Minimal Monday: Intersections

My first encounter with "minimalism" was back in 1998 when I read Circle of Simplicity. The message resonated with me, but I didn't act on my inclinations until 2011 after encountering Miss Minimalist via The Vivienne Files, and even that was a stop-and-start effort.

Late last year I felt a renewed sense of urgency around paring down. Inspired by books and blogs and compelled my upcoming 50th birthday, I started to dig in.  I've read about zero waste, minimalism, and simplicity, and there seems to be a lot of overlap. The material changes I've made have been a patchwork of all three "movements."

Zero Waste
I've learned so much from Ariana at Paris to Go. She studied sustainability in college and her articles on environmental justice and the impact of food and textile production are thought- (and action-) provoking. Bea Johnson at Zero Waste Home focuses on straightforward how-to's. They've motivated me to make the following changes:

-Transitioned my household away from plastic sandwich bags and plastic wrap. We use etee wraps, U Konserve food cozies, and a variety of BPA-free, reusable bags.

Photo: Shopetee.com

Photo: UKonserve.com

-Stopped using plastic bags when I buy produce and food in bulk. I use linen and mesh bags instead.

Photo: Amazon.com

-Switched to tree-free facial tissues, recycled paper towels and toilet paper, and biodegradable trash bags.

-As our tupperware/rubbermaid stuff wears out, I'm replacing them with glass containers.

These are small changes. We will never be a family that only produces a Mason Jar full of trash per year, but this is what's feasible for us right now.


Minimalism
Bea and Ariana have both posted photos of their homes and their spaces are organically minimalist, reflecting their commitment to consuming as needed. They have disciplined, distilled definitions of "need." To me, that's where "minimalism" and "zero waste" overlap, but a lot of minimalist writers take things beyond the material. Francine Jay, the minimalists, and  Jennifer of Simply + Fiercely are open about the spiritual and emotional revelations that led them to minimalism, and their writings have been affirming for me. Jay's 100 Essentials and Dominique Loreau's 99 Objets gave me roadmap for (wince) "curating." Loreau's book offers a fun glimpse into small-space living in Japan, but 100 Essentials is more useful to me, providing reviews of versatile objects.

These authors have had the biggest impact on my household items. I've been married for 20 years, and many of our wedding presents have worn out or broken. I think long and hard before replacing anything. For example, our cookware is almost half of what it was: we now own 2 sauce pans, 1 soup pot, one wok, and 2 skillets.

Simplicity
For me, one thing that is missing from a lot of simple living/simplicity content is photos of people and stuff. (Says the woman writing a wordy post.) I'm not looking for novelty-- I'd happily look at images of someone "remixing" the same outfits over and over, for example. For a visual fix I go to The Gardener's Cottage and Gretchen's Closet. Janet (Gardener's Cottage) blogs about simple living, style, and veganism. She's super-creative. Gretchen's blog focuses on ethical fashion.

Because of their blogs I've radically changed the material aspects of observing holidays, and celebrations in general. For years I felt self-imposed pressure to produce tons of thematic baked goods, decorate every space and fixture, and come up with a J Crew lewk.

Now our holidays look more like Janet's Natural Christmas, and I'm revisiting "holiday" dressing after seeing what Gretchen wore to a wedding:

Cotton jersey dress for a wedding. Photo: Gretchen's Closet.

Thanks, interwebs!

Weekend Scrolls & Reads: The Beauty Edition

Still from "Girl You Don't Need Makeup." Photo: Popsugar

In addition to multiple tutorials on administering medication to pet rabbits, this week I read a review of Amy Schumer's new movie, I Feel Pretty. In "I Feel Pretty and the Rise of Beauty Standard Denialism," Amanda Hess writes:

"...part of the conditioning of the 'patriarchal ideal' is to make women feel empowered by it on their 'own terms.' That way, every time you critique an unspoken requirement of women, you're also forced to frown upon something women have chosen for themselves." 

TESTIFY. There's pressure wear to makeup and to eschew makeup, underpinned by the tacit expectation that women will not cross the fine line into selfishness as they expend resources to pursue an ideal. Because, as Hess notes, "in fact, our culture's ideal woman is beautiful and modest."

Towards the end of the article Hess suggests that "...striving for beauty is ultimately a rational choice in a world that values it so highly, and coverting that pressure into fun or communal experiences is its own form of resistance."

In this week's "The Face" column on Into the Gloss,  Isabella Rosellini, who recently returned to Lancome after 30 years, called out anti-aging messaging:

"When I came back to work with Lancome after 30 years, I wouldn't have come back just to say, 'I'm old, but I look younger than my age thanks to this cream.' That is wrong. Those kinds of statements were based in traditional old values which said that a woman's nature is to stay home, the biology of what a woman is determines your destiny."

Photo: Bowels of Pinterest

I realize that this is an "advertorial" to prop up the Lancome brand, but I'm nursing the hope that her statement could be a form resistance, too. (Although her biology played a huge role in her destiny as a model.) My hope is grounded in a sentimental attachment to Rossellini. Her initial appearance in the 1980s buoyed me as a teenager: to see an "ethnic-looking" (to use the parlance of the time) woman emerge from a sea of Christie Brinkley'd advertisements felt amazing.

Rossellini in the 1980s. Photo: Deep Pinterest

I also get that Lancome re-hired Rossellini and likely encouraged her "anti-anti-aging" statement because they're following the money that tucked into wallets behind AARP cards. I doubt that I'll purchase anything from Lancome, but I'll buy what Rossellini is selling.

10,000 Waves

This is yet another view of Jalie 2806, this time with gathered foldover and banded hem.

The material is sproing-y ITY knit from Cali Fabrics; the waves are deep blue. On a wardrobing note, this will replace the colorful printed top in my work module.

Years ago I read an interview with sewist Nancy Murakami where she says she's a "person in black, or PIB." It was probably back in 2010 or 2011, and  wish I could find it to share. I try to remember it whenever I feel pressured to add more color to my wardrobe.

My house is full of color, and I enjoy it. But when it comes to clothing I'm happiest as a Person in Mostly Neutrals.

Ann Shayne's color wheel from Mason Dixon Knitting

Minimalist Monday: Style Guidelines

In her April l8  Wear What You Make column, Sonya Philip writes: 

"Determine what you want to wear more of, and make a plan to slowly add those items. There is a tendency to want everything instantly. The internet, with its limitless choice and same-day shipping, feeds the immediacy. Add one or two good pieces a season." 

In the past, Sonya has written about her layered, colorful uniform that revolves around 3-4 self-drafted designs.

So I thought of her when I read this over the weekend:

"When petty choices occupy the mind necessity is forgotten, and wanting and craving, picking and choosing take over."    -Steve Hagen, Buddhism Plain and Simple 

Weekend Scrolls & Reads

Girl on a Red Carpet, Felice Casorati, c 1912

The painting above is from the IG account elesium. Because realism can be balm for reality.

I hope Stephanie Madewell's blog remains active for a long, long time.

I love this version of a personal uniform, which would give me an excuse to make an unquilted, cropped Tamarack.

These tips on mastering an all-black wardrobe are worth a look.

This interview on sewing and menopause.

I was unable to find tips on rearranging your features after your teenager blithely mentions that "everyone is looking forward to 4/20."

Buen Finde!

Cocooned

Mothra attacks!

This is Jalie's Cocoon Cardigan (#3353), sewn up in a dark gray cotton blend sweater knit from Cali Fabrics.

Still figuring out the tripod. I had a choice between dignity and a level photo and you can see what won out.

This was the first time I that wished I had a serger; maybe for the upcoming 5-0. I used Jalie's suggested method of zigzagging the very edges of the fabric and then sewing the .25 seam, which definitely looks more polished. Good thing, because the band flaps open now and then. Still love it though.

Zigzag + Straight Stitch

Topstitching the bands makes a big difference in how the final garment looks, and I'm surprised the instructions didn't include that step when they took the trouble to specify "pin[ning] generously."

But that's a pretty minor niggle for a great pattern. I could see a cold-weather version in merino knit.

Cropped head, funhouse angle outtake.

Minimal Monday: Consumption and Community

When I de-stashed my stash last weekend, this made the cut:

A one-of-a-kind skein, purchased from an independent dyer who offers a monthly yarn "club" and has a big Ravelry fandom. Her shop updates always result in a flurry of oohs and aahs as people post their purchases and project plans. Listening to this ball of yarn got me thinking about my experiences with consumption-as-community.

Online, I've visited (and participated in) groups where members "show-and-tell" purchases, whether artisanal yarn or luxury accessories. For me these groups were a breeding ground for FOMO so I stopped logging on. But I at least respect the directness of their premise: We're here because we like the same stuff, not to solve the healthcare crisis.

I tend to be a solo shopper, so in the real world I've mostly experienced consumption-as-community at direct sales "parties." Visiting "consultants" hawk cookware, baskets, scrapbooking supplies, clothing, or makeup at the home of a "hostess." I'd usually go to these out of a sense of duty.

CAbi

Pampered Chef

I last went to a sales party in 2014. As the consultant gave the spiel about empowering women and preserving service and quality, what previously seemed disingenuous but harmless felt creepy. (And not in a fun, quilt-guild-marital-aids-party kind of way. Connecticut, circa 2003.)

When the consultant asks if anyone has questions, it's generally understood that no one will say: "Are you ever resentful of assuming disproportionate risk?" Or, "Do you think this business model exploits people's need for belonging?" It's also understood that guests will buy something.

 But hey, I attended of my own free will, and to be fair, I do love my Measure All. I love my yarn, too, even if my monitor's color settings betrayed me. The commercial contexts in which I purchased them could not be more different--but my motives were eerily similar.

Weekend Scrolls & Reads

I saw all of the John Hughes movies and owned the soundtracks to Pretty in Pink and Some Kind of Wonderful. Of course I never questioned the dynamics that Molly Ringwald unpacks here. I just really wished that Andrew McCarthy went to my school. 

Kim France wrote an article for The Cut on aging and attractiveness. This statement from her friend Deborah Chopken really resonated with me: 

“there’s this interesting kind of inverse relationship: The less attractive I get, the more confident I am in the way I dress and look.”  

Buen Finde!

Speckles

Dayliiiight!!!!!

This is view A of Jalie 3245, sewn up in a spongilicious  knit  that Emma One Sock categorized under "Sweater Knits." (It seems super light and drapey for a sweater knit, unless we're talking about one of those sweaters that my mother disses whenever she laments the decline in quality at Talbots.)

But I digress...it was a great choice for this pattern, and the speckles and ribbing prevent vastwhitemonolithia. Unlike other Jalie patterns the neck is finished with binding instead of a band. I had my doubts, but my #10 edgestitch foot....took the edge off!

Bias neckline finish.
Necklace belonged to my husband's grandmother.
It's from the 1950s.

Hyar hyar. I'll be here all week--remember to tip your waitress.

Minimal Monday: Stashing and Hoarding

Back when I was a quilter, a fellow guild member advised against buying fabric unless you were ready to start the intended project right away. Her reasoning was that "by the time you get around to sewing it's old hat."

(Aside: she appliqued an amazing block depicting her and her husband sitting in their 1957 Chevy.)

I implemented a self-styled version of her advice: I stashed particularly luscious fat quarters for applique but never free-ranged with yardage. A pile of fat quarters radiated new-crayon optimism, but an unused yard of anything felt like pressure. The gestalt is real, man.

My fear of yardage means I've mostly abstained from stashing garment fabrics. When I do it's a slippery slope towards hoarding. That rich eggplant doubleknit with unforeseen hair-shirt properties? Stashed underneath five-year-old jersey scraps that would make great neckbands or underwear or sleeves. And as for yarn...I have leftovers from itchy scarves and sweaters that have all found new homes.

Mindfully decluttering my stash would mean coming to terms with wasted money--I would add time to that. Jennifer of Simply + Fiercely suggests "writing it off" as an investment in well-being. That lessened the blow of these donations:

Take-away: no more wool. A good lesson, although next time I want to invest in my well being I'll read a book or get a facial.

Do you have a stash?

Weekend Scrolls & Reads

Because celluloid swans!

This post  gives an interesting perspective on Indie vs. Big-4 pattern companies. My long-time favorite, Jalie, seems to be a hybrid of the two: A mother/daughter-owned company with the diligent drafting and cheesy photography offered by the Big 4.

I'd love to see this exhibit of Sylvia Plath's visual art, which I found via Meryl Streep's reading of Plath's poem "Morning Song." 

On Tuesday I took my daughter shopping for sneakers. When I pointed out a pair that I thought looked cool she told me they were hype beast shoes.

Buen Finde!

Make Nine & Jalie 2806

When I organized my wardrobe into capsules I noticed that I could use some solid-colored tops for work. So I'm counting this as one of my Make Nine projects, even though it wasn't in my Official Grid.

Who's got two thumbs and a tripod coming in the mail?

This girl!

The fabric is a drapey lyocell jersey from Emma One Sock.

At this point I'm mostly making things as I notice the need. Here's a loosey-goosey revision of my sorta-plans*.

*I'm not making a "PicLab." But I am too cheap to pay to make the app's logo go away. :)

Minimal Monday: It's Just Stuff

Over the past 6 weeks I've culled my wardrobe via eBay and Goodwill. I sold three small, lightweight items on eBay and donated the rest. Partly for convenience and partly because I've nabbed amazing finds over my decades of second-hand shopping and I wanted to put some good vibes out there.

Two of the eBay'd items would retail for $180 each; the third item would cost $160. They brought in $150 total. They were in great condition with original boxes, but the designs weren't rare enough to incite a bidding war.

The lesson? After you fork over your life energy in the form of hard-earned $$, stuff is just...stuff. Taylor-Burton diamond aside, the value of most objects lies solely in the enjoyment that you get from owning and using them. Choose wisely, future self.