Homemade haute couture: the popularity of do-it-yourself duds

by Rob Peters | April 29, 2008 at 04:44 pm | 660 views | 10 comments

I thought this was interesting, as I've noticed a lot of my female friends have been getting into knitting and sewing the past few years.

It could be concern for the environment, or simply the threat of recession, but sales of sewing machines are rocketing - and making your own clothes is the height of fashion.

Last week, Argos reported that sales of selected sewing machines have rocketed by 50% in their stores in the past 12 months. Explaining this phenomenon, they cite increasing concern for the environment, awareness of social issues and a backlash against the "throwaway society". They need only add the words "credit crunch" to give a complete picture of why sewing has suddenly become popular again. Woolworths has also just reported a similar trend, with sewing-machine sales growing by 258% in the same period. Their explanation? "We think it's down to more home economics classes being taught in school, the increasing popularity of fancy-dress parties and the death of the high-street tailor."

And those figures show that a trend that has been bubbling under for a decade has finally hit the mainstream. The crafting revival began in earnest in 2000, when Debbie Stoller, editor of popular US feminist magazine Bust, took a fresh approach to the traditional skills of knitting and crochet, reinventing them for contemporary crafters. She wrote the knitting book, Stitch and Bitch, and soon groups of the same name were gathering in clubs, bars and cafes across the world to make stuff together. In the UK, other groups started, too, including Knitchiks (knitchicks.co.uk), the Cast Off knitting club (castoff.info) and IknitLondon (iknit.org.uk).

[q url=" target="_blank"http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/fashion/story/0,,2276537,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=networkfront"]This creative revolution means that anyone new to sewing need not worry that they will be stuck making the nasty, old-fashioned items that used to be a mainstay of the pattern books, modelled by frighteningly clean-cut couples with immobile barnets. These days, there are plenty of cutting-edge books around, and the internet is a fantastic resource for those new to crafting.[/q]

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theunderminer

at 16:47 on April 29th, 2008

good stuff:

I need somebody to fix the holes in my socks, but I like arts and crafts!

MelancholyWings

at 19:45 on April 29th, 2008

There is an interesting trend in many of the doll collecting communities for 'Project Runway' type sewing circles. Every community I'm a part of (from American Girl, Barbie, Blythe to BJD) has at least one thread devoted as a sew along with or inspired by the show. I think for some sewing and knitting is an outlet for artistic expression and uniqueness. It's not cheaper than store bought but it is more fullfilling.

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zombieqeen

at 20:56 on April 29th, 2008

good stuff:

Thanks for including my picture!

chelly-egg

at 21:38 on April 29th, 2008

i'm fairly new to the site, so please excuse me if i don't do this right.
this hat was made for a friend in the UK who was in love w/ a pair of knitted space invader socks. i didn't know how to make those for him, so i crocheted a hat and scarf instead.
thank you rob peters for taking a look.

chelly-egg has contributed a photo to this story.

jordan

at 17:44 on April 30th, 2008

There's something beautiful about the union of knitting and old-school video game graphics...

annanomsa

at 02:03 on April 30th, 2008

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redraider14

at 08:42 on April 30th, 2008

I am so glad that homemade crafts are making a comeback. My mother was a home ec teacher for years and my granny taught me to crochet and knit. I can not imagine my life without using these skills to make creative fun items. BTW I still sew on my mother's hand-me-down Singer machine which is about 44 years old.

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McHats

at 16:40 on April 30th, 2008

Hi I make handmade hats to the measurements of your headsize. Come and visit me on www.mchats.etsy.com

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McHats

at 17:16 on April 30th, 2008

Do you get sick of never being able to find a hat that fits you?? Well I know that I did, so I set about making them myself. (I know that I am trying to compete with China, in this field of endeavour!), but who knows maybe one day it might turn into a little business!