The sewing trend has exploded on TikTok

The #SewingTiKTok trend has exploded on TikTok: under the hashtag that counts more than 1 billion 100 thousand videos, tailors, stylists and enthusiasts share tips and hacks from the sewing world documenting the design and creation processes of a garment, exchanging inputs and inspirations or commenting on this or that detail within the community. A niche of enthusiasts that was enriched during the pandemic already with self-made knitwear and the DIY trend, giving value to the manual skills and personal creativity of each user.

Scrolling through the videos under the hashtag you come across all kinds of designs and aesthetics, be it streetwear or formal wear. Among the users' favorite creators according to Vogue, @johnazzi, Australian designer who drapes elegant evening dresses inspired by Cruella de Mon and Kendall Jenner, the Italian @luciaandreoli,  @kianabonollo who with a few meters of fabric was able to reproduce high fashion dresses worn by stars on the red carpet such as that of Bella Hadid at the Met Gala 2021, @juyliar who based her success on the tutorials of how to make low-cut Y2K style tops and @shawty.arabia, whose beaded and lace bridgerton-inspired corset now has nearly 1 million of views. Tutorials on how to adapt vintage or second-hand clothes are also popular, a direct consequence of the revival of vintage and the search for a more sustainable idea of ​​clothing, such as those of @utopia.us, designed by retired accountant Peder Cho, in whose vintage t-shirts are stitched into brand new creations. There are also those who have transformed daily objects into clothing, such as @ariellesidney_, who has created everyday dresses with Target and Ikea bags or like @cherienesss who create entire new-grunge outfits by cutting tights.

The popularity of sewing videos comes from a wider necessity, the need for realness of Gen Z that prefers to know the background of making a garment to glossy editorial or high fashion shows, from curiosity to how the garment is made and the work behind its creation. Sewing videos are also a meritocratic way for designers from all over the world to make their clothes known (and bought), making their way in a complex and closed sector like that of fashion with viral videos, with a community-driven approach in where the designers "come from the bottom" and are far from the glamor of the big brands, but at the same time they are also far from their artificial air. There is no need for the tiktokers in question to have a degree in some prestigious design school, they act in a digital ecosystem in which the way of communicating is completely new and the users are those who reward them with visibility if they find them talented. Who knows that the popularity of the trend will lead brands to associate themselves with viral couturiers and that TikTok will tomorrow become a recruiting platform like Linkedin or Fashion Jobs.