My Sewing Story/Aspirations for 2017

Happy New Year!

Welcome to 2017 everyone! I hope it finds you in good health, and full of peace, hope, love, and JOY!

For 2017 I have decided to aim at posting more on my blog (whether I have sewn items or not).  So, I wanted to start the year off with my very own sewing story. This post is about how I got started, and I will finish by telling you some of my goals for the year.

Well, let me start by saying that those of you who had a mom, aunt, grandma, or other mentor to teach you how to sew are so blessed! For me, that did not exist. NO ONE in my family sewed. Not a single one. Yet, somehow when I was a little girl in middle school, I told my best friend that I one day wanted to have a family and sew all of my children's clothes. Yikes! Where did that come from?

In 2006, after being married for a year, my dream came true. I gave birth to my son, took my very first sewing class, and made him a baby blanket:

Those were the days I remember that sewing was not easy for me, lol! I bought "easy" patterns, but I couldn't figure out why they weren't as "easy" as they described. I understood basic sewing foundation, like sewing right sides together, and lining up seamlines, but it seemed as though the rest was a foreign language to me.

I did a few small projects here and there, but didn't really begin to sew again until I got pregnant with my daughter in 2008.  She was born in 2009, and I have been sewing off and on ever since!  Somewhere in there I started this blog, and I have been able to use my sewing to treat myself, my family, friends, and many others!!

Sweet dress I made for my friend's daughter

But you know what the BEST thing is??!?!?  Lean in close and I will tell you...the BEST part is my sewing is still growing--still developing and maturing as I seek to learn new things and apply them in my life!

That brings me to my aspirations for 2017.  I would love to share them with you for accountability, AND I will be putting them on a tab on this blog site for reference.  They are as follows:

SEWING ASPIRATIONS FOR 2017

• Use what I have! I never fully avail myself to the sewing resources I already own: Burda, Ottobre, My Image, and Sew Now magazines, Sewing books with patterns inside, and patterns from the Big 4 (WHEW, that's a lot!)
• Sew something for my kids every couple of months. They love it, and so do I!
• Sew for my husband! He has expressed his desire for ties, and maybe a vest or shirt.  I avoid his requests at times because he is picky!! But, certainly starting small wouldn't be bad.
• Sew for life events. This year has a few special times that I would like to create something for. My brother is getting married in October. I will definitely need a nice formal dress for then. Also, I used to sew my daughter an Easter dress. That would be nice to do again. I also would love to sew some items for our holiday photo in December, and possibly my birthday in June.
• Finish at least four of my Craftsy classes! Again, I have a lot of great resources, including some Craftsy classes I have piled up from sales over last year. It is time to get movin'!
• Copy RTW styles I love! I don't know how many times I have seen a style in the store that I knew I could recreate at home, with a better fit.  
• Enter a Patternreview contest. I participated in one, and submitted a cute top and legging set I sewed for my niece, but I haven't entered one since. It would be fun, and there are lots of different themes.
• Draft a pair of pants. If you remember, I have a Craftsy class for that, and am really interested in learning basic drafting techniques for sewing.

There are also some garments I would like to create this year:

1. Jackets
2. Blazers
3. Coat
4. Button down shirt
5. Dresses
6. Jeans
7. Dress pants
8. Cargo pants
9. Bermuda Shorts

There you have it! I have been mulling over this plan for the last couple of months, and am happy with what I came up with. I know my real issue is getting the time to sew, and I have recruited help from my hubby. He has agreed to watch our "littlest bit" for a few hours on some days so I can accomplish some things.

Another promising development is that I found a sewing buddy! She is a neighbor of mine, and we will be putting some days on the calendar to get together and sew.

If you have never sewn, but are interested in getting started, I hope I have inspired you to realize that you can do it! Set a goal, and follow through! There are local sewing classes, community groups, Craftsy classes, Youtube tutorials, and even sew-alongs you can join.  Your journey doesn't have to be perfect, it only has to be your own.

Stay sew-filled!