Zen and the Art of Garment Making

Can you take the Seamless Pledge? I, Cassandra M, take the Seamless pledge until December 25th 2012. "I will abstain from buying any new clothes until the end of my pledge. I will find ways to be fashionable without breaking the bank and without contributing to the cycle of fast fashion consuming the high street. I will trawl through charity shops, I will attend clothes swaps, I will look for second-hand items on eBay and I will craft my own clothes with my own two hands." The pledge was written by Elena Cresci, blogger for Seamless. Follow along at http://seamlessblog.wordpress.com/ A growing concern and awareness of the garment and textile industry has settled into my thoughts lately. There have been rumors of dangerous chemicals being used to treat and create inexpensive, mass produced fabrics in not only distant continents, but also here in North America. This is but one rumor, and only builds on the sadness that comes from the knowledge that most of our garments, inexpensive or expensive, are manufactured entirely by the very young to the very old. The work environments are unfair and unsafe for any person no matter what age, gender, creed, nationality or other variation. Low pay and lack of basic human amenities plague this industry. We perpetuate it by forgetting the hard work, dedication, and years of practice, that only the human hand can perfect in garment making. We perpetuate it by forgetting quality, supporting those giant chain stores who choose to go with the the lowest bidder and blind themselves to the real cost to others, just to make the most money by spending the least possible. We forget the old saying, "You get what you pay for." As we all know, not only in the textile/garment industry, but throughout the whole global economic crisis, those chickens have come home to roost. We need to think ahead, let go of the desire to "have more." We need to strive to be content with what we can create and accomplish ourselves. We can be happy with using that which has already been created. Personally, I struggle with wants and desires every day. I can spend hours pouring through online stores, wishing, wanting, convincing myself that I need these things to make my life better, more normal, and happier. What I really need to do, is to purge my home and heart of unnecessary desires, focus on what I do have and can make and be satisfied with quality over quantity. It doesn't matter how many band-aids you buy to cover that wound, you need a skilled professional to sew it up.