw a garage sale. Or share the wealth and gift things to family and friends.

Summer is here, and I have a bunch of new projects coming to life! But first, I need to get a handle on my stuff. The best time to declutter is at the start of something new. It opens up room for fresh inspiration to come in!

Stop Making Space for New

I donated two big bags of clothes to ThredUP, and now I find myself torn. What happens when you stop making space for new things? I guess that is one way hoarders get into the problems they find themselves in. Because they stop getting rid of things but keep buying and collecting.

I have two closets, lucky me! I live in an old house that was built in 1916 (or so) and the closets aren’t as fancy or stylish as modern ones are. They are just regular closets which jet out from the house. On the back of my home you can see an area that sticks out, and that is where the closets are. Nearly all the homes on my block have them.

Both closets are pretty jammed with stuff. In my bedroom closet, I store bags of blankets, hats and lingerie bags in the bottom of the closet. And then there are the clothes. Lots of them! In the sewing room closet, clothes are crammed in. And the bottom is filled with nearly all the art I have made in the last ten years, along with sewing supplies and other miscellaneous stuff.

So I ponder this…what happens when you stop making space for new? Can you live with the things you have right now, or alter them and mend them to make them last for years to come?

Joseph Goldstein teaches something the Buddha taught. Stop craving sense pleasure, stop craving to be somebody special, stop chasing desire. Then you will know the joy of the present moment as it really is. I’ve been thinking about those things a lot lately!

Coming up in January I am beginning a personal challenge! I tried it a couple of times before, and failed. But this time I feel prepared to go the distance! And it starts with not chasing desire. It starts with stopping craving new things. And really tuning in to the abundance I already have!

Buying a Responsibility

I’ve been trying (and trying) to catch up on laundry. I feel frazzled and like I will never “catch up” on my household responsibilities. Truthfully, most of the time I prioritize creative projects over household projects, nearly all the time truth be told. But lately my allergies have been pretty bad, so I’m doing what I can to get all clothes and linens mostly washed and put away. I have also been trying to go through my wardrobe. I’m trying to get down to a manageable amount of clothes and store the rest, or alter them.

Today, when I was putting away a load of laundry, it really hit home. When you buy clothes, you buy a responsibility! It is so easy to put something in your shopping cart and press purchase. But once you get the clothes home, the work begins. Keeping things clean, making sure things are put away, tending to tears and stains, hemming or ironing if you are into that…it all amounts to a whole lot of work! Which can be really time consuming when you have too many of a good thing.

My fashion break is off to a good start! I’ve gone nearly a month since I bought clothes. The last time I did was right around Black Friday. It does help that I have abundance, almost too much of a good thing. Because the punishment of trying to get everything washed and put away is reminding me why less is sometimes more, and why I don’t need one other new thing!

What Happens When You Stop Buying Fast Fashion?

I’m over four months in to not buying fast fashion! I caved and bought some pants, and then I bought a hoodie. I also ordered a few tops and some jeans! OY VEY! Breaking up with fast fashion is not easy. Especially when you love updating your look often and enjoy browsing all the latest styles!

Fast fashion is a huge contributor to greenhouse gasses. If you want to reduce your carbon footprint, one of the best ways is to stop shopping so much and to focus more on using what you have. Fast fashion is terrible for the environment! Just on the production side alone, endless chemicals and waste are spewed into the environment. People are paid mere pennies to sew the garments that people buy. If something only costs $10 to buy, you can bet that the person who made the item was barely paid at all for their efforts.

Sweatshops still exist, and the USA is the biggest contributor to keeping them going. We want to buy things on the cheap. I’m not pointing fingers here, because the dollar doesn’t go very far these days. I shop sales too! I look for discounts on goods all the time. Reality is though, I have a wardrobe full of clothes that I’m not all that excited to wear. Stores have mastered the art of making you feel like you aren’t good enough unless you buy a new dress or jacket. But the truth is…we don’t need all the endless clothes to be fulfilled!

What happens when you stop buying fast fashion…or clothes in general?

1. You save your heard earned money! Suddenly I have cut my budget in half, which means my husband and I can pay down debt faster and have more money to get by on.

2. You have less tedious laundry chores to do. I mean, I have heaps of clothes. And when I was buying more I would stew over the fact that every time I bought more things it would just add to my weekly laundry pile.

3. You start focusing more on actually doing all the things you had put on the back burner. You start to focus on becoming who you want to be, instead of just shelling out money to shop all the time. A big wake up call here…you were not just born to buy things. I know that sounds stark, but the entire economy is focused on everyone paying money for things they don’t really need.

4. You begin to have more free time! If you are a big time shop-surfer, and believe me I used to be; when you stop wasting so much time browsing online shops you have more time to pursue your passions, live a life you love and go after your dreams.

5. You begin to focus on what matters most to you! That is the greatest gift of all. Once you disengage from being a cog in the consumerist machine, you start to have a lot more say over how you are going to spend your life! What I’ve come to realize…which should have been a no brainer in the first place…is that the people in my life and my creativity matter most to me. Shopping is just a way to meet a need, it shouldn’t be a hobby to fill your time!

6. You let your values lead the way, and make more conscious decisions about how you spend your time and money. I have a friend who prints t shirts! It is his art, and I choose to support his t shirt business. I also choose that I don’t want to shop from stores that don’t care about people or the planet. When you take a break from buying things that you were addicted to buying, it leads the way to living more closely to your values. And that feels so incredible!

It’s funny when you realize how duped you have been by consumerism! You can completely lose touch with who you are and what matters most to you! Now, that being said, my own personal convictions tell me that it is ok to shop second hand because that keeps clothes out of the landfill and extends the life cycle of garments. I will also continue to support upcyclers. I love me some upcycled clothes! And I love sewing and altering clothes too. When you shop second hand and support upcyclers, you are making a difference for individuals instead of the corporate machine. And what’s not to love about that!

My Last Receipt

My Last Receipt From Fast Fashion! It was from Avenue on November 24th, 2023.

Marion Tunic - navy

SKU: 93466393449571

Pocket Print Tunic - gray

SKU: 93466397049661

Charlene Side Tie Top - red

SKU: 9359219358817

So there it was, I bought three more tunics I didn’t need! And it hit me like lightening. It was time to stop buying clothes and just sew what I need instead! I’ve been feeling so guilty about my consumeristic, hedonistic ways for far too long. And really, I probably have enough clothes to last me for many long years to come!

I am feeling giddy with anticipation!

There are a few rules to my fashion break. The start date was November 24 and I’m hoping to go as long as I possibly can into the distant future.

Rule One: No more buying anything brand new. That includes clothes, handbags, and fashion accessories.

Rule Two: Shopping upcycled and thrifting will be ok, on rare occasion.

Rule Three: Undergarments are still ok to buy.

Rule Four: I will be transparent on my blog if I mess up and buy new clothes.

Rule Five: I will only allow myself to shop for new clothes five times in 2024, and that is if I absolutely need something.

Rule Six: Shoes and handbags are obviously great, and I will still buy those new. But I am putting a limit on how many I have, and only buying them if I absolutely need to.

Alright, my friends….I’m stoked! If you want to try your own kind of similar challenge, let me know on Instagram! We can take our power back from consumerism, and help slow fashion become a way of life.

Update! It is now March 24th, and I’ve bought new clothes four times! Pants, a hoodie, a handful of tops and two pairs of jeans. I’ve also purchased some upcycled clothes from Epolstyle on Etsy! I am so addicted to shopping for clothes! I’m only allowing myself one more splurge on fast fashion this year. I’m trying to go until Black Friday, 2024, and it is only March! I’m getting my sewing machine primed up and fabrics organized to get sewing!