Green your party season, and Happy Thanksgiving!

I'd like to begin by saying Happy Thanksgiving to you guys across the pond! But I have a couple of confessions.

The first is, I nearly forgot to write this post because I'm so busy (in a good way!).

And the second is that up until a few days ago, all I knew about Thanksgiving was that it is a day when lots of Americans eat lots of turkey. And on TV programmes everyone sits around the table listing what they're thankful for.

Well, I couldn't possibly list all the things I'm thankful for. But I think it's interesting how the idea of thankfulness is, I think, part of the core of the green movement -- thankfulness for the life we've been given and the planet we have to live it on. And what better thought to start what, for many of us, can be the most wasteful time of year?

So I thought I'd leave you with a few top-tips for reducing your rubbish this holiday season without spoiling your fun as you go partying, giving, shopping and feasting. And if it all seems a bit overwhelming, just do what you can. A little effort can go a long way ...

Christmas tree furoshiki, GreenerFrog on Etsy (also, click here to visit Hop Frog Pond for excellent furoshiki information and instructions!)

1. Furoshiki -- gift wrapping with fabric. Traditionally, the Japanese giver would unwrap the gift in front of, and then present it to, the recipient and take the wrapping cloth home with them. This isn't necessarily a practical solution in many cases, but it would be easy to keep a set of cloths for wrapping your family's presents. Make them part of your holiday tradition, re-loving them year on year along with the baubles!

2. Aim to only send cards to those you can't see in person during the season, and choose recycled or sustainably sourced cards where you can. Save the cards you receive to make new cards or gift tags next year!

3. Try to plan ahead, and if you want to give someone a gift but don't know what they'd like, ask! That way, you can avoid panic-buying that over-packaged gift set -- and if all else fails, get a gift voucher.

4. And when I say gift voucher, make sure you check out Etsy, DaWanda and other handmade venues for sellers who might offer them. :)

Vintage comet rhinestone brooch, ThePeacockFeather on Etsy

5. Make your new party dress a vintage gem, or check second-hand venues for a treasure somebody else got tired of. Then alter it to fit you like a glove! Admiring those sparkly embellished bandos that are everywhere at the moment? Grab a plain bando, and pin a vintage brooch and some trim to it for a covetable party hairpiece.

6. Avoid leaving a bad taste by buying local food; avoiding over-packaged food in the supermarket; choosing organic and free-range; and making full use of your fridge and compost bin for leftovers :)

Above all, remember to relax and enjoy yourself, and the company of your loved ones!

And this is my final contribution to Sew Green this year, so I'd like to wish you all a (very universal) Happy Holidays and my best wishes for the new year!

Maimy x

Better Back-to-School Shopping

I've had a bad morning. My USB memory stick is broken. And I don't just mean "error message" broken, I mean the circuit board has snapped from the plug. It was my fault, I forgot to take it out of the port last night (it was in the back of my laptop instead of the side, as I had another device plugged in its usual spot), and at some point between then and turning my laptop on I must have knocked it. I admit that I cried a little when I saw what I'd done. Luckily in this age of facebook and flickr, it's not the end of the world... just a major inconvenience and a little sad.

But this had a strange sort-of relevance to what I want to show you today. It's that dreaded time of year, and just hearing the words used to send shivers down my spine -- it's Back to School time. Actually, it still does send shivers down my spine, and every year the shops seem to put up those awful banners earlier and earlier. This year, they went up weeks before the end of term! Of course, I always found that going back to school had some advantages -- new pencil case, for example. New book bag. New lunch box. And these days, new USB drives too. It must be a huge money-maker for the high street, but why give up your money for the same old mass produced school wares when you can buy all this stuff handmade, eco friendly and vintage? What an easy way to stand out from the crowd. So I've compiled a small collection of my favourite back to school finds from Etsy - click each image to see more:

(Oh, and check out this simple bookbinding tutorial if you feel like making your own notebook!)

The Highlander VERTICAL bag by Kibber, $99 USD

Organic Linen Messenger Bag by 11m2, $89 USD

Reusable Organic Snack Bag by BebelooshMini, $6.99 USD

I Love Book Zipper Pouch by kukubee, $12 USD

4GB Lego Brick USB Flash by 123smile, $59.95 USD

Blue Octopus Bookplates by boygirlparty, $4.50 USD

Set of 16 Stickers, Creatures Collection by paperexploits, $4 USD

Emerald Lepus Mini Sketchbook by deermayor, $8.50 USD

You should also check out Dawanda, Folksy, and Misi for indie handmade treasures from my side of the pond. (:

Have you found any drool-worthy back to school treats?

Refresh your wardrobe on the cheap

A few weeks ago, as I was looking at the clothes I have in my wardrobe for Spring/Summer, I came across a few tired old favourites. Items of clothing I couldn't bear to part with (or put in the scrap fabric bag), but didn't wear any more, for one reason or another. Being perpetually skint* has a way of making you more creative with what you have. One old Guns 'n' Roses tee got an Alabama Chanin makeover. One cotton sundress had its cap sleeves removed and its broken elastic waist moved and re-elasticised. A check tunic top had its shrunken cap sleeves removed and a few other pieces had minor repairs (buttons sewn back on, holes patched up). I'm wearing all these clothes with pride again, just like when they were new.

*That's British slang for "penniless", "broke" or "poor" -- don't say I never taught you anything. Check out the Cockney Rhyming Slang website for a really good laugh. (:

Of course, there are a number of environmental benefits to revitalising old clothes, so I thought I'd share with you a few simple alteration techniques. Don't worry, as long as you have a needle and thread, pins, sharp scissors and an iron, you'll be OK (although a tailor's tape and a fading fabric marker will be very good investments too). In case you don't know much about the anatomy of a garment, here's a few Wikipedia definitions for you:

• Hem: To hem a piece of cloth (in sewing), a garment worker folds up a cut edge, folds it up again, and then sews it down. The process of hemming thus completely encloses the cut edge in cloth, so that it cannot ravel. A hem is also the edge of cloth treated in this manner.

• Seam: ...the stitching that joins two or more pieces of fabric.

• Dart: Darts are folds sewn into fabric to help provide a three-dimensional shape to a garment. They are frequently used in women's clothing to provide a fit that closely follows the shape of the wearer.

This is a vintage Laura Ashley dress. It was my mum's, and I've been itching to give it a makeover for a couple of years now. It's a UK size 12, one size too big for me, which makes it perfect for altering. I'm going to take you through what I did with it yesterday to make it into this:

The first step is to decide what needs changing. Put the garment on and take a good look in a full-length mirror. I was keen to preserve the gorgeous details on the body of this dress (the piped seams and beautiful scalloped neckline), so when I decided I needed to nip in the waist, I decided on the side seams (the ones directly under my arms). The sleeves wanted to be shorter. A general rule with sleeves of any size is that the eye will be drawn to your body at the point they stop. These sleeves stopped at an awkward point somewhere between my bust and my waist -- lengthening them would be a nightmare, so bust it is! Then there was the skirt's hem. It was "frump" length. I like the skirt to fall just above the knee - the perfect length, or at least the most versatile, for wearing bare-legged, with jeans, with leggings, with tights & biker boots, etc. So that meant about 10" had to go.

Because of the masses of fabric in the skirt (94.5" around!), that was the biggest job, so that's where I started.

Altering the hem:

I turned the dress inside out and laid it on my sewing table. I then used my tape measure to fold the hem up 27cm, just over 10", and added a row of pins 3cm or 1.25" up from the fold and about 3" apart, to mark a line to cut. Once this was done all the way around the hem, I cut off the extra fabric, using the line of pins as a guide. It's important that you don't just cut a straight line across the garment, as hems are often not straight lines, even though they may look it!! Measure carefully up from the existing hem. :)

The next step is to press the hem. Still with the garment inside-out, fold the now raw edge up 3cm/1.25" and iron it down all the way around. When you get back to the beginning, fold the raw edge under itself so that it is completely enclosed and press. Do this all the way around again, adding a pin every few inches to keep the fold in place for the next step.


Note: I stitched this hem by hand, in keeping with the original hem. If you have the choice of sewing by hand or by machine, then just remember to be sensitive to your garment. If I'd slapped a row of machine stitches along this hem, it would have ruined the integrity of the dress. However, for other dresses I've altered that was exactly what they wanted. Many machines will do a "blind stitch" which gives the same outside look as a hand-stitched hem, but (on my machine at least!) you have to fold and press the hem just-so, which can be fiddly. If in doubt, test on a piece of scrap fabric!

Back at the sewing table, thread a needle (this thread should be the same colour as the original thread!) Garment still inside-out, make two or three small stitches on the top of the hem fold only. This just locks it in place. Now for the first stitch: about every 0.25"/5mm, make a tiny vertical stitch down that pierces just the outer fabric on its way out, then pierces the top of the hem fold on the way in (so it goes through 3 layers of fabric). The stitches on the inside of the fabric should look long and slanted (like a "\" turned 90 degrees clockwise) and those on the outside should be tiny and vertical.

Just continue until you come to where you started and you're done! When you reach the end of your thread, lock it in place (two or three small stitches on the fold, on top of each other) and start with a new length of thread.

This process is the same for sleeves, but instead of turning up 3cm of fabric, turn up about 2cm (just under1").

Taking in the seams at the waist:

This dress fit well at the bust, but was saggy around my waist. By adding a row of stitches just a short way in from the outer seams, I nipped in the waist for a much better fit. Here's how.

Sorry, this is the part where you look like an idiot for a while. Put your garment on inside-out. Trust me. Use your fingers to pinch the side seams at your waist (the smallest part between your bust & hips) until it feels comfortable and looks even. Put a couple of pins in either side. This will give you a stitch guide. Take the garment off (phew), and use a tape measure (or ruler) and pins (or fabric marker/tailor's chalk if you have it), mark out where you will stitch the seams. Make them as symmetrical to each other as possible. The line should start and end on the original seam line, otherwise you will end up with unexpected tucks in the fabric.

Stitch along this line (I used my machine, but a backstitch is your best option if you're sewing by hand). Now turn your garment right-side out and try it on. If the fabric is now wrinkled or puckered, you should let the seam out a little on that side (make a new line of stitches further out, then unpick the old one using a stitch unpicker or embroidery scissors). When your seams are in their final place, add a row of zig-zag stitches outside them if you can, just to reinforce them. Unless the seam now looks really bulky when you put the garment on, there's no need to cut the excess fabric off. In fact, if you leave it on, you can adjust the seam again if you need to in the future.

And you're done!

For inspiration, have a look at the New Dress a Day blog.

What are your alteration tips?

Maimy x

P.S., check out my new collection of handbags on Etsy! ;)

Spring Greening

March. I love this month. It's filled with birthdays, the first warm sunshine of the year, birdsong all day long, and fresh green shoots. The 20th is the Spring (or Vernal) Equinox this year, the official beginning of spring in the northern hemisphere. At last! This is a month of change, and a perfect time to make and break some habits.

In light of this, (and because this is my first post and I want you to get to know me better!) I thought I'd let you into my mind a little today. Being a maker and trying to be green don't really go hand in hand - after all, the things I make are luxuries. Frivolous. Unnecessary. So I try to use the greenest materials I can and create the greenest product I can, but where do I begin? There's so much conflicting information -- have you heard, for example, that bamboo fabrics are not all that green? That's not to say all bamboo products are bad, it just has to be used in the right way to be earth friendly.

It's so important to question the 'evidence' we're presented with, and to keep researching - this time six months ago I'd have been happy to tell you that bamboo fabric is a perfectly acceptable eco-product!

So I thought I would share with you the process I go through when picking my materials. It's simply a list of questions that I try to answer to help me determine "green" from "green-wash". (I'm sure this will be nothing new to many of you, but a refresher never hurts, does it? :) This can be applied to any product. It's not comprehensive, or in any kind of order. And these definitely aren't rules. This is merely a guide to keep me thinking, questioning and making better decisions. I hope it can do the same for you!

Who made it?
More of an ethical issue than an environmental one, but it's important to consider, particuarly as so many companies use cheap foreign labour for their products. Often they don't know enough about their own manufacturers, who could be employing children, providing unsafe work environments, and underpaying their workers. Fair trade is great - it means that the "little people" behind the product are given a living wage (i.e. enough to provide food and shelter for their family), given a safe working environment and helps make sure the vulnerable aren't being exploited.

Where was it made?
The country of origin can help you answer the previous question, but there are other things to consider. Some countries can legally produce items with substances which are illegal (for good reason) in your country. (Remember those big toy recalls a couple of years ago?) That doesn't make these manufacturers evil, as essentially they're just doing what they're told! Then you need to consider air miles -- how far has this product had to travel to get into your hands? Transport uses fuel, which causes pollution, which causes all kinds of hell for Mother Nature. This can have a huge environmental impact. The more local, the better.

Hemp & organic cotton bag using fair trade materials

What is it made from?
Sustainability is key. True sustainability means the product fits within nature's cycle - no harm is done to the environment when it is made, used or disposed of. Most 'sustainable' products fit into a grey area, where they fit some of the criteria but not all. Classic examples of sustainable materials include hemp and bamboo - they grow fast and organically (without use of pesticides), and are versatile and durable. Often, though, that's the extent of it. Substances used in processing these materials sometimes means that they can't safely biodegrade - but they can still be better than many alternatives!

When will it reach the end of its life?
We all know that disposal is a big issue. But to an extent, as consumers, we can control how much we send to landfill or throw in the recycling bin. Avoid anything over-packaged (i.e. anything that has more packaging than necessary to get it into your hands undamaged). Buy things to last. Save up your pennies and buy the best: quality over quantity. Then look after what you've got! Your jeans have a hole in the knee? Patch it. Broke your favourite mug? Mend it. Be inspired by the Japanese art of Kintsugi, find the beauty in old things and treasure them!

How do you use and care for it?
Most of a products environmental impact lies in how it is treated by the consumer. Clothes are a particularly good example. How often you wash your clothes, at what setting and using which detergent are all factors that determine the size of an individual item's environmental impact. Try to choose products which don't need too much of this kind of care.

Why do you want it?
This is probably the most important question! If you can talk yourself out of an unnecessary purchase, you're doing good for the environment. Ask yourself if you need it, if you'll really use it, how and where you will store it, could you buy a second hand version instead, what else could you spend the money on? Think thrifty. Learn to value old over new, you'll be surprised how satisfying it can be. But most importantly: value what you already have. Don't replace anything with a 'greener' option if all you're doing is creating more waste!

So, what are your tips for sussing out green from greenwash?

P.S. apologies for the terrible title pun ;)