Zero, Zen, and the Free Hood Update

The popular modular jacket from A Year of Zero Waste Sewing now has an option for a hood. The update is free but you’ll need the original pattern, which is still available as a zine (ie booklet) for a very modest sum, or in A Year of Zero Waste Sewing. The pattern is the same…

Read More

New Pattern: Beach Towel Kaftan

Hi All, I have a new pattern, a kaftan cut from beach towels that’s almost zero waste. It’s a collaboration with alterations styling guru Nicole Akong, who I met on Instagram. If you’re a Great British Sewing Bee watcher, Nicole was in the 6th series. The pattern can be ordered here, and there’s an option…

Read More

Curiosity and the Two Hats

(or the boring title: An analysis of textile wastage and yield: a case study comparison of two head coverings.) Lately I wondered how much of a fabric saving the zero waste warm hat delivers, compared to a conventional pattern. The zero waste warm hat is a new pattern, and the culmination of 18 months of…

Read More

New Pattern: Zero Waste Warm Hat

After messing with zero waste hat ideas for the past 18 months, I can now present to you a fully zero waste hat. Introducing the ZW Warm Hat, a hat for the winter months. The pattern is now in my shop. Please enjoy 25% off for the next month. This hat is self-lined with a…

Read More

Love a Cardi! Making the Eccles Cardigan

The Eccles Cardigan is a free zero waste pattern by Emily Handler of Empty Hanger patterns. It’s a “wardrobe staple” style, with a classic crew neckline, and long or 3/4 sleeves. Eccles comes as part of a collection of other free zw patterns, with an option to pay for them (recommended). It comes in 17…

Read More

Finished! Optimatium Denim Coat

This past week I’ve been busy sewing a coat version of the Optimatium dress. The Optimatium dress is a zero waste pattern which appeared in Tauko magazine last year, and is now a pdf pattern in extended sizes. The pattern is in my shop – please enjoy 25% off until June 26th. For the coat,…

Read More

Optimatium in Denim (Part 1)

A conversation with my tech editor last week, combined with the happenstance of surplus-to-requirements denim in the house, let to cutting out a denim Optimatium pattern on the weekend. The Optimatium dress is a zero waste pattern which appeared in Tauko magazine last year, and is now a pdf pattern in extended sizes. The pattern…

Read More

5 Ways to Wear the Optimatium Dress

The Optimatium dress has proven to be more versatile that I’d thought. You know, a dress is often worn just on its own as, well, a dress. But once I got started putting it with other things, there were so many more possibilities. Like to make one? The pattern is 25% off in my shop…

Read More

New-ish Pattern: Optimatium Dress

The zero waste Optimatium dress is a pattern which appeared in Tauko magazine #9 in October last year. The copyright has since reverted to me, and it’s been re-graded to a bigger size range and formatted as pdf pattern. It’s now in my shop – please enjoy 25% off for the next month. Optimatium means…

Read More

On Designing a Zero Waste Hat

The Making Zen Online Retreat is coming up at the end of this month (it’s free – register here and read more). I’m presenting a sew-a-long for a low waste sunhat. The idea of a zero waste hat has been rolling around in my mind for the past year+, and I’d planned to talk about…

Read More