Slow Fashion October

Carolynn posted about Slow Fashion October today, and though I hadn't heard about this month-long activity, I was immediately engrossed. The principals of slow fashion are something I have pursued on and off for many years, though less recently than I'd like to admit. When I was in high school, I endeavored to create an entirely handmade wardrobe, and succeeded for several years. This was a great way for me to learn the basics of sewing, because what wasn't sewn from scratch was taken apart and reconstructed from thrifted clothing: the ultimate way to learn how clothing is constructed and how pieces go together is to take them apart.

When I went away to college, I remember having a realization that I actually had a rather small wardrobe. Because most of it was made by me, I simply never amassed the bursting closet of clothing many of my friends had. But time went on, and I didn't have time to make or mend, and I discovered how easy it was to buy fast fashion. I still made clothes for myself, but substantially less and less as school became more strenuous. This is pretty well evidenced by my pace of posts here on this blog. I've never stopped loving slow fashion, though. My most prized garments were (and still are, with a few additions) a beautiful wool and alpaca cardigan that my mom hand knit for me over the course of months, and my first fully tailored coat, with its hundreds of hours of construction. The majority of clothes in my closet are pretty dispensable (and disposable), which kind of makes my gut clench a little.

Now that I've settled more into my life post-college, I want to make an effort to return to a handmade, mended, long-term, ethical and thoughtfully purchased wardrobe. I have longterm goals that involve paring down my closet--and my life--substantially, and so these also will be steps in helping me get there. I am very excited also about the community and participatory aspects of this project, as well as the goal-focusing. Personally, my goals are to discover great people who make beautiful things, finish the sweater pictured above, cleanse my closet a bit, and sew up some holes. I also want to dress thoughtfully every day of the month, so I might post some of what I'm wearing from time to time.

Let me know if you are participating so I can follow along on the ride! There is some magic happening on #SlowFashionOctober on Instagram! (Find me there as @addie__marie)