Local Living: the Fibershed and Upcycled Textiles

A lot of people, when they start working on sustainability and self-sufficiency, focus on food and fuel, but have you ever considered your clothing? Welcome to the concept of a "fibershed" - like a watershed, but the local area from which you can get all the materials necessary to make clothing and other textiles.

Now I am still learning and making slow changes, but I have incorporated some things into my wardrobe and household goods, so I thought I would share.

My beginner wool spinning efforts, using a drop spindle. The roving (the un-spun wool) came from two places: the first batch from a booth at the renaissance fair (which is also where I bought my spindle and a knitty knotty), which came from a ranch in the southern part of the state. The other place was a local yarn and weaving shop, where I raided their clearance basket (roving is not cheap, so, score! I took all of their clearance! LOL). I am trying to get enough done to make a sweater or poncho. I was originally aiming for a scarf, but I already have so many scarves! So I'm now aiming for a sweater (and I've never knit a sweater before, so that will be a learning experience as well).

A friend found me a small rigid heddle loom at an estate sale, so I am learning to weave as well.

An example of upcycling, for this tote bag I cut up plastic store bags and knit them. I count upcycling, because the materials are already here, and if we didn't use them, they would then pollute our Earth as trash. I also use scrap material to sew various items, like snagging the good parts of an old article of clothing to make new things with so only the worn out bits go to the fabric recycle bin.

This leather came from a shop up in Fort Collins where local hunters sold the hides of animals they had hunted for meat. It's deer, I think - and yes, the piece I had had two bullet holes in it! I made it into vambraces (and sandals, not pictured). The gold buttons I bought at an antique shop, the thistle one was from a craft store.
"Phoenix, why do you need vambraces? Are you playing in the SCA?" ...no (but I used to), I just like them. They're hella warm and soft. And also: I have cats that don't like to be groomed and are prone to knots if I don't do it. Jackrabbiting cat protection, y'all. ;)

I bought this book a while back to learn about natural dyes. I still need to get myself some mordant, but there are a few I can try without it.

I want to try spinning alpaca too, and see if I can't get my hands on some flax and cotton. Experimenting and exploring is fun!

Other things you can make besides clothes: I have some hand towels and washcloths I hand knit out of cotton. You don't need to use terrycloth for towels; in fact I have come to prefer the feel of these. The brown one is made from recycled cotton yarn (remember that fabric recycling I mentioned?).

And finally, a very inspiring video of a woman who committed to having her whole wardrobe come from within a 150 mile radius (and I think she originated the term "fibershed," but am not certain):

Thanks for reading! Have you begun to think about where your clothes come from? Do you have any cool things you have made out of local materials? Drop a picture if you have one!