I'm feeling in a blue mood colorwise ... I'm not depressed! I'm really enjoying making the purses with the Julian Tomchin fabric! It is so gorgeous! It is wonderful shades of blue with cream and a touch of light purple. The hardest part has been going through the fabric I own to pick out the lining! Nothing I owned seemed "special" enough. But I finally picked some out that is not vintage. I've never understood why "blue" was the color to represent depression. Most blues are happy and cheerful to me!
I still don't have anything listed on etsy as I deactivated my listings. I'm going to just reopen it in Feb. I also changed my store name. It was "Nine Months and More". But I have done some soul searching the past few months although I LOVE to make baby stuff... I don't want that to be my focus. And I don't make maternity items at all!
Then I found out there is a chain of maternity consignment shops named Nine Months More! They don't as far as I could tell sell on-line. But I thought this would be rather confusing as I sell mostly handmade items NOT second-hand items.
I was talking with someone. They seemed a little confused about what I meant when I said I make things with "vintage fabric". So I thought I'd let that be kinda a topic for this blog.
I buy lots of vintage sewing items. I love to buy vintage fabric. The fabric I use is not USED. It is fabric that still has the selvages (edges) attached. Usually I buy yardage... meaning over 36 inches. It is not "scrap".
There are many people (including myself on occasion) who "upcycle" fabric. Upcycling is just a fancy name for recycling or repurposing. So you take a used item and make it into a different functional item. This has been done for thousands of years! Most older quilts were made of repurposed fabric. After all... who in their right mind would chop up good new fabric into little pieces of scrap? (I love quilts and I'm kidding. I buy fabric just to chop up and make them!) In the past even the tiniest wool pieces were saved for penny rugs. (Note: penny rugs are neither rugs nor do they sell for a penny!) I save all my scraps including little pieces of thread for reuse. Rag dolls made of rags.... what a novel idea!
I think upcycling is a wonderful thing! I wish more people would use things they have and be more economical with what they own. I also think that regardless of your views on global warming, ozone holes, or environmentalism.... Landfills are REAL! We should all take a moment to think about the amount of junk we just throw away and if any of it could serve a different purpose or be reused. If you can't repurpose it.... take it to a thrift store. There are tons of people who would love to have that wool sweater with the hole to make a diaper cover. Don't be afraid to offer stuff to a crafty friend or neighbor!
I also feel that if a person is selling an upcycled item they need to tell the customer that it is upcycled. For example the Julian Tomchin fabric I am so in love with.... it is unused and selvages are intact. (I purchased yards of it in a quantity that I know it was never used) It has that wonderful sheen still from having been scotchgaurded and never washed. This is a medium to heavy weight cotton. For example it could have been used for drapes. Now had I purchased this fabric used and say it was a curtain panel... the fabric itself would not be the same quality. It would have been exposed to years of sunlight and fading. It would have been more likely to have been exposed to smoke and dust (in the1960's second hand smoke was not an issue... thus even non-smokers allowed people to smoke inside. They might open up a window.... oh and what is next to the window... the drapes!). As a consumer and a maker, I feel saying that something is made of "vintage fabric" is not the same as disclosing that it is made of used/upcycled fabric.
I especially feel this is true of items made for babies/children. There are people out there making baby quilts with "vintage fabric". What they are really using is old sheets and old falling-apart chenille bedspreads! The fabric is very worn from having been washed goodness knows how many times and goodness knows with what it was washed. Some people add a cap full of bleach when they wash their sheets. It doesn't cause bleach spots but the continued use can degrade the fabric. It can also cause fading. If you are buying a premade item... you may not know that cute rosy pink was once red and the fabric is see through! Since the quilts are backed holding it to the light will not show how worn the fabric is the same as if it were a dress. This causes a lot of distrust or people who have limited exposure to the vintage world to have the assumption that vintage fabrics are not good quality.
I just want to make the distinction that not everyone who is selling items made of "vintage fabric" are the same. If you are purchasing something made a vintage fabric... don't be afraid to ask if the fabric is used. Or if it is "upcycled", what it is upcycled from? A little girls silk party dress upcycled from a 1960's cocktail dress is going to be very different from one made of silk sheets. I've noticed some sellers on etsy are listing what the previous item was and I LOVE that they do that! An informed customer is a satisfied customer!
I hope this clarifies and doesn't lead to more confusion!
I think my next post will be about rick rack! (It makes me all ziggy zaggy just to think about it!)
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