Saskia of Saskeye Studios Talks to Sustain About How Re-Using Fabrics and Up-Cycling Clothing is the Future of Fashion
"Life can be hectic and expensive and new fast fashion is cheap and yeah, fast. But I think we owe it to the people who make our clothes and the worlds resource limits to fix our clothing if it's mildly broken and instead of buying new ones."
Hi Saskia, tell us about yourself, where you’re from and your blog Saskeye!
I am 29 years old and am from Stockholm, Sweden. My mother is Italian and from her I have always had the love for fashion and creativity. My dad who is Swedish has given me the interest in politics and the love for photography, reading and writing.
I love socially responsible entrepreneurship and the art of concept development. That has made me start a lot of projects with big visions; I have had a lingerie blog for independent lingerie brand awareness, a lingerie store for body positivism, a clothing library for sharing economy, and a sustainable fashion brand for reuse of discarded materials. The new blog is part of my sustainable fashion universe that's very colourful, childish, sexy and fun. There will be sewing tutorials, tips on sustainable fashion and inspiration to dress in a way that brings you joy.
What inspired you to create your blog around sustainable fashion and sewing?
The last couple of years sewing has become my absolute favourite thing to do and I have noticed a lot of people have become inspired by that and gotten themselves a sewing machine. I wanted to create this blog for them, to inspire everyone that wants to sew more with fun up-cycling ideas.
On the blog I will tell readers about what I am sewing for my own sustainable fashion brand SASKEYE Studios and my best sewing tips. It can be a tutorial on how to make puff sleeves, the best sewing tools, how to reuse materials and where to buy sewing patterns. Often sustainable fashion and sewing is portrayed as very minimalist, and I want to show another side, the colourful fun one.
How do you feel about how many people now that prefer to buy fast fashion instead of picking up a sewing needle and up-cycling/ fixing their old clothes?
I really understand them, life can be hectic and expensive and new fast fashion is cheap and yeah, fast. But I think we owe it to the people who make our clothes and the worlds resource limits to fix our clothing if it's mildly broken and instead of buying new ones.
There is almost always someone in a person's network that knows how to handle a needle and thread or a sewing machine and probably doesn't mind teaching you how to fix easy things. We also need to get into our habits that we can leave our clothing to tailors if sewing isn't something we feel comfortable with. There are also a lot of great YouTube videos you can find on how to mend and up-cycle.
What practices do you use to make your projects sustainable and eco-friendly?
I almost only buy second hand fabrics and I try to source my other materials, such as ribbons and buttons like this as well.
I also save all my fabric scraps for other projects and fabric straps can be useful in other ways such as plush toy filling.
What are you favourite garments to sew at the moment?
I am very in to anything with big puffy sleeves. It's both fun to sew and gives such and empowering silhouette. I really like making dresses because they are a full outfit in themselves.
I'm really interested in spending a little extra time in the details adding ribbons and such.
I think the next thing I want to get into is making more bags. I find it hard to find colourful, modern bags second hand and it's a sewing process I enjoy, not so much cutting big pieces but more working with silhouettes and details.
Who/ what are your sustainable influences? They can be people, brands, blogs, etc.
I am inspired by a lot of different sustainable initiatives. In Norway there are three women working with up-cycling that I enjoy a lot; Jenny Skavlan, Ingrid Vik Lysne and Ingrid Bergtun.
On YouTube I follow creative channels How to Slay Omas Kleiderschrank, With Wendy, Nava Rose and Nayva, sometimes make amazing up-cycling videos. I really like the up-cycling designer Klo by Klo as well.
How do you personally maintain a sustainable lifestyle in your home life, and do you have any tips?
For me it's something that I try to do in all aspects of my life. I eat vegetarian food, travel with public transport, fly as little as possible, buy organic when I can afford it and buy clothing and material things second hand as much as possible.
I try to see it as something fun, like a puzzle to solve, instead of thinking about it as limitations. There are so many great sustainable options in the world, fun secondhand stores and delicious home made organic skin care for example.
What message would you like to tell your readers/viewers?
I would like to tell them to dare to create space for their creativity in their lives. Especially if you are a woman, taking space for your creativity can be hard, it can feel scary to prioritise your own needs and have fun and not be a perfectionist.
Use your creativity to make something for yourself once in a while, it shouldn't only be to make gifts or sell. You deserve to enjoy the fruit of your labour.
Don't let sustainability be a limitation, see it as an opportunity to challenge yourself and give you some structure for ideas.
Finally, don't go for what looks good, go for what makes you happy!
What’s next for you personally and your blog?
I will continue to develop my brand SASKEYE Studios and see where my creativity takes me. I don't plan what to sew I go with where my curiosity and joy takes me with every new project.
I hope to release many new blog posts and hope to see what inspiration people take from them and what they will create.
When the COVID-19 period is over I would like to put up a gallery show so people can come close and try on my pieces. I would also like to host sewing workshops for grown-ups both physically and digitally.
Where can our readers find you online and on social media?
At my website www.saskeye.com you can find my blog, shop & portfolio. On instagram you find me at @saskeyestudios and on Facebook, www.facebook.com/saskeyestudios !