It's hard to believe, but it's been a year since we launched our first Issue of Curated by ITF. It's been a huge year for the ITF team and we have been learning just as much as our wonderful subscribers.
So we thought we'd share with you the key lessons we've learned this year!
1. SEWING IS EVEN BETTER WITH FRIENDS!
This is probably a no-brainer, but making a handmade wardrobe has lots of ups and downs and we've learned that being able to share your wins or frustrations makes for a much more enjoyable experience!
When we first started developing Curated by ITF we knew it needed to have a community element. Since those early days our Curated by ITF online community has grown to become a beautiful, encouraging, motivating, inspiring and, most importantly of all, a safe place where our community members (‘Foldies’ as we’ve starting calling them just recently!) feel comfortable to ask questions, share photos of their toiles, and have a bit of a maker-vent where needed.
It’s also a place I love checking in to every day. It has given me great joy to see how a little idea that was planted a long time and eventually came to fruition has helped so many people, and I love being able to provide that one-to-one assistance that can be lacking in many online communities. It’s incredible to see our members learning from our patterns and resources, but what has been even more wonderful is seeing the generosity that our members offer to each other by sharing their own learnings and wisdom.
In return the community has helped me when I’ve felt uninspired or a little battle-weary from running a small business with a very small team and for that I’m very grateful. All I need to do is check in and see the amazing things people are learning from our resources and I’m ready to get back to the patternmaking table (or more often that not, back to the computer!)
Did you know, you can actually join Curated by ITF just for the community?!
If you're looking to be supported, motivated and inspired through your sewing journey, but don't want the monthly projects, then our Curated by ITF Supporter tier might be just what you're looking for. You'll receive feedback and advice from other experienced makers and make sewing besties all over the world!
2. WE’RE NOT THE ONLY ONES WHO LOVE GEEKING OUT ABOUT SEWING.
For a long time we thought we may have been the only ones who enjoyed geeking out about ‘the why’ of sewing and patternmaking. Although Alys and I are qualified fashion designers, we both gravitated towards the more technical side of fashion (sewing and patternmaking) after our university days. You can often find us sitting at our desks chatting about the cleanest way to finish a particular seam, what different drag lines on a toile mean, or the easiest way to articulate how to smooth curves.
But since getting to know our Curated by ITF community over the last 12 months, we have realised we are most definitely not alone! It has been amazing to share so many lightbulb moments in our community over the last 12 months, because we know from experience that if you understand ‘the why’ (the reasons why you make an adjustment or alteration), you are able to make informed decisions about your makes in the future.
3. SLOW REALLY IS BEST.
Thoughtful and intentional consumption is the backbone of all that we do at In the Folds and we’ve realised that by slowing down our sewing practice we can ensure our makes are worn and loved.
This is exactly why we created the Slow Sewing Planner and released it as part of the Curated subscription earlier this year. We want to help our subscribers make careful and mindful decisions about their wardrobe. Decisions that consider people and the planet.
By making garments that fit well and make us feel great, we require less. If we take the time to ensure garments are made well, we will take better care of them. As we form stronger bonds and ties with our clothes we'll cherish them long into the future. Every decision we make has a flow on effect!
4. THE EXPERIENCE OF SEWING OUR OWN WARDROBE IS MORE REWARDING IF WE FOCUS ON INPUT INSTEAD OF OUTPUT.
At a time when clothing is as cheap as it has ever been, most of us are not sewing to fill our wardrobes, but to learn new skills and spend time doing something we love. But, it doesn’t take long to realise that sewing, although fun and fulfilling, can also have its frustrating moments. We’ve all put a sleeve in on the wrong side, clipped a seam too far, or just made something that just wasn’t what quite what you had in mind. And this is part of the process!
The truth is we usually learn more from these struggles than the projects that go smoothly from beginning to end (but it can be difficult to remember that when you’re picking up your seam ripper for the twelfth time in a sitting!). If we accept and embrace the idea that we will make mistakes along the way, then we are going to enjoy the time at our machine more. The easiest way to do this is to focus on building our skills (input), rather than how many items of clothing we've successfully made this year (output). By reframing our approach to sewing, mistakes we make can be seen as learning opportunities, rather than failures or something to be ashamed of.
An example of this that we’ve loved seeing is makers actually wanting to have fitting issues so they could have a go at using our Fit Kits. Never in our wildest dreams did we imagine this happening!
5. PUSHING THROUGH THE DISCOMFORT IS WORTH IT!
We’ve seen our community push through barriers over and over again. Having the guts to post a photo in our online group and ask for feedback, asking questions when they’re stuck… it can be hard!
As introverts who prefer to be at the patternmaking table instead of in front of the camera, we can relate! It takes a lot of encouragement for us to turn on the camera and put ourselves out there, but we’ve learned that it’s worth it every time. By being vulnerable, showing up, talking about both the highs and the lows, we have been able to connect with our community on a much deeper level.
6. DESIGNING PATTERNS THAT LAST THE TEST OF TIME IS REWARDING.
Curated by ITF has been designed to support our community to learn new skills over time. One month we might be working on fit, while another month we’re working on beautiful finishing techniques or pattern hacking.
What has been amazing is seeing our community learning new skills and then applying these skills to another pattern from the Curated or In the Folds archive (or another designer’s pattern). This is something we always keep front of mind when designing a new pattern because we want our patterns and resources to last the test of time. We steer clear of trends and fads so that our patterns will serve you well into the future.
7. TAKE IT ONE STEP AT A TIME.
It doesn't matter who you are, sometimes life just gets in the way. So, in a world that’s pushing us to do ‘More! More! More!’ it's helpful to remember that we don't have to do everything all at once.
We have enjoyed helping makers integrate sewing into their daily lives so that they're able to enjoy 20 minutes at the sewing machine before work or the 15 minutes spent chatting to other sewists online during a commute.
8. LEARNING NEW SKILLS TAKES TIME AND PATIENCE.
It can be easy to fall into the trap of wanting to learn ‘all the things’ all at once. But with any new skill it’s important to remember that it takes time and patience to get good at it. And particularly when doing new things with our hands it takes time and practice for it to become muscle-memory. We love this quote from Ira Glass about being a beginner - it's a good reminder for all of us!
Having a community to work alongside and share the process with makes sewing so much better. I think we can get into the trap of thinking we’re the only one who is getting stuck on something, or struggling with something. By working alongside a community of makers you can see that others have the same questions and the same struggles!
9. THERE IS SO MUCH WE CAN LEARN FROM OTHERS.
Something amazing we have noticed is how much our community members learn from each other! It's the questions, and the toile photos, and the realisations that makers are having that encourage others to give things a go, or helps them understand where they went wrong.
When our members aren’t able to get stuck into a project right away, they have told us they're still learning just by seeing what others are doing with the patterns and resources, and it gives them a base to work from when they get started.
10. SEWING IS A FORM OF SELF-CARE.
Sewing doesn’t need to be another thing that’s added to our to-do list! Giving time and space for making in our routines allows us to use sewing as a way to disconnect and unwind. Getting creative and lost in making can be so good for the soul!
11. IT’S FUN AND HEALTHY TO EXPLORE AND EXPERIMENT WITHOUT AN END GOAL IN MIND.
In the same way that it’s fulfilling to focus on skill-building instead of making more clothes, it’s also great for our brains to try something new just for the fun of it. We have loved seeing our community gain the confidence to hack a pattern just to see what will happen or just try an idea because they can’t get it out of their heads. And as we've said, even if it doesn't go to plan, if you're focused on input instead of output, any new skill or lesson learned is a win! Check out our archive of sewing tutorials if you’d like to start the journey of expanding your sewing skills!
12. THERE IS ALWAYS MORE TO LEARN!
We have learned so much with the creation of Curated by ITF and we know (and now hope!) this will continue. While there are so many things we wish we’d known at the beginning, it was the mistakes and the experimentation that got us where we are today and we have to continually remind ourselves that it’s all part of the process.
We've loved seeing how makers of all different skill levels have approached each project. Beginners are focusing on gaining confidence in their finishing skills, while intermediate and advanced makers might be working with trickier fabrics, or learning how to make fitting adjustments and hack patterns.
The main thing is we're all learning alongside each other and making a community together! If you think you’d love to join a supportive community you can become an ITF Supporter here. If you would love to start building on your sewing skills with the benefits of an online community, you can learn more about Curated by ITF sewing subscription here and subscribe here.