Minimal Monday: Making and Producing

I've been sewing for 20 years. I started with hand quilting and in 2010 began to sew garments. Since then, I've had existential sewing crises every 18 months or so. Most of them have been fueled by projects gone wrong, but my recent interest in minimalism has introduced a new element of sturm to the drang. Or vice versa. #fancywords.

Am I sewing for the pleasure of making, or to produce ever more clothing? I mean, I realize that sewing inevitably results in stuff: muslin/toile, garment, and scraps scraps scraps. To say nothing of the environmental impact of making and transporting fabric.

Unlike quilt making, garment sewing is very much product-driven for me: a lot of the initial appeal lay in marrying pleasure to necessity: I'll sew my own clothes!  But my style preferences could make it easy to overproduce---I'm more likely to emulate Eileen Fisher than Kate Spade. Simple silhouettes still require attention, but nowhere near the fuss and fiddling of gathers, floppy bows, and ruffles. Hats off to my fellow sewists who enjoy those things--I can barely get myself to do buttonholes.

So how do I temper my love of making things with my wish to live more simply? Perhaps by shifting my focus to making instead of producing:

Technical Practice. AKA extreme muslin-ing. When Peter of Male Pattern Boldness first started his blog, he sewed every day using old bed sheets and thrifted fabric, his creations ranging from cocktail dresses to men's underwear. This approach reminds me of my husband's dedication as a classical musician. He spends hours playing scales and etudes in addition to his concert repertoire, all in preparation for an ephemeral "product." I could practice on scraps in between projects to hone and stretch my skills (maybe including buttonholes).

Meditative Stitching. The Alabama Chanin method of sewing unites the zen of hand quilting with forgiveness of fitting jersey knits. For me, a heavenly combination. I took a class from Natalie Chanin in Denver recently and the high sustained me through the 8-hour drive back to Albuquerque. I feel myself drawn more and more to this kind of sewing and there are times when I'd like to jettison fitting pants, installing zippers, and matching grain lines in favor of hand-sewing bliss, Make Nine be damned. However, this statistic (via Fringe Association) makes me more determined than ever to produce some of what I need when ethical, local, and/or second-hand sourcing isn't feasible.

So it's probably more realistic to balance my focus instead of shifting it entirely. My closet purge and modules are proof that I have the luxury of taking my taking time on projects, from pattern choice to final product. And in between, I can enjoy the making.

Do you ever struggle with making vs. producing?