Forward Planning

How far ahead do you plan your sewing projects?

I have to admit, I have a tenancy to plan my sewing for about an hour before I start tracing the pattern and sometimes it really shows. I use the wrong fabric for the pattern, I don't think enough about how the finished garment will look or even if I'd ever be tempted to wear it.

My friends, that has seriously got to change.

I'm changing the way I plan and sew for the seasons. I'm going to be following the cycle set by the London fashion week, partly to get my inspired for planning and partly because it's a great reminder.

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I'll be planning autumn and winter clothes for March to August and planning my pretty summer dresses from September to February, but at the same time sewing cold weather clothes starting in June and hot weather clothes starting in December.

I'm doing this so I have three months for my ideas to solidify before I start sewing them and even the last projects for the season will get some wear that year, despite my horrendously slow sewing.

I'd love to hear what you guys think. Will I get fed up with sewing clothes that I have to wait to wear? Would you try this?

Hawthorn Sewalong

I am officially jumping on the bandwagon. It's so fun and happy up here, though, so can you blame me?

I've never taken part in a sew along before so I'm looking forward to talking to people about the pattern I'm using RIGHT NOW and taking part in an event.

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This dress looks like it'll work with my body and sewing skills but the sample ones that the amazing women at Collette Patterns aren't quite my thing. I'll need to do mine a bit different if I'm ever going to wear it and I have some ideas.

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In my humongous stash I've got a basic red poly-cotton that would look awesome as a shirt dress but that would still be a bit plain. How about some stamps? I've got a big square stamp chockablock with cogs that I've been just dying to use. I liked the idea but wouldn't it look a bit homemade (and not in the good way)?

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The answer! Foil that you apply to fabric by putting down glue, letting it dry and then pressing the sheet onto it. It's beautiful and washable, perfect for the lazy launderer, and I can't wait to try it out. The cogs will all be in gold but I'm definitely going to use some of the other ones for different projects.

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Have any of you ever tried putting foils on fabric? More importantly, did it work?

Embellishments

I've been thinking a lot about ways to personalize the clothes I make lately. I love what I've made but it's not the amazingly fantastical wardrobe that I dream of.

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I've been a little addicted to pinterest lately and I've been making an online inspiration board so that I can put some actual planning into my next project instead of doing the first thing that springs to mind.

It's actually helping me learn a lot about my tastes that I didn't know before and showing me things I didn't consider before (and some I still won't).

One of the first dresses I fell in love with was this one to the left. It's 125 years old and it was made for Ellen Terry, a famous Elizabethan actress, to wear when she played Lady Macbeth. It's covered in hundreds of jewel beetle shells, many of which had to be sewn back on or even fixed when it was restored.

I'd love to try using them on one of my own creations and I even have a plan in my mind. I'm going to make an old Butterick 5967 in green satin with the beetle wings as trim along the neck and edges.

It seems like not many home sewers try out beetle wings (yeah, I'm not surprised either) but the nice woman over at Needle n' Thread did a project with them and helpfully describes how to prepare and work with them. Now I just have to read the rest of her blog. :)

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If I do make this dress I'll definitely be make this embroidered beetle as a hair clip. It was designed by Michele Carragh for a costume for Game of Thrones using references from 'The Stumpwork, Goldwork and Surface Embroidery Beetle Collection' by Jane Nicholas.

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How fancy do you guys let your projects get?

Technical Problems

I'm seeing a new computer in my future when I've saved up enough cash. It blue screened today and trying to connect anything to it via the USB ports is a nightmare. There aren't as many pictures in this post as I'd like because they got eaten when my laptop couldn't decide whether to connect to my card reader or not.

One out of four isn't bad, I guess.

I have two days of work to talk about but none of it's that interesting. I attached the second sleeve to my blue top and did a little bit of hemming but the second day was mostly taken up by shopping and traveling. I had to check out a location for work and I'm going to be away from home for a few nights so I picked up two of those cross-stitch packs you give to little kids to take with me. What can I say? They were half price.

I got what I paid for. They've got the pattern printed on the fabric like a paint by numbers but it doesn't quite correspond to the wonky grain of the fabric and isn't to the same scale as the gridded picture on the front of the packet. Oh, well. It'll keep me amused and get me back into embroidery.

I did pick up something much more rewarding though. Our local bookshops have responded to the popularity of The Great British Sewing Bee by upping their stock and I picked up this wonderful book. I may not be selling things at the moment but I want to one day.

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So Close

After I sewed the left sleeve of my top in yesterday I could finally get a good sense of how the top will look when I've finished. The sleeve heads are quite poofy and include a lot of gathering, which was a nightmare, but I'm starting to like that. Maybe it's just because of the amount of time I've invested, but I only meant it as a toile and a Me-Made-May helper anyway so I'm happy.

Today I'm sewing the other sleeve on and I'm staying away from home and my sewing machine for work so a quick hemming project will be really useful.

Burlesque

I finished sewing my back facing onto my top yesterday but that's boring. I want to talk about what I did in the evening.

I spent Saturday evening watching 'An Evening of Burlesque' with my boyfriend and we had so much fun I came home afterwards and browsed the theaters website to plan another outing.

I'm pretty sure I've talked about my love of burlesque before but it bares repeating. I just love the whole aesthetic, the femininity and even the craft of it. It's even something I could seriously see myself having a go at.

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Plus, the costumes drive me crazy. If I lived in a world where I could wear whatever I wanted and a country where is was warmer I'd be decked out in feathers every day.

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If nothing else you have to appreciate the body confidence that it takes to stand up in front of a (hopefully) crowded theater with only pasties and a pair of knickers protecting your modesty.

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Maybe when I get more practice with beading and sequins I'll douse myself in glitter for my own entertainment but for now it will have to stay a fabulous dream. At least till after I've finished my gingham dress, that is.

A Little Progress And Some Excitement

Definitely didn't do much work yesterday. Had a bit of drama with my boyfriend and only got time to sew half the back facing but my relationship is okay and that's what counts.

I'm not going to get any time tonight either because I'm going to a burlesque performance at the local theater. I'll tell you how it goes!