Interview with Kristina Clemens and a Modest Clothing Resource for You!

I'm excited to introduce a new resource for beautiful, modest clothing to you! I heard Kristina Clemens speak at a retreat last year, and she has some great things to say about God-honoring dress for women. 

Kristina may do a guest post for us soon, but for now I wanted to share an interview about her new book. This book will appeal to all who love modest clothing, but especially to those that enjoy doing the work to create or remake your own beautiful clothes.

1. What was the inspiration for the Chic Girl's Guide?

When writing the The Chic Girl's Guide my focus was to inspire readers on how to adjust hemlines, play with sleeve additions and add height to necklines in novel ways. The projects in the book were designed to help readers create garments that have a flattering fit, feminine detailing, and are utterly unique—designer duds at Target prices, as I like to say. I wanted the book projects to prove you can beautify and make store-bought clothes more modest without looking gimmicky.

2. How is your book different from other craft books?

When I pitched the idea to a publisher I was really adamant that the tone of the book be end-product driven, with final pictures to be completely styled in a way that inspires readers to see that wearable Do-It-Yourself style is the goal and the tutorial steps are simply how you get there. 

3. Which comes first, faith or fashion?

For me, faith determines my fashion. I'm always approaching clothing--DIY as well as personal style—from the framework of my faith. If I put fashion first it's very easy to think "Well, God requires this, but culture only offers this, so I can't be held responsible for how I clothe myself within the framework of my faith". I feel I'm responsible to dress by a standard that is higher than what is culturally or socially acceptable, so if a garment can't be made to work within the framework of how I want to present myself in public, I don't even consider it.

4. What are 3 valuable lessons you've learned on the journey from personal blogging to book author?

--Don't dilute your image and point of view.

--Constantly re-evaluate your approach and adjust to make it more excellent.

--Have fun and create!

5. What’s one habit that has changed your craft for the better?

Blogging. Being responsible to my readers to present tutorials in an attractive and understandable way has been both challenging and rewarding. It forces me to deconstruct clothing and analyze how to reconstruct a garment in a step-by-step process that is clear to novice sewers and inspiring to advanced stitchers.

What made you want to write a DIY style book?

While the process of writing a book is hard and frustrating (especially when you want to do it well), the idea of putting your work into the public arena is a super exciting opportunity. Writing a DIY style book seems a great fit since it's a natural extension of my DIY sewing blog, Kristina J.

The Chic Girl's Guide to a One-of-a-Kind Wardrobe is currently available for a discounted pre-order price on Amazon.