Putting the slow back in slow fashion

While I’m using fiber work as an example in this post, the pressure to churn things out applies to all art/crafts/handmade/creation. Especially for people trying to earn a living from their creations. Part of changing our world, shifting away from the harmful norms of our society includes no longer treating ourselves like machines.

My social media feeds are full of people churning out handmade items, especially knit & crochet things.

6 day star blankets.

A sweater in a week.

Replace your entire fast fashion wardrobe with handmade this month. (That one might not be real, but the energy of it is out there.)

I’m not talking about doing a challenge to test yourself or improve your skills. These are focused on productivity. The belief that we must always be producing as much as possible, as quickly as possible, to be of value.

And I’m over it. It takes away from the natural benefits of fiber work or any act of creation. The slow down. The mindfulness. The intentional care in each step of the process.

This pressure to produce like a machine is worse for people trying to earn some money. They are working under deadlines, pressure to meet sales goals and follow trends. It’s hard on your body and wellbeing.

Personally, I would rather have something handmade by someone who is feeling good, inspired and well cared for. Not someone who is running themselves ragged and stressed out. Whether that thing is a gift or something I buy, because all of that energy, positive or negative, is being worked into whatever they are making.

The issue isn’t with these individual makers, but with a society that puts profit and productivity before people and wellbeing.

A sweater takes as long as it takes to make. I’ll never make one as quickly as a machine. There are people who knit way faster than I do. I shouldn’t have to push myself to injury or misery to get a sweater done according to some exploitive timeline. No one should. Not even people working in clothing factories.

I would love to live in a society where artists/makers/crafter (along with everyone else) are well cared for. That we understand the value of making things. Where hand makers/creatives don’t have to try and compete with machines or be treated like machines.

How can buyers help shift this?

Treat handmade things with respect. Whatever someone is making, a lot of work went into it. That work deserves a living/thriving wage. Even if it’s something you can make yourself.

Arts and crafts that are usually done by women or seen as ‘women’s work’ are always undervalued. We exist in a misogynistic society. Unlearning that will positively impact every aspect of our lives. People deserve to be paid well for their work.

Buy directly from artist/makers/crafters when ever you can. Pay the price they ask. Don’t haggle. Don’t tell them it’s over priced or how you can get it cheaper somewhere else.

How can artist/makers/crafters shift this?

Put the slow back in slow fashion. If you are pushing yourself so hard you are doing harm to yourself. Stop. You are not a machine. Your value as a human doesn’t come from how productive you are.

If you find you are putting more stress and frustration into your work than love and joy, it’s time to rethink how you are doing everything.

Price your items for profit. Know what the living wage is for your area. Know your money numbers for your life. Your current life & the one you want to be living. Where I live to rent a two bedroom place I’d need to earn about $45 an hour. Minimum wage is $7.25hr. I can not charge $7.25 an hour to make a shawl or whatever and live. That’s not a real thing. Not for crafters. Not for anyone at any job. If you are saying to yourself that no one is going to pay several hundred dollars for a sweater or whatever, you are wrong. There are people selling their hand knit sweaters for thousands of dollars.

As a maker, it is hard to earn a living from making one thing. Explore different ways of earning money with your arts/crafts. Explore, experiment and find what works for you.

You don’t need to please everyone, beg for pennies or f*ck yourself over to make money as an artist or crafter. Find examples of people who seem to be doing well at what you want to be doing. Each time you have a negative or limiting thought about your business, stop and tell yourself how that person is doing it so you can too.

“I can’t price this sweater at $600. No one would pay that.” This might be true at a small local craft fair. This is not true for any where else.

To make something with your own creativity, your own hands, your own spirit, takes time and skill and mindfulness. It takes care and love. These things have value. Value beyond dollars.

Not everything we make has to be expensive or churned out as fast as possible. Somewhere there is a balance. We are not there yet. But we are in a time in which being creative and connected to our creative centers is vital to creating a world we want to live in. The more we insist on the value our creations and acts of creativity have, the closer we move toward that world.

Whatever you’re making, keep making it. Keep sharing it.

To create is to be human. Devaluing creativity, making up BS rules about what is or isn’t creative or what counts as ‘real’ art is to devalue being human.

Where in your life are you devaluing creativity? Your own or other people’s.

P.S. Fast fashion sweat shop workers deserve to be paid a living wage too.