March in Review...

This month's sewing projects were about filling needs for moi and others. No extravagant sewing projects here. Actually, there are a pair of panties missing from the collage that were made out of a remnant piece of fabric. I continued to sew from my stash of fabric, patterns and notions making do with what I have on hand.  

A sprained ankle put a halt to plans as social / physical distancing orders came into effect along with a state of emergency. I found it disheartening this month that many are not taking these orders seriously. At my workplace a colleague showed up to work sick and didn't think it was a big deal. Staff meetings were called and conducted in a staff room where social distancing was impossible. Thanks to God, I have sewing as hobby that helps with stress. Because sometimes some people are puzzling. Please stay home, especially if you're sick and think it's nothing but just a little cold. And wash your hands often using the recommended technique. Just like with sewing, taking short cuts does not end up with the desired results. And remember, we can save lives by simply doing what we're asked by health professionals.  

There is a movement of sewists sewing face masks to donate to health professsionals and hospitals. The sewing community has been inspiring. It was no surprise on Sunday night there was a segment on the news where a doctor was asked about home sewn face masks and the general public wearing them as online criticism as to their effectiveness surfaced online.  An article on the Live Science website points out

Another study, published in 2013 in the journal Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness, found that commercial surgical masks were three times as effective as homemade masks at preventing the spread of the flu. (Commercial surgical masks, the looser fitting fabric masks, are not as effective as specialized, tightly fitting N95 respirators at filtering out tiny virus particles, Live Science previously reported.)  It concluded that "a homemade mask should only be considered as a last resort to prevent droplet transmission from infected individuals, but it would be better than no protection."

Of course, this pandemic is not about a "little flu" as some world leaders have referred to it. I applaud those sewing face masks, their heart is in a good place. And as the above paragraph highlights, a homemade mask "would be better than no protection." Those participating in this movement are doing the best they can with the skills and supplies that are available. Be kind. Please resist the urge to criticize this movement. The need to feel like we're helping while social distancing, even in a small way, should not be underestimated.  

Stay safe, stay home if you can, practice social / physical distancing, wash your hands often and keep sewing! We'll get through this, hopefully without harming each other along the way.

In other sewing news, I have over the years run an Etsy shop where I have sold sewing patterns and some handmade items. Understandably, things have been very quiet over at Etsy lately. Shopping for non-essentials are the furthest from my mind. I'm actually grateful that things at the Etsy shop have been quiet. Thank you, as making a trip to the post office at this time is the last thing I want to nor should do. Thank you to all of you who have shopped at the Etsy shop over the years. I hope that you have enjoyed the sewing patterns that have found new homes with you and I hope have been sewn into fabulous projects. The shop was scheduled to close at the end of April because of the increase of Etsy fees and cost of shipping of late but I've decided to close it down earlier. It's the right thing to do now. Thank you again to those who have visited the shop in the past.   

To close off this post, the following items were de-stashed this month, 

• 8.60 metres of fabric
• 1 metre of ribbon
• 1 - 1/2" snap
• 12 - 15 mm (9/16") buttons
• 1 - 20 cm invisible zipper
• 0.4 metres of basting tape
• 3 previously used pattern
• 2.4 metres of picot elastic
• 1.4 metres of fusible interfacing
• 2 sewing machine needles
• 3 spools of thread

And I'm happy to report, no new items were added. Not even that fabulous soccer ball print knit at Emma One Sock. I'm waiting to see if someone else makes something with it. Not surprisingly, it's almost sold out.   

Happy Sewing!