The Year That Felt Too Short and 2018 Plans

Its amazing how times flies by.  2018 is only a few days away.  With work and life, blogging just got away from me. Instagram and Facebook made it extremely easy to forget about actual blogging. In 2018 one of my goals is to make more time to blog. Even though it feels like I didn't make anything this year, I actually made quite a lot of things.

Over the past year I made about 5 crafty items and about 25 clothing items. Most were for me, but there were some that were made to give away.
Here's some of those makes.

This year I also participated in the #2017MakeNine, which is nine garments wanted to make over the year.  Of those nine patterns that I selected to make, I only was able to accomplish one.  I'm not giving up though, so I'm making a make nine plan for 2018, so that I can try again.  This time around, I chose items that would flow with my plans to participate in the 2018 RTW fast held by Sarah from Goodbye Valentino, as well as with my capsule wardrobe for work wear and casual wear that I began last year.

2018 Make Nine

Clockwise from top left:
Sewaholic Renfrew, Closet Case Files Sasha Trousers, True Bias Ogden Cami,
M6803, Workroom Social Drape 1001, Closet Case Files Ginger Jeans,
Closet Case Files Morgan Jeans, Closet Case Files Kalle Shirtdress, True Bias Hudson Pants

All of my 2018 Make Nine plans coincide with the continuation of making a new wardrobe that is my style and fits my body. I previously spoke about my wardrobe plans and the 2017 make nine in this post. So overall, while I didn't keep to my original plans for the year, I am happy with what I've made.


Here's to next year, and whatever crafty goodness that it brings.

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2017: New Year, New Sewing Plans

Now that 2016 is over, it's now time to figure out my sewing journey for 2017.  The first few weeks of this month were set aside to think about the direction that I want my wardrobe to go, along with what empty spots need to be filled.  Last month I received the Colette Sewing Planner in a subscription box that I received. I haven't begun to fill in my plans, but I will say that filling out the first few pages gave me a start of what I need.  There also is a hashtag #2017MakeNine where different sewists have chosen nine patterns that they would like to make over the course of the year.  I chose the patterns below for two reasons: I already have the necessary items to make the garment, and they fit the needs of my non-work wardrobe. Some of these items will probably cross over to my work wardrobe though. Even though these nine are what I really want to make this year, there are some others that may get made before any of the ones on my list.  

(L to R, Top to Bottom) Closet Case Files Kelly Anorak, Closet Case Files Morgan Jeans, M6886, Tilly and the Buttons Orla Top, Grainline Studios Archer Shirt, S1467 (Jacket); M6803, Liesl & Co Gallery Tunic, Grainline Studios Morris Blazer

As you may know, I've purged most of the items in my closet.  Most of the items that I chose reflect my current style and will replace what I have purged.  Style wise, I love to keep things as simple as can be.  I love tunics, and sweaters and blazers.  Some of the main items that I want to make are office friendly tops, because most of what's left is either too small or no longer in a wearable condition. The office tops are also able to be worn when I'm not at work. 

I also need pants, for work and for play.  The first set of work pants I've made were knit pants, some with elastic bands, some with just a yoga style band.  Eventually I want to make some tailored dress pants, which I can wear on an interview or to church or another event.  

Since I don't wear skirts very often, I have included one dress, possibly a LBD for those necessary occasions because everyone needs a black dress. 

That's about it for the 2017. I hope you will follow along with me on this journey.

The Anatomy of a Fail

Lets face it, we all have garments that are sew epic fails.  You know, those garments that are full of mistakes or don't fit.  Well I definitely have a few. Luckily the only person who knows its a fail is me. All of the most recent fails are due to fit.  I love the style, but something just didn't work out.  So instead of tossing it, what I've done was finish it to a point where it's wearable for me to wear to work. So far there's 3 garments, a top, a pair of pants and a dress.

The dress: M6885

This dress was originally made for a wedding I was going to, but everything that could go wrong did go wrong. It didn't fit, I spilled fray check on the placket and messed up the buttonholes. So for the wearable finish, I serged the hem and let it hang. I'm keeping it because the fabric is pretty.  I will eventually remake this one (eventually may be years away). I previously blogged about this dress here.

The top: Pamela's Patterns Perfect T Shirt
 I needed more work shirts, and I had purchased this top pattern at Camp Workroom Social. This time, I hemmed following the directions and used fusible web in the sleeves and the result was a bit too stiff for me.  Also, I definitely needed some more room in the bust area because the shirt kept riding up.  I think for the next version, I will try the darted front that came with the pattern.  I love this shirt pattern.  for my body type, It made it look like I had a nice shape, and camouflaged my tummy.

The Pants: Style Arc Barb Pant
The pants were a fail because they were too many alterations needed to make them fit.. I also cut them at what I now know was a size too big and too wide in the leg.  Luckily for me that I own a serger and it took two swipes to get them to a comfortable size.  I used a knit elastic and serged it to the super low waistline.  After wearing it once, I had to take it in a little bit because the pants kept falling off as I moved.  I definitely know that I won't be making these pants again, as I have many pants patterns to make.

These three garments showed me that there was nothing wrong with a fail, and that I can only get better at garment making. I can't wait until the next makes.