Is Sewing Sustainable?

I cringe a bit every time I see someone promote sewing your own versions of microtrends as a truly “sustainable” option. I cringe even harder when the sewing tutorials teaching you how to do it don’t feature so much as a nod toward the proper finishing techniques that will make your new summer wardrobe last until at least, you know, the end of summer.

While sewing your own clothes is a great alternative to overconsuming fast fashion, you do have to take care to build healthy sewing habits the same way you work to build healthy shopping habits: that is to say, not sewing things you only intend to wear a couple of times, taking care to make items as durable and re-wearable as you can, and—perhaps most importantly—not overbuying and hoarding materials and other pieces you plan to use but never do. You should be just as selective with the projects you take on/purchase materials for as you would be buying new clothes—even moreso, actually, because while the monetary cost may be low, the time and labor you invest is valuable.

Learning to sew—not just as a hobby, but as a journey toward sustainability—requires a commitment to both thoughtful material choices and to personal skill development.

Through absolutely no fault of your own, your first few sewing projects will probably look “homemade,” or “arts and crafty,” if you will. That’s because the sewing itself is only a small part of actually creating something from scratch. Being an unpracticed sewist, you haven’t necessarily picked up all the little side skills and techniques that come after you’ve sewn dozens of items.

With experience, however, you will eventually graduate to “handmade.” certain level of skill, a certain level of quality, a certain attention to detail, and typically garners a response in the realm of “oh my god, you MADE that?!” when you tell someone you, you know, made it. Getting to this level takes practice. Lots of it. And ensuring that that practice is productive, and not wasteful is a huge undertaking.

I say all that to say: No. Sewing your own clothes is not inherently the most sustainable choice, but it can be! Here’s how:

What’s The Best Sewing Machine for Beginners?

There is a huge gulf between an intermediate level sewist and an advanced one, but only a tiny, tiny gap between beginner and intermediate. Essentially, once you’ve learned to sew a regular, straight stitch, you’ve already conquered the most basic technical skill required to sew literally anything, and every sewing machine on the market can sew a regular, straight stitch. In my personal and very biased opinion, the most cost-effective machine is a Singer Heavy Duty (any model number), because it’s the machine I’ve had for nearly ten years. But, ultimately, the machine is not what matters most.

What’s going to really make or break how quickly you transition from homemade to handmade will be the tools you use besides your sewing machine. That includes fabric scissors (scissors used exclusively for fabric and nothing else and, ideally, can be sharpened to prolong their lifespan), which are important for getting clean, straight cuts that don’t interfere with the integrity of your fabric (bad scissors can cause snags) or even the fit of your garment; that includes your iron, because, as much as you may hate to hear it, every single seam needs to be ironed both to make it easier to work with moving forward and to give the professional look and finish you want; and that includes your sewing needles, because not only do certain fabrics require certain types of needle, but a bad, dull, crooked or just cheap needle can ruin your projects, so, they need to be replaced regularly (I replace mine every few projects, immediately after sewing extremely thick fabric and right before I sew a very delicate, thin fabric).

No matter which sewing machine you go for, though, you have to make sure it’s always at its best, as well. Be sure to keep it dust-free inside and out, keep the machine manual nearby for easy troubleshooting, always test stitches on a scrap piece of fabric before you start with the official fabric, and check if there’s a sewing repair shop near you.

Do I Need a [Insert Thing You Do Not Need, Here]?

One of the most unsustainable practices you can engage in in life is Getting Ahead of Yourself, which is different in both mindset and in action than Being Prepared, with the biggest distinction being not knowing or understanding why you’re doing something, only that you think you need to.

It can be overwhelming looking at the sewing studios of creators or designers: there’s so much stuff! But, it’s important to remember: you’re not there, yet.

No, you don’t need a serger: just learn how to finish seams without one. When you start working with knits more often than non-stretch fabrics, that’s when you can consider one.

No, you don’t need a dressform or mannequin. It’s worth it to get really good at fitting things on your own body, especially if you don’t really intend to sew for anyone else.

No, you don’t need a huge dedicated space for sewing, especially not tables for cutting fabric or a fancy desk for your sewing machine. You can both cut fabric and sew at your dining table or your desk (or the floor, if you’re capable). And you can store fabric in a drawer or even a spare tote bag while you build up your skills.

In addition to your sewing machine, your scissors, your iron (you can skip the huge ironing board for now and use a towel or a small tabletop ironing board), and extra sewing needles, what you will need is sewing pins or clips. Clips are good for both super delicate fabrics that shouldn’t be pinned and super heavy ones that can’t be pinned; pins are good for everything in between. With pins and clips, you should prioritize storing them in a way that they can’t easily fall to the floor and embed themselves into your foot. I use a magnetic pin “cushion” for my pins for easy clean up, and an old Talenti jar for my clips.

What Should I Sew First?

When I asked Twitter what questions they had about learning to make/making clothes, by far, the most common response was: “what’s a good first garment for someone learning to sew?” And my answer is always: your first project—even your second or third project—should not be a garment!

Sewing a garment can require hemming, sewing straps, adding zippers or buttons/buttonholes, linings, pockets, interfacing/reinforcing and techniques like French seams, bias binding, flat-felled seams and more.

You know what else can include a lot of those skills? A really nice tote bag. Except a tote bag doesn’t also require you to read/use a pattern, doesn’t require much fabric, and doesn’t also need to fit on a body to be usable. It’s low stakes and, if you thrift your fabric either by repurposing old sheets or tabecloths or—my favorite—shortening something like jeans, a dress, or a button up shirt and using the excess—it’s low-waste, too. Thrifting is also a great way to hone your skills by repairing and altering pieces that already exist.

Besides productive practice, it’s both necessary and fun(!) to learn about sewing, fabrics, and, if you feel so inclined, patternmaking and tailoring/alterations. I’ll be making a video on my favorite books to learn about making clothes and about clothes in general as well as some other sewing exercises to hone your skills over on TikTok!