Clotheshorse Podcast — Episode 247: "Let’s Build the Future We Want" (LIVE in Portland)

Host: Amanda Lee McCarty
Guests: Karen McCarty, Cassie (Altar), Frances (Sincere Studio)
Recording: Holocene, Portland, OR
Date: November 2, 2025
Episode Theme: Rebuilding and reimagining the future of fashion and clothing through the lens of sewing, skill-building, community, and intentionality.

Episode Overview

Amanda hosts a jubilant and community-centered live show in Portland dedicated to demystifying the fashion and retail industries. The theme: reclaiming skills and agency in fashion by learning to sew, mend, and create—and resisting capitalism’s push toward disposability and instant gratification. Three guests—from a lifelong home sewist (and Amanda's stepmom) to a zero-waste designer, and a radical sewing studio founder—share their stories, expertise, and hopes for a better, more equitable and creative future for fashion.

Main Topics & Insights

1. Why this Conversation? Reclaiming Power through Skills & Community

• Amanda reflects on Portland’s transformative role in her own life and the idea that, just like in fashion, we can “choose what the future looks like” (24:55–25:15).
• The decline of sewing, cooking, and other practical skills is traced back to U.S. policy in the 1980s, especially the Reagan Administration’s dismantling of home economics education (20:08–24:40).
• Key Insight: “People's inability to sew, even a simple repair, exacerbates wealth inequality. It's an issue of economic justice.” — Amanda (19:10)
• Empowerment and community are central: "A bunch of rich white guys in the 80s got to decide that we don't know how to cook anymore. We can take that power back." — Amanda (25:02)

2. Guest Interviews: Personal Histories, Skills, and Visions

A. Karen McCarty (Lifelong Home Sewist, Amanda's Stepmom)

• Learning to Sew: Taught by her mother at age 7–8, began with doll clothes, advanced to making all her own clothes through high school (26:56–28:28).
• Benefits of Sewing: Uniqueness (“Your clothes are your clothes.”), perfect fit, durability, and emotional resonance.
  • "There's no such thing as a standard size body..." (29:41)
• Societal Shifts: Noted shift in the 70s–80s to devaluing home-sewn clothes, rise of instant gratification and cheap fashion (30:22–34:45).
• Why People Don’t Sew: Convenience, cheap fast fashion, lack of education, and hands-off YouTube learning vs. hands-on mentorship (34:45–36:19).

B. Cassie (Owner/Designer, Alter)

• Sewing Journey: Self-taught, began hand-stitching punk clothes; rapidly advanced via apprenticeship with local artists on industrial machines (54:27–59:43).
• Made-to-Order & Zero-Waste: Runs a made-to-order business focused on extending size range and minimizing waste—all with radical transparency.
  • “We do not provide instant gratification.” (60:13)
• Re-educating Consumers: Constantly needs to explain manufacturing timelines; works to make the human labor behind each piece visible (62:08–66:10).
• Zero Waste Challenges: Hoards fabric scraps to avoid landfill; works with partners like Ridwell and Rokovo for textile recycling (71:41–73:18).
• Skill-Building: The knowledge gap about machines intimidates new sewists, and size inclusion is a core personal and political value (79:06–82:21).
  • "Making clothing that makes others feel hot and awesome... that's kept me going." (80:31)
• About Labor: Worker skill, not automation, is responsible for the speed and quality of garment production—even in fast fashion (75:22–77:58).

C. Frances (Founder, Sincere Studio)

• Learning to Sew: Learned as a teen, motivated by a desire for skinny jeans not found in stores (94:30–95:45).
• Founding Sincere Studio: Created Portland’s first nonprofit sewing studio after losing a nonprofit job; relied on state programs for unemployed entrepreneurs (96:27–98:56).
• Building Community: Grants and donations are scarce; ongoing financial pressure, but the Portland community’s buy-in helps sustain them (99:13–100:28).
• Radical Accessibility: Free mending workshops, bottle return donation programs, and a lively culture of “show and tell” foster deep connections beyond transactional learning (104:09–104:24).
  • “A like is not enough for me. I need questions. I need cheerleading. I need screaming. I need hugging.” (104:09)
• Restoring Skills: Advocates for sewing’s reintegration into schools via after-school clubs, grassroots efforts, and cultural revaluation (107:11–108:04).

3. Key Debates, Insights, and Audience Interactions

A. Importance of Community & Collective Action

• Audience stories underscored how community sustains radical sewing spaces and enables resilience in the face of economic and logistical challenges (100:28–103:55).
• Amanda and others emphasize that collective gatherings—mending clubs, show-and-tell, craft circles—change lives and stand in defiance of capitalist norms:
  • “Fast fashion hates to see us gathering.” — Frances (117:38)

B. Barriers, Gatekeeping & Knowledge

• Lack of sewing infrastructure, access to supplies (harmed further by closures like JoAnn’s and Fabric Depot), and machine intimidation are recurrent barriers (41:39–43:21; 58:41–59:43).
• The knowledge gap feeds misconceptions:
  • “People really do think robots make your clothes... they think that you, like, put the fabric in the machine, you turn it on, you kick back, you smoke a cigarette, and then a T shirt pops out.” — Amanda (62:08)
• The capitalist illusion of “competition” in the creative sphere is called out as a myth that undermines mutual support (58:41).

C. Worker Justice in Fast Fashion

• The group rebuts the condescending view that fast fashion clothing is “junk” and trash. Instead, they underscore the extraordinary skill of garment workers, who are simply exploited by unjust structures:
  • "Some of the best sewists in the world make fast fashion. The issue isn't their skill, it’s that they’re not paid for their work." — Cassie (75:22)
  • "It’s never the sewing [that's the problem with fast fashion]. It's everything else about it." — Amanda (77:58)

D. Barriers to Local Manufacturing and True Systemic Change

• The group debates whether U.S. apparel manufacturing can return at scale amid a skills gap and unwillingness of industry to invest in good jobs and supply chain transparency.
  • "[To bring sewing jobs back] labor and ownership must democratize. More cooperatively owned factories would create solutions." — Cassie (120:44)
  • "We need pirates in the sky thinking." — Frances (123:34)
  • The ultimate challenge is both skill-building and transforming business structures.

E. The Emotional and Personal Experience of Sewing

• All three guests affirm the deep satisfaction, pride, and meditative joy sewing brings—contrasting it with the false fulfillment promised by quick, cheap consumption (125:06–127:41):
  • “There’s so much pride. I love it.”— Karen (125:46)
  • "Sewing is fun and, like, we deserve to do fun things." — Frances (127:22)
  • "Everything else in the world disappears... You can be in your space and do your thing." — Karen (127:25)
  • "Nothing about instant gratification can ever satisfy, the way making something yourself can." — Amanda (127:41)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "If you wear clothes, you need to listen to Clotheshorse." — Audience (description quote)
• "A like is not enough for me. I need questions. I need cheerleading. I need screaming. I need hugging." — Frances (104:09)
• "Convenience is the death of our values." — Amanda (paraphrased, 62:08–62:40)
• "[Home sewn] clothes should be able to last." — Karen (33:53)
• "Competition is a capitalist myth." — Cassie (58:41)
• "Making clothing that makes other people feel hot and awesome... that's kept me going." — Cassie (80:31)
• "We can build the future we want—one stitch at a time." — Amanda (closing remarks, 127:41)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:00–18:00 — Amanda’s intro: acknowledgments, gratitude, live show format, “Brenda” bingo
• 18:00–25:00 — The loss of sewing skills: stats, history, and economic impact
• 26:24–42:30 — Interview: Karen McCarty — Generational sewing, fitting, fashion shifts
• 42:35–54:27 — Audience Q&A: materials, patternmaking, JoAnn & Fabric Depot, tools
• 54:27–73:18 — Interview: Cassie (Altar) — Self-taught sewing, business, zero waste, educating customers, plus-size, societal impact
• 73:18–77:58 — Discussion: Zero waste, deadstock, skill of fast fashion workers, ethical challenges
• 77:58–87:40 — Audience Q&A: worker skill, sourcing non-exploitative materials, industry limits
• 94:30–100:28 — Interview: Frances (Sincere Studio) — Learning to sew, founding studio, accessibility, financial struggle, mutual aid
• 104:09–105:10 — Sincere Studio — radical mending, bottle return funding, anti-Instagram joy
• 107:11–113:35 — Bringing sewing back to schools; the importance of after-school clubs and fandom/cosplay
• 119:45–127:41 — The future of clothing manufacturing; the role of democracy, cooperatives, and skill-building
• 127:41–end — The emotional joy and fulfillment of sewing; closing gratitude and communal call to action

Audience Interaction Highlights

• “Brenda” bingo sparks laughs and lively engagement (throughout).
• Q&A covers topics from favorite tools to fandom as a pathway into making, plus honest questions about starting community studios in resource-poor areas (70:04, 115:34).
• Audience members and guests share personal journeys and victories, reinforcing themes of accessibility and mutual support.

Conclusion

Amanda and her guests create an inspiring, radical, and deeply hopeful conversation about reclaiming sewing, mending, and making as vital practices for personal empowerment and community resilience. Defying capitalist narratives of disposability and speed, they urge us to slow down, reconnect with our skills, share knowledge, and build the future we want—together, one stitch at a time.

For Further Engagement

• Support Sincere Studio: Find them in the Willamette Week Give!Guide (102:26)
• Radical Mending Workshop: Free, open community event—no experience needed (105:43)
• Altar (Cassie): Ethical, made-to-order, plus-size focused fashion (60:13+)
• Clotheshorse: Subscribe, share, and advocate to help Amanda bring more live shows to new cities.

“We have the opportunity to create the future that we want. And the fact that we're all here together right now talking about sewing, how important it is, how it's this larger issue, but it's also a deeply personal issue... that's a step forward in itself.”
— Amanda Lee McCarty (127:41)