Has anyone else been feeling weird social and mental side effects of being in the Instagram sewing community? I can’t be the only person who experiences this from time to time. With the pandemic, I’m not getting as much in person time with my friends and I’m finding that my social gratifications are shifting more and more online. While I love the IG sewing community and am incredibly grateful for it, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t experiencing some fatigue.
When I first joined the Instagram sewing community and created @stitchin_camaro, my roommate asked “How many followers do you think youll get? Are you going to try to get a sponsorship?” I scoffed at the question. I couldn’t believe he thought I would be so shallow. Joining the sewing community wasn’t about getting followers and likes. I joined because I had been using hashtags to get inspirations for sewing projects and I wanted to be able to share my work and provide any inspiration for others.
Fast forward 2 years and 2K followers and I feel like I’ve lost touch with my original intention. Turns out it’s really hard to not care about what strangers on the internet think of your content. It’s easy to get sucked into a mindset where how people react to a post has some sort of measure on my worth as a person or as a creative within the sewing community.
Lately, I’ve been feeling like I can’t keep up with all of the trends and hashtags and challenges. Everyone is ice-dying, should I be ice-dying? Everyone is sewing the M7679, should I make it too (spoiler alert: I am)? My grid doesn’t have a perfect aesthetic – oh no! The list goes on and on and on. It’s easy to get lost in all of the things I should be doing to “keep up”, it’s harder to take a step back and remember that I don’t need to keep up. This isn’t some sort of competition to measure my value in the community. I can just make what I want to make and that’s okay.
We all bring something unique to this community, our own individual perspectives. Just because you see other people doing something, doesn’t mean you need to do it too. Everyone’s unique perspectives and style are what makes this community is so awesome. It loses its fun if we all shape ourselves to what’s trending, likeable, or popular. Which is why I’m trying to get better at taking a step back and just making whatever the f*ck I want – not what I think looks good on my grid, is part of a trend, or will get the most likes. Sounds simple enough, right? It should be simple. But in these very digital times, for me at least, it does occasionally take some conscious thought.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts! This post is resonating deeply with me — and I’ve been pondering many of the same questions recently. I’ve learned a lot from IG (about sewing and important current events+social issues) so I don’t want quit it completely, but shifting energy away from it and to other things (like long form sewing content / blogging / real life) is a goal of mine.
Also I find strange satisfaction in making things and not getting around to IG posting them — it’s really all for me then! 😂
I feel the same way and am trying to shift my energy a bit. So far it’s been like a weight off my shoulders!
Also, I totally agree about making things and not posting them – it’s like having a secret make 😂
This definitely resonates. I joined ig to connect with other sewing people. I post to be a participant and less of a lurker, but taking photos of my makes and sharing takes a backseat to sewing. It is very easy to scroll through instagram and when you see a challenge or a new pattern or whatever start to take over your feed, then it starts to convince you to get on the treadmill. I dont have any answers, really, but you arent alone on this one. I personally dont take part in the challenges; I like pressure-free sewing, or if there’s pressure, its because i want to wear something or take a garment with me on a trip, etc., not an arbitrary date on a calendar.
Also, the pandemic is pressure enough at the moment. Sometimes i just cut out 12 things and leave them on the sewing table for a month….
I totally agree! It’s a lot to keep up with. I’m trying to get better at taking a step back and just sewing and posting only when it brings me joy 🙂
When I was growing up there was no IG or FB … as long as my horse or dog liked me – I was happy. I don’t think I had pressure to like or be liked. We lived in a time where I had one pair of shoes for school, one for good, sandals, and a pair of gumboots (not sure what they are called in USA!). “Trends” were simply unaffordable … and actually … unknown concepts. I was lucky that I was always happy in my own company.
We have enough to contend with in life, without unrealistic images pressed on us by external influence. Be yourself. Be true to yourself. Be answerable to yourself. And all will be well.
Oh – btw – what the xxxx is ice dyeing?!! Guess I’m heading to google!! 🤔
Thanks for your kind works Kirsten! I’ll keep them in mind 🙂
Ice dying is a type of tie-dying using ice…I think 😂 I haven’t tried it.