Best Meetup Group Ever: Ready-to-Wear Diet

 I am excited to announce I have recently created a Meetup group called Ready-to-Wear Diet: Sewing and Upcycling.

I was inspired to create this group because of my New Years resolution to buy no new clothes for 365 days. After making this pledge I thought to myself, wouldn't it be great to find like-minded people who want to be more eco-friendly with their clothing choices and bring them together so that we can support and inspire one another?

A person doesn't have to be an experienced sewer or clothing upcycler to join - I my self have only upcycled a few pieces of clothing and have a lot to learn.

The plan is to take monthly trips to area consignment shops and second hand stores, select pieces of clothing good for upcycling, and then grab coffee afterwards to discuss our plans and get advice from one another.

Depending on the interests and needs of the group I would also love to add on meetups for members to sew together. I have a small but very comfortable sewing studio which could be a space for new and experienced sewers to work on their projects and provide advice and support to each other. In my world that sounds like a perfect afternoon!

So I just established this group on the 23rd and I already have 17 members and all 7 spots filled for the first meetup!!! (I'm not sure why I settled on 7 spots for the first meeting...not too big, not to small?).

In hopes of inspiring and informing others, I plan to regularly post about these meetups and the success (and failures) of the groups upcycling projects.

It makes me feel so good to see the interest in this group and I am looking forward to helping it develop and grow.

Link to meetup group: https://www.meetup.com/Ready-to-Wear-Diet-Sewing-and-Upcycling/

Sew on,
E. Farlely

Sustainable Fashion: Rothy's Shoes

Greetings!!  
 
 Today I wanted to talk about flats - specifically a new shoe brand (at least to me) based out of San Francisco, CA. These shoes were recently featured in O Magazine (January) as well as in Vogue (August).  These shoes are made from recycled water bottles (what!??!), recycled rubber, and recyclable foam. Meaning they are both beautiful AND eco-friendly.  On top of that, these shoes are also machine washable.  

Needless to say a quick read on this shoe immediately caught my attention!

With a price range of $125-$145 they may be a bit pricey for people - but think about how fast you run through less-expensive flats (...that you can't wash....I'm really in love with this idea).  My flats (average price I pay is appx. $50) usually last just one season and that's if I'm not caught wearing them in a rain storm.

These shoes sound wonderful. I haven't bought a pair yet so I can't personally testify to their wonderfulness but I plan to save up all my pennies in the next couple of months to buy a pair for spring.   If you want to find out more about these shoes and make up your own mind, check out their website at:  https://rothys.com or their Facebook page by searching for Rothy's.

Have an opinion about these shoes? Let me know!

Sew on,

E. Farley

Podcast Discovery: Don't Keep Your Day Job

I have just discovered a new podcast and find I must share it! It is called Don't Keep Your Day Job and it is about inspiring people to pursue their creative dreams, discussing how to make a living doing what you love, and providing practical advice on how to do it.

Only two episodes have been released and I am hooked...and inspired! If you have found your way to this blog you may also be interested in this podcast, please check it out!  

Here is a link to the podcast FB page:

https://www.facebook.com/dontkeepyourdayjob/

Sew on,

E. Farley

2017 New Years Resolution: Ready-to-Wear fast for 365 days

Welcome!

So for this post - #2! - I wanted to discuss new years resolutions. I know people who make them every year and I make them as well -- I think its always good to make new years resolutions, whether you follow them or not. It's good to take stock of the past year and make goals for the future.

Just the practice of setting goals can be a healthy exercise in self-reflection.

So with the beginning of the new year, I, like many other people made 2017 resolutions. However, I didn't just make one, as is one of my peculiarities, I made a list of them:

- Cook at home/Prepare meals for the week (to decrease the temptation to order out!)
-Buy an actual newspaper...and read it
-Finish some long standing unfinished (sewing) projects
-Learn a new skill
-Create a budget...and follow it

There may have been a few other resolutions that came and went from the list but these were the big five.

However, there was one more I have always been tempted to add to my resolution lists since 2014  but it has always seemed a little too intimidating to commit to...a resolution guaranteed to fail within the first month... a resolution to buy no new clothing for the year(!) and instead sew any clothes I may need during that time.

Seems an impossible goal - guaranteed to fail, I mean lets face it, in today's society we are surrounded by temptation!

However reading others posts regarding pledges to "ready-to-wear fast" shows that it an be done and be fun at the same time!! (a link to my original inspiration: http://goodbyevalentino.com/invitation)

With the creation of this blog and a re-invigoration of my interest in sustainability I find myself brave enough to add it to the list!

So, new years resolution #6... or maybe we should bump it to the top of the list and make it new years resolution #1:  No new store bought clothes for 365 days with two exceptions:

1) Clothing from consignment shops and second-hand stores
2) Underwear, socks, swimwear...and a few exercise pieces

And because no-one is perfect I will give myself one "Fashion Emergency" card to pull out in case I find myself...well, in an "emergency" where I must buy new clothing.

And finally, another requirement is that if I fail miserably (as with most new years resolutions this is completely possible) I will admit it:)

So with this pledge in mind I share a link to a recent article I came across describing the 2017 eco-friendly pledges of leading fashion designers:

http://magnifeco.com/global-fashion-leaders-and-their-sustainable-pledges-for-2017/women/2/

Do you have a 2017 pledge related to sustainability and fashion? If so, I would love to hear it!

Sew on,

E. Farley
#my2017pledge

Welcome to the Farley Factory Blog!!

I thought I would use my first blog post to describe myself a bit and share what I am hoping to do with this blog.  

 By day I am a criminal justice researcher and by night I am a sewing and DIY fanatic. I consider myself a late bloomer when it comes to sewing. I took a sewing class in high school (in the early 1990’s) but sadly there was no spark.

It wasn’t until I moved to NYC in 2011 and found myself walking through the fashion district every day on my way to work that the idea of picking up sewing came to my mind. Oh the fabric!! It also didn’t help that I have a friend who then using her sewing skills to make just the most wonderful baby shower gifts. So in the fall of 2011, in search of a creative outlet, I bought a Singer sewing machine from Target and signed up for a sewing class.

… and from that point on I was hooked!

In the fall of 2013 I found myself becoming a student once again but this time at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City pursuing an Associates Degree in Fashion Design (Evening program). While I absolutely loved attending FIT and learned so much, I knew that NYC was not my “forever home” and so I made the tough decision to withdraw after completing just one year. After that I dedicated my efforts to finding a new home and eventually relocated to Alexandria, Virginia.

So since 2012 I have been absolutely obsessed with all things sewing! And I have allowed this creative streak to expand into other areas like jewelry making and photography. This love of sewing has also increased my interest in the historical and contemporary issues (e.g., environmental impacts, sweatshops, human rights violations) surrounding sewing, fashion, and the clothing industry. I also appreciate the ways in which sewing (and other creative outlets) can increase psychological well-being and help create and strengthen local and global communities.  I should also mention that I have healthy appreciation for all things vintage as well!

With all these interests swirling around in my mind I wanted to create a blog that would help me to participate more in the sewing community by sharing projects I am working on and in turn facilitate connections with people who have similar interests as well as provide a space where all the rich and complex issues surrounding sewing and fashion can collide. I would like this blog to be a place where people can find and share information on all the good and the bad that comes with the sewing and fashion industry -- on both a local and global scale.  

Based on my interests I have identified a number of themes that I will be focusing on as I begin to develop my blog, and these include:

1)     Recommended reading/book reviews

2)     The history of the sewing/fashion industry

3)     Sustainable fashion

4)     The psychological benefits to sewing (and other creative outlets)

5)     Sewing events and news in the local community (Alexandria and surrounding area)

6)     Sewing events and news in the global community

7)     Links to other blogs or interesting fashion/sewing related websites

8)     My projects (sewing/personal/donation/DIY)

Finally, I recently re-opened my Etsy shop! Currently, there are only a select number of things up there now but I have ideas bursting from my brain on what I can do and sell on my Esty site! The sky is the limit! So I am very excited for 2017 and what it will bring!

Welcome to my blog…and hey, 2017 isn’t going to slow down for anyone, so let’s get started!!!

Sew on,

E. Farley