Hello, World! An Introduction to Me and Stuff

This is not me.  This is my cute dog.  Isn't he adorbs?

Hello, internet!  Welcome to my blog.  I have just learned that September is National Sewing Month (thank you Facebook), so as a great symbolic gesture, I have decided to officially begin blogging today.  I'm a self-described nerd with an individualistic sense of style and a thrifty nature, so it was a matter of course that I decided to teach myself to sew.  I started by hand-sewing, but my results improved when I got my first sewing machine for Christmas 2006 (thanks Dad!).  I took one sewing class in college, but I'm largely self-taught through trial, error, and looking up things on the internet.

Okay, so what's a Refashion?
Because of aforesaid thrifty nature, Goodwill has been a haven for me and my pocketbook, but finding things that weren't terrible, ill-fitting rejects from previous decades can be difficult.  Then, I stumbled upon The Refashionista, and my life has never been the same.  Jillian is a magical lady who takes those poor ugly garments and turns them into adorable, quirky, actually-wearable pieces.  (She had little to no sewing experience before beginning her blog and frequently does no-sew refashions, so don't think that being a home ec dropout bars you from giving it a whirl!)  My closet now holds several refashioned pieces, and I'm definitely planning on adding to that.

And ethical fashion? What's up with that?
Social justice is kiiind of a hot-button phrase around the internet these days, but in reading the Bible, especially the Prophets and the Gospel of Luke, I've found out that it's a thing that God has some strong feelings about.  My dear friend Kerri taught a class on it earlier in the year, and I learned a LOT.  (Check out your Slavery Footprint here; it's a little sobering and scary to realize how many people are oppressed around the world.)  Since then, I've really felt called toward using my skills and talents to change my consumption habits, and maybe to inform and entertain a few people along the way.
So what is ethical fashion?  According to this definition from the Victoria and Albert Museum, it is "an umbrella term to describe ethical fashion design, production, retail, and purchasing. It covers a range of issues such as working conditions, exploitation, fair trade, sustainable production, the environment, and animal welfare."  The Ethical Fashion Forum has some more information here.
So why is it important to me?  I love clothes, but not as much as I hate the idea that my cute outfit might have been made by underpaid, overworked people in unsafe conditions.  To compound the matter, waste in the fashion industry is a massive problem, as new, trendy clothes from places like Forever 21 are only meant to last as long as it takes for the next trend to roll around.  This leads to clothes being discarded at a rapid rate due to quick, shoddy workmanship, cheap materials, or simply because [x trend] is sooo last week.  The fast fashion experience is a terrifying carousel of conspicuous consumption and exploitation, and I don't want any part of it.

Yikes. That got kinda heavy.
Yeah.  I know.  My intent is not to make anyone feel guilty for their choices.  I merely want to inform, entertain, and encourage, and stretch my creative muscles in a way that really keeps me accountable and motivated to keep on doing it.  Thanks so much for reading, and I hope you'll come with me on this journey!