Who Will Save The Slow-Furnishing Industry?

With a fast-furnishing trend influencing consumer purchase of cheaply made and inexpensively priced home fittings, a demand for a more eco-sustainable, value-driven way of decorating our homes simmers on the back burner, awaiting its (re)turn to the forefront again. Enter the scrappers, grassroots DIY’ers, experienced artisans, seasoned wood-crafters, and novices of slow-furnishing in the making.

Like fast-fashion, fast-furnishing offers seemingly fashionable furniture that is quickly produced using cheap materials. Often times it is manufactured overseas where exploited workers from underprivileged countries are paid pennies to produce, and the price tags left hanging once stateside offer a great look at a great price, along with a guilt-free disposable mentality.  What more could a style conscious consumer on a budget want, right?

Go Green Gina: Fast Fashion vs Ethical Fashion

We are living in the age of fast fashion vs ethical fashion , where textile mills and design houses are now belting out new fashions almost 52 times a year instead of at the standard semi annual rate. Where the fashions are cheaper and the mentality cultivated  in consumers is one of waste. The desire for instant gratification and an embedded, incessant need for the latest ‘in’ thing means once a new trend comes in, the easily affordable fashions are now disposable before they really had a chance to get any wear really. And since the new fashions are more accessible to the masses, what’s the incentive in saving them anyway? Do we really need to over-consume like this to make us FEEL rich or successful inside? And are we taking a moment to even question what the price being paid is on the other side?

J&O Fabrics Top 10 Fabric Recycling Centers

Doing a bit of spring cleaning and finally ready to purge some of your unwanted fabric but don’t know where or how to start? No worries, we’ve searched out some organizations helping to play their part in saving Mother Earth from overcrowded textile landfills by providing fabric recycling centers in their communities and nationwide. Use them as a platform to get you out the starting block. While some places offer cash in exchange, others simply offer the satisfaction of knowing your undesirable textiles will stay out of landfills as they find a new home and purposeful work to fulfill.

 

J&O Best Practices for Textile Waste Reduction

Looking to play your part in becoming an environmental steward by assisting in textile waste reduction? Here are some simple things you can start doing today to reduce your sewing waste and environmental impact into our tomorrows.

  • When shopping for pattern fabric, BUY ONLY WHAT YOU NEED
  • MAXIMIZE PATTERN POSITIONING ON YOUR FABRIC LAYOUT BEFORE CUTTING. Make full use of every inch of the fabric without jeopardizing the integrity of the garment once construction begins.
  • MEASURE TWICE. CUT ONCE. Avoid material waste because of careless cuts.

Cute Summer Fabric Crafts To Kick Off the Season!

For many, the official start of summer is dictated by the date of the solstice which usually occurs during the month of June. For students, the last day of school is often equated in such a way. Yet for others, it is simply Memorial Day.

Originating after the American Civil War to commemorate the Union and Confederate soldiers who died on the battlefield, over the years Memorial day has become the traditional UN-official start of the summer season for many in the USA. Celebrated by both memorializing lost ones who have served this county well, and by the ritualistic setting up patio furniture and grills in preparation for a weekend of food and fun, the last Monday of May equates to the last day of spring by majority rule as sun children everywhere welcome the summer in!

Go Green Gina: Make Your Sewing Room Greener, Happier & Healthier!

go green gina, jandofabrics, ecofriendly, organic fabric, go green, green living, green sewing, sewingFor many of us, the idea of ‘going green’ and playing a vital part in helping to save Mother Earth from resource depletion and over consumption, is more than just a passing fancy. J&O Fabric store is doing our part by bringing in more and more organic fabrics.  As each day ushers in new devastating information pertaining to the effects of global warming, pollution in our air and waters, cancers in our food supply, and the long term effects of genetically modified textile crops such as our beloved cotton, more and more of us are raising our awareness to the fragile balance and co-dependency of man and nature, and are taking steps both big and small to ensure our survival and that of future generations. One such step that we can take as seamstresses, tailors, crafters, and designers, is to make our sewing environments more eco-friendly. With the running of our machines and the burning of the midnight oil (lights) to get our projects done sometimes, the amount of energy we use in the course of a day, a week, a month, adds up. When considering that the leading cause of our eco-system breakdown is still the burning of coal to generate electricity, we owe it to Mother Nature to do our part, one change at a time.