Sewing is often a solitary sport and so I believe there has been a natural tendency for us to connect with others online and share with those who truly appreciate our craft. However, as I was tracing a pattern and deliberating on a blog post the other day, I wondered if there wasn't another link between sewing and blogging.
Sewing is a profoundly contemplative activity. Holed up in a sewing room, one can't help but let the mind wander, considering each aspect of the process as it is worked on. While some parts of sewing require great concentration, many other parts, like cutting a pattern or hand sewing a hem, are quite meditative. There seems to be within this space a natural discourse that occurs in the sewing room, where I often begin composing my blog post on the garment. More than just notes on what was done when, my mind begins constructing a story of how each garment was made, what it reminds me of, and how it makes me feel.
This, I believe, might be the more profound connection between sewing and blogging. When we give ourselves the space to create, we also give ourselves permissions to write, to connect, and to let the mind speak. It also gives us something to write about, and those who may not otherwise write have begun wonderful blogs about their craft.
As we begin the new year, I want to thank you for sharing your reflections with me, and I look forward to the many more blog posts to read this year!
what a great observation, I feel that way also. As I am making a garment the blog post starts running through my mind, what I want to share or document. You had a great sewing year and I am still obsessed with your dip-dyed dress. Happy new year!
ReplyDeleteGreat post, very interesting. And one to think about!
ReplyDeleteCompletely agree! I have so many things running through my mind when I'm sewing that I'm just dying to talk about. Blogging helps, but I never manage to write about as many things as I'd like!
ReplyDeleteI agree! I'm totally guilty of mentally writing the blog post as I'm doing a project, and often of revising the post a great many times before hitting publish. I think the ways you solve problems as you sew is comparable to the challenge of getting across what you mean with words, so it's an apt connection.
ReplyDeleteI think that's an interesting observation as well - that the sort of problem solving in itself is a narrative. I often find myself writing essays without knowing my conclusion just to help think an issue through, and this could be true for sewing as well.
DeleteI do this in my day job too - composing emails as my way of working through a problem, and never sending them!
DeleteInteresting! And yes, I am always composing a blog post in my head while I'm working on a project. Although this year has been different for me as far as frequency of posting-- only about half of my projects have made it to the blog.
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