The Sewing/Writing Connection
It’s time for my annual Me-Made May Post!
Did you know that May is a month to celebrate sewing? Me-Made May was launched in 2010 on the blog So Zo, What Do You Know? and has been gathering attention every year since.
It began as a personal sewing challenge encouraging makers and sewists to set aside the month of May to get creative by styling and wearing their handmade garments. Over the years, it has grown into many things for many people.
This year, I’m thinking of the sewing/writing connection as I work on my Me-Made May projects. Here are some things both of these creative endeavors have in common.
Start with an inspiration.
Any creative work begins with a spark of inspiration. Using the book the Curated Closet as a reference, this year I’m focused on creating a few pieces in simple lines and neutral colors that could mix and match. A look through Pinterest provided inspiration for my latest creations.
Plan your work
Gather your thoughts, your words, your fabric, your thread. Lay out the pattern. This is the raw material you will need for your your writing or sewing project.
Rough Draft
Author Anne Lamott calls the first draft of a writing project a “shitty first draft.” When sewing, you might call it ragged seams, or this doesn’t fit, or not the look I was going for. At any rate, you have to get the work started, put something down that you can work with. Get your seat in your seat and get to work. Keep your seam-ripper (and delete key) handy for this stage!
Editing/Finishing Touches
Try the work on for size. Too long? Cut it down, eliminate extra words, take in a seam here and there. Need more detail? Work on your descriptions, add a unique or unexpected element– a button or a plot twist. Keep making adjustments until you are satisfied that the work is the best you can bring forth.
Completion/Publishing
Your project is complete! Celebrate the feeling of success that “occurs in the privacy of the soul…before exposure to a single opinion” (Rick Rubin). Now, get your work out there. Hit the publish button. Wear your new sewing project out to lunch with friends! Over lunch, talk about the weather, or how the family is doing, or I don’t know… other things like “by the way, I have a new book out.” Just to keep the conversation going. That’s what authors do….
( For Me-Made May 2024 I ended up making two versions of the Emerson pant and short pattern from True Bias)
Threads of Thought
“Sewing our own clothing is just one of many paths we can take each day to bring that creativity into our daily lives. We connect with others when we wear what we’ve made, expressing who we are and sharing what we’ve created.” Sarai Mitnick from Seamwork
Writing, sewing, cooking, painting, knitting, scrapbooking, woodworking…whatever your thing, enjoy your creative life!
Read more from Debra! Out of the Crayon Box: Thoughts on Teaching, Retirement, and Life and her new release Until Italy: A Traveler’s Memoir are available HERE!
