Sewing as meditation

A

ashu

Jedi Master
I would like to share a mini project that I have been working on which has been another form of meditation for me (as well as EE).

I was particularly inspired by Laura's beautiful creations of the dresses for Anna's wedding and just had to dust off my sewing kit.

As you can see, it is still work in progress (all hand/straight stitch) :sewing::


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This looks really beautiful, ashu! Looking forward to see the final work! :)

I think I know what you mean by "another form of meditation". For me that is drawing, it's like I'm in completely different state of mind. I can focus on it for hours... hm, I haven't draw for quite some time, I have to change that.
 
Wow that looks great. Can't wait to see it once it's finished.

Do you think it's possible to put that type of stitching on t-shirts and for it to last in the wash? It would be a cheap way to renew a few old pieces of clothing. Not to mention the peace and relaxation I imagine you would get from such an exercise. :)
 
That's beautiful - looks like a lot of time & care was put into it.
I find knitting & sewing relaxing & meditative once I get over perfectionism issues. Ideas flood in & it's crossed my mind to sell some things - it's a good cheap way to renew old pieces of clothing & comes in handy as a skill.
It's still in the back of my mind to dust off my mini sewing machine :rolleyes:

Thanks for sharing :)
 
That's a lot of hand stitching! I can't do that anymore because of the arthritis in my hands so I rely on the sewing machine to get me there. Indeed, it is pleasurable creation to start from an idea, figure out how to do it, and then actually make it happen.
 
Ditto, and good job Ashu! I've always had trouble finding a "hobbie", because I can't relax if it doesn't have a purpose of some sort. But since helping Laura with the dresses (and I tell you, sometimes I caused more trouble than help, because I was a total newbie! :-[), I managed to learn a bit of sewing, and started really loving it. The best is when I can repair or improve some clothes, of make something for somebody else. Then, it's fun and has a purpose. The other day I made a pair of shorts for my boyfriend. They ended up being a bit too big (understatement of the year), but I can fix them.

I agree with the meditation part. When time allows, I take a break and go sew after I've been reading something dense, or have a problem I need to solve. There is something about engaging the moving center in this type of activity while processing something, that sort of opens doors to meditating differently on things, or finding answers. Not sure how it works, but so far, I find it to be a great thing.

I've done embroidery in the past, and still do from time to time, but sewing is by far my favorite now. A combination of both is great too.

Looking forward to seeing the end result, Ashu!
 
Thank you for all your comments :)

Immersion - I have tried stitching like this on t-shirt (cotton stretchy type of fabric) but it was a slow process compared to stitching on a plain 100% cotton piece of fabric. Whether it would last in the wash, I am not too sure - perhaps you can give it a go?

Yes, once I have finished I will be sure to post a picture of it here :knitting:
 
I've had limited experience with sewing in the past but i absolutely loved it. Seriously. It would start as just a repair job that my mother or grandmother would look to do for me & i would get annoyed. Why? Because they assumed that i would just palm it off to them as it's "a woman's job." Nonsense! As soon as i was shown some basics i was flying & would sew by hand whenever time permitted.
Sadly that was over ten years ago & i haven't the time for that anymore as i would need practice. I really don't understand why it felt so good to do it but it's truly relaxing for me, even as i type i'm remembering the feelings.

I agree with Ailén about doing this (or probably anything that you would find relaxing naturally that doesn't physically mentally or emotionally tax you) to help with problem solving, this is like absorbing large amounts of info & then sleeping on it & then returning to it after a restorative period. But better. My perfectionism thing was strangely absent from this which is pleasing, i never had enough time to learn how to start from scratch & create garments for others.
This means i'm still at repair mode if i pick up a needle & thread again but no matter. It's almost unheard of that a man can not only (partially) sew, but enjoy doing so. I actually did work training (age 15/16) in a clothes factory that sewed, pressed & cleaned designer stuff like Burberry. Hot humid, monotonous & yet fun.
 
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