Fall Wardrobe Planning (cont.)

Hello everyone! I hope you had a great weekend.

I am finished with my Fall 2014 Wardrobe planning!!!

Yep, I finished all my storyboards, and look forward to getting started on August 7th.  My only disappointment is that I will miss a lot of the great patterns that are released for Fall/Winter, because I am determined to sew from my plan.  Unless I get way ahead of myself (and complete a large percentage of my wardrobe), I don't imagine I will have much room to sew other things.

So here are the rest of my boards:

I am not even sure if I own a button down shirt.  Or, if I do (I'm sure I have one somewhere), I know it is OLD.  It has been at least two years since I have done buttonholes on my sewing machine, so this category will be an interesting one to undertake.

I love tunics!  I hope these will be fun to make (and wear).

If you have been following along on my blog, you know that I already started M5894, the bootcut jean.  I have been working out fit issues so I can complete my first pair of jeans, and this will be my first project to finish come August.

I am excited about these three dresses!  I love the design of each and every one of them.  A good dress has so many possibilities!!

I don't plan on sewing a coat this year, however, I do want to sew some blazers.  S2446 will be my main go-to, so I am looking forward to the fact that it is in the Amazing Fit line.  A1738 will be a more casual option.  If this one works out well, I may sew more than one!

Finally, I couldn't possibly get through the year without sewing the ever-so-popular M6844, right? I threw in NL6104 because it is the only blouse I could find that I liked, and Burda 6990 just looks like a solid sweater pattern for Fall/Winter.

That's everything!

I already have a few fabrics in my stash that will work with my theme, yet a lot of it will need to be purchased.

Hopefully, I can catch some great online sales in the upcoming weeks.

Stay sew-filled!

Fall Wardrobe Planning

Hello everyone!

I know that there are a lot of you who are still in "summer mode," and are not even THINKING about fall wardrobe planning.  Usually, I would be right there with you.  I am the last one to commit to season changes because I enjoy living my days out one at a time.  But...I have been bitten by the fall wardrobe planning bug!  I have been infected with thoughts of color palettes, pattern choices, and wardrobe necessities.  In fact, in my mind, I am going to create the most fabulous fall wardrobe ever!

Actually, here in Georgia, we will probably have warm weather until October, and I have enough summer items to get me through.  I may add an item here or there in the time being, but I am shifting my focus to using the months of August, September, and early October to start sewing for Fall.

This brings me back to my original plan when I joined the RTW fast.  I wanted to sew items from each of these categories:

• Button Down Shirts
• Stylish Tees
• Tunics
• Blouses
• Blazers
• Little Black Dress
• Daydress
• Sweaters
• Bootcut Jeans
• Skinny Jeans
• Wrap Shirt
• Cardigan

If I take a hard look at my progress, I am more than halfway through the year, and I have really only sewn for one category--stylish tees.  It's gonna take some focus, and hard work, but I believe that there is still enough time left in the year for my to recover well.

So for my Fall Wardrobe planning, I will be incorporating the categories I have neglected.  I have already chosen a basic color scheme:

I am wanting to go for a more classic theme (hence the black, white, and cream).  I added the red and purple for a pop of color.  My main goal is to create timeless pieces that will form a good foundation for days to come.  For jeans, I will be going with a dark wash.  This obviously doesn't fit into my color scheme, but it is a great neutral.

I will be creating a storyboard for each of these categories so I can stay on track come August. Here are my choices for Stylish Tees (my most sewn category):

I have already sewn Burda 6910 and Vogue 8536.  With Burda 6910, I had issues with the neckline, but I really think I could fix it, and get it to fit well if I worked with it.  So I will be re-visiting this one, hopefully with a victory in the end.  Vogue 8536 is a favorite of mine, and I would really like to try the crossover version with long sleeves.  The rest will all be new to me.  I am most nervous about Simplicity 1463 because it has that batwing-like style for the top.  It will either look great, or horrible, but I am really drawn to the style, so I want to give it a try.

How many tops does one really need?

I'm not sure how to answer that question.  I guess I will see as I move along.  I know I should at the very least start out with seven.

I'm working on putting the rest of my storyboards together, and will show you those in the next couple of days.  I realize that I love planning!  I know it's only the first part, and you do have to put the plan in action, but I love declaring vision.

Now that I have chosen my Fall colors, I will be on the lookout for fabric choices that fit into the color scheme.  Hmmm...I might unofficially add navy into the mix.

Stay sew-filled!

Library book raid and Mini-update

Hello everyone!

We are mostly through July, and I wish I could say I was mostly through sewing my first pair of jeans.  However, my kids are still on vacation for the summer, and I have been hard pressed to make the time to sew.  Idealistically, I wanted to use the couple of hours before bedtime to sew, but I have been SO TIRED, from running around with them all day.

So I am resigned to the fact that my summers will just be less productive.  As soon as school starts for them in August, I will really dive into getting things in gear.  In fact, I am using the time I have now to make plans.

I did put together a muslin of M5894.  I didn't have any "muslin" fabrc left at home (except for a half yard) so I decided to use a quilting cotton I had in my stash.

My initial impression of the fit is good, mostly good.  My main area of concern is my hips and buttocks.  That is where things get tight, and I have some wrinkling.  I chose a bootcut shape for the jeans, but am still considering tapering the legs a wee bit more in order to mimic a pair of jeans I have.

The fabric I chose is a darker wash denim with a tiny amount of stretch in it (I'll research how much and let you know in a future post).  I love the fabric, and cannot wait to see how it distresses. I will do a mock up square to make sure it looks good.  So far the fabric is washed and prepped, I am just knocking out fit issues with my muslin before attaching the waistband.

I would love to just copy my favorite pair of jeans, but, to complicate things some, I have lost a little weight, and a few inches.  So my waist is a little smaller, and want to get my waistband a bit snugger than the one on the jeans I wear often.

I say all of this to say that I am in no rush to get these done, for now.  I hope you will hang in there with me!  If I get a few days here or there to sew, I will, but I won't be pushing for anything to get moving until August 7th.

In other news....

I went to the library and checked out some more sewing books!  I love checking with my library from time to time, and seeing what new titles they have acquired.  This time I got some ones that were "new to me," and a few I had checked out before:

This is an oldie, but goodie!  I like to refer to it as I am sewing, especially if I need to look something up or need some help in the sewing process.  It is more textbook style, with not as many pictures, though.

This is new to me.  Some of the designs are really cute, and some of the designs are a bit out there for me.

This book is just great!!  The first time I checked it out I didn't pay too much attention to it, but this time I really took an in-depth look at it.  It has everything you need to know about choosing a fabric, working with that fabric, and sewing the fabric.  In essence, it will get you headed in the right direction, by making sure you start off on the right foot.

Here is another "new to me" book that I was a little disappointed with. There are a lot of cute projects in here, but nothing that appealed to me.

Now this one right here!! Yes!!  I really, really like it!!  It is vintage dressing, done with style.  I like that it explains different pieces (blouse, utility jacket, playsuit) and the period it is from.  It even includes the history of the garment, and some help on what to pair it with.  I haven't checked out the disc in the back of the book yet (yes, there is one), but I like everything about it so far.

Last, but certainly not least, THIS book!!  I forgot about this book.  I checked it out a year or two ago, and was inspired.  But so much of the technique was over my head at that time that I mostly "oohed" and "aahed" at it.  This year I plan to explore the area of patternmaking!  I mean, why not?  And a lot of the designs in this book are really cute--I would wear them in a minute!

That's all, for now.  I may post some of my wardrobe planning, or various other things, up until August 7th, depending on what I come up with.

Stay sew-filled!

It's time!!

Hello everyone!!

I'm sorry for leavin' you hangin' the last couple of weeks.  I got busy at the end of June celebrating my 9 year anniversary, then my birthday.

For my birthday, my mom and nieces surprised me for a visit, and we decided to keep my nieces for the rest of the week after my mom drove back home.  So I have been bouncing around with four kids everyday instead of two (ages 4, 5, 7, and 12), and I must say that I respect all those moms and dads out there who are managing BIG families.  Just getting everyone up in the morning and to a certain location on time takes some extra planning and organizing.  Also, establishing order and organization has become a major focus for having all of these little bodies to keep up with.  It can be a bit exhausting, but I am loving every minute of it!!

However, my sewing is not loving it!  I have barely been in my sewing room.  Granted, I did have another wadder since my last post.  I planned on sewing a simple tank top, but it came out too boxy and full.  I now have two unfinished projects that I need to address...

But, moving on...

I still have a Craftsy class that I purchased and have put off for the longest time--until now.

I am venturing into the land of pants!!!!!

In fact, I have a story to go along with this.  In a conversation with my best friend, she noted, "How come you wear jeans all throughout the summer?  Don't you get hot?"  To which I replied "What?!? I don't wear jeans...well, I guess I do wear jeans all throughout summer!"  I never noticed.  But, really.  It has been a LONG time since I bought shorts.  I used to wear a lot of capri pants, but they don't fit me anymore.  So instead of buying anything new, I just wore jeans.  

I am hoping to successfully sew my first pair of jeans with this course, but beyond that, I am also hoping to have a blueprint for sewing other pairs of pants and even shorts!!  This is only the beginning!  I have already started watching some of the intro and I like Angela Wolf's teaching style.  She claims that you only need one really good jeans pattern.  ONE!  She shows you a lot of variations you can make in order to achieve the kind of jean style you want.  

So, I decided my pattern will be this one:

Mccall's 5894
The Perfect Jean

I will start here for the benefit of the class, but I would love to branch out into these patterns once I am done:

I am not saying I won't be sewing anything else this month, but I am gonna hone my focus on pants.  I am a little nervous about fitting my shape, but I hope I will get some great tips from the resources I have, as well as the Craftsy class.

I am excited!!!!!!!

I'm going to finally sew pants!!!!!!

I'll keep you posted as I progress.

Stay sew-filled!