listening to the fabric

First off, wow, thanks for all of the compliments on the jeans! Provided the metal doesn't disastrously rip out in the wash (which I'm going to be so nervous about until I actually wash them), I suspect they'll be a staple this fall.

Speaking of staples, this finished project probably won't be all that exciting to look at, but I think it does fill a little gap in my wardrobe. I took a break from DragonCon sewing to knock out this little black tank dress, so I could get it done in time for The Monthly Stitch's monochromatic theme month that's currently going on. I also wanted to make sure I got this done before the end of the summer, so I'd have it for traveling--Doug and I booked a trip to Paris! I've never been to Europe, so you can imagine my excitement. I've also been told that he's ok with me buying a little souvenir fabric, so I will happily take suggestions for places to shop there! (Especially places that are reasonably priced and have interesting prints. Despite what this dress may make you think, I'm definitely more interested in buying those!)

The pattern is McCall's 6559, and it was a quite easy sew. Two pieces, and the edges are just turned under and stitched. I'd probably do a binding on the armholes and neckline next time so it would lay a little flatter. I'd originally thought to make this a more fitted maxi-dress. Obviously, that didn't happen, because the fabric said no. It ended up being too narrow at the bottom for the full width of the skirt. So rather than slim the skirt and end up annoyed walking in it--I definitely have a long stride--I figured I'd just go for the shorter length. So I still have maybe a yard left over, but it shouldn't be terribly hard to figure out something to do with a lovely black organic cotton interlock, right?

(He just can't stand to stay out of the photos for long!) I did take it in at the armholes a little, and would normally have taken in the waist more, too. But I think I made the right choice in leaving that as is. The interlock doesn't drape as smoothly as it would probably need to for a more fitted dress. So I figured that leaving it looser would give me some styling flexibility, plus probably be a little more comfortable when August around here is doing its usual 90+ degrees with 2000% humidity thing. This was how I wore it for its first outing, to see a local exhibit of costumes from Downton Abbey. (Yes, I took detail shots, and will happily share them in a future post if people are interested.)











But I also did some playing around on Instagram after I finished it--the right is unbelted (and you can see a little how loose it is), and I tried it with a wider belt and then a skinnier belt and blousing it out a la the Sewaholic Saltspring dress. I do think it kind of needs some kind of belt to work on me, to be honest.













But I do like the versatility of it. This was from last night-- after I got home later than expected, Doug suggested we hit the Waffle House instead of me cooking dinner. Isn't he great? So I threw on a recently-acquired chambray shirt, threw the belt back over that, and was ready to go. I'm glad I did, because I get cold in air conditioning fast. 

So, even though it wasn't quite what I originally had in mind, I'm satisfied with how this turned out for such an easy thing to make, and I'm sure I'll have fun this fall with layering it up to make it more functional for that season, too.

Me-Made-May 14, part 4

Let's just jump right in, shall we?
Day 23: Since I wanted to pull out my Gabriola at least once this month, I drew from one of the potential pairings I did in my round-up back then, just with sandals and earrings that I unpaired from their matching necklace. Yes, that is the exact same Firefly shirt from those photos. But that's ok.

WA analysis: Obviously, this fits the geeky side! And I'm really liking the fitted tee with long skirt look. More Gabriolas may need to happen so I have things to wear with other geeky tees in my possession...Oh, and there's orange in the skirt, which is a palette color that hasn't happened much this month. Probably because I tend to wear that more in the fall.

Incidentally, since I didn't get a picture of the back of the shirt, it says "I aim to misbehave".

Day 24: This was the first Saturday all month that I didn't have to work! I stayed home and worked on my Tauriel costume all day. It was glorious. Aside from the cavegirl-looking necklace, my me-made was a pair of recently refashioned jeans that I'm hoping to post about in more detail soon. I paired it with a slouchy, colorful, thrifted t-shirt with a koi fish design on it.

WA analysis: I'd mentioned looser top and fitted pants as a potential silhouette, but this is the first time it's actually happened. Mostly because this is the closest thing I currently own to skinny jeans, since my one thrifted pair accidentally shrank and I had to give them away as a result. This angle isn't the best, since I look like I have one leg (the fantasy lit geek in me is screaming "dufflepud"), but I was happy with this as a weekend look.

Day 25 (ignore the caption, I got my days wrong): Of course I had to get my "Everyone Deserves Tea" Cambie in sometime this month! I wore this for church and for a good chunk of the afternoon while having lunch with my family. I went a little fancier with accessories this time, with my silver gladiator sandals and some jewelry that I'd originally made for my mom to go with a dress to wear to a cousin's wedding. She gave me the dress (which I've never actually had occasion to wear since) afterwards, along with the jewelry.

WA analysis: Can't go wrong with blue. And this dress is actually super-comfortable to wear! I've been happy with this as a warm-weather outfit so far, but think I seriously need to consider some layering pieces to bring this into the cooler months, too. I'd still love to make some kind of ivory Carmine jacket, so that could be a good pairing whenever I get the fabric and the time.

Day 26: Memorial Day here in the States! Though it's not really a holiday when you work in retail. I did take the day off of teaching, so once I got home around 3, I just threw on my purple Sadie tank with the cropped khakis that I'd already worn to the shop, and some me-made earrings.

WA analysis: Not the most exciting outfit, and I probably would have gone for more of a print top if I'd had the option in me-mades.







Day 27: A rather warm day here! So I decided to go for comfort, and paired some thrifted sandals with my convertible dress,  wrapped to give a little more coverage since I was teaching, and some simple beaded earrings. The sandals ended up not being the best move--I had to stop at the bookstore to pick up a book I'd been waiting all year for, and those sandals made it a bit hard to hurry to my car during the thunderstorm that started up just as I got there!

WA analysis: Practicality issues of footwear and monsoons aside, I did like the way these particular sandals looked with the dress. And even though the dress is solid, it feels less boring to me since the wrap ties add more texture and interest.

Day 28: Still fairly warm today, so I paired a purchased military-styled black top with my green hemp Hummingbird skirt and one of my more intricately beaded necklaces.

WA analysis: The colors are great, and again, the details in the top make it feel a little more interesting in spite of the solids. The looser top/tighter skirt isn't a silhouette I'd called out before, but it looks ok here. I did forget how short this skirt is, though, at least by my standards! I spent a good bit of the time wearing it tugging the hemline down, and am serioI usly wondering how I'll feel about it if I make some Espresso leggings to wear with it!




Day 29: The temperatures took a nose-dive--it was a full 20 degrees colder today! So it was back to digging through my 3/4 sleeved-tops to try to find something I hadn't worn yet, and pairing it with one of my more experimental necklaces and the charcoal Thurlows. (Yes, it's the charcoal, though I know they look more blue here.)

WA analysis: I don't know if it's the length of the thrifted top, which is a little more cropped than usual, or the angle of the photo, but my torso looked oddly short in this one! I've had this top for awhile and like the colors and print, but this is making me seriously wonder if I should hang on to it!



Day 30: A slightly more casual teaching day. I paired my Painter's blouse with a turquoise tank, jeans, and my water element jewelry. This was also good for taking me through dinner out and grocery shopping!

WA analysis: I normally don't go for the more faded denim--these are honestly the same jeans I wore to work. I think it worked with the lighter top, though. I felt comfortable and casual in this outfit, though I'm quite glad I had multiple colors in the jewelry!

Day 31: Last day! I kept it casual for the finale, because my day included helping Doug take our two dogs to the vet and helping my best friend pack and move some boxes into her new place. So it's my jeans, a different geeky t-shirt, and a different pair of goldish beaded earrings.

And that's a wrap! Though I want to do one more general round-up/Wardrobe Architect analysis at some point soon.

Me-Made-May, part 3

Moving along...trying to get a bit caught up before I fall too far behind and have to do a monster post. This one is monster enough.

Day 12: I had teaching and then a rehearsal, and it was actually a warmer day! So I wore my new Plantain cardigan with the same capris I had worn to the garden shop earlier that day and a tank top that I swapped the beading out on. Also a funky beaded necklace that I strung.

WA analysis:  I was pleasantly surprised by the cardigan colors--I'd originally brought khaki pants to wear, but it was too warm, and the lighter tan strips were just the right shade to somehow tie the tan and grey together. Good thing, since those tan sandals were the only shoes I'd brought that weren't my crappy work sneakers. The cardigan makes my hips look a bit wide in the photo, but I felt pretty good about the silhouette overall while it was on.


Day 13: Another victim of my method of grabbing things out of the closet that look like they'll go without having the ability to actually get dressed and look in the mirror first.  I thought the refashioned dress-to-top would go well with the peasant skirt that had been out of rotation for awhile-- I finally just cut the torn lining out and decided to wear a slip with it. Way easier than taking off and sewing on an elastic waistband just to add a lining.

WA analysis:  The colors were good, but the proportions were off, and tucking it in just made it worse. In the picture, it looks like a fairly decent silhouette, but I think it would have been better if the top was shorter or the skirt was longer.

Day 14: I dressed up for teaching, but the one lesson I had got cancelled at the last minute. Oh well. This is the charcoal Thurlows, the "Time for Tea(L)" top, and the infinity scarf I made out of my leftovers from the teal Plantain.

WA analysis: Of course I'm happy with the colors, since teal is practically my favorite! I'm trying to be braver about mixing prints, and I think it worked pretty well here since the top is a subtle one. I thought I did a pretty good job of looking polished but comfortable.






Day 15: More teaching, but with a student whose mom is friends with my mom and they don't care how casual I dress. So I just threw the "spring fever" blouse on with the jeans I'd already worn to work.

WA analysis: I'm happy with the colors, they feel really fresh, and the brown jewelry went really nicely without being too matchy-matchy, which I am definitely prone to. (It's hard to see in this picture, but there is brown in the print.) Very basic silhouette, but it works.






Day 16: See day 15 for the day's activities, but with nicer jeans. I wasn't sure how warm it would be, so I wore my Ayden shirt because I knew I could easily adjust the sleeves for the weather. There is a subtle yellow stripe in the plaid, so it was a good enough excuse to pull out these earrings.

WA analysis: With the definite reddish-peach tones in this top, it's not exactly in my palette. But I still like it! Besides, they're more like guidelines than actual rules, right?






Day 17: I had to work in the morning (a Saturday), and didn't want to bother dressing up too much after. The only thing we did, aside from me doing some sewing at home afterwards, was go to the Waffle House for dinner. So rather than a complete outfit, I wore my painted TARDIS shoes along with this super-fun T-shirt, and counted the Tofino pj pants as my garment for the day. I'm skipping the Wardrobe Architect analysis because, you know, pajamas. Though I definitely proudly let my geek colors show with everything else.






Day 18: I had to go with something fairly versatile and quick-change today, because I was going from church to lunch at my parents' to playing in a concert! So I pulled out a basic black skirt, a blouse handed down to me from my mom (it looks more coral in real life than the hot pink it looks like here), and the same jewelry I wore on an earlier day this month. I later swapped the boots for sandals and the coral blouse for a black top for the concert. Which was so fun.

WA analysis: It's a nice outfit, but I've noticed that I feel like I'm being boring whenever I wear all solids! This is the only coral thing I currently own, though, and since I have it in my palette, I wanted to pull it out and test it. I guess maybe this means I need some kind of skirt with coral in the print? Or a funky scarf or something?

 Day 19: A very me-made outfit for teaching! This was the grey Thurlows, my "Puzzle Pieces" blouse, a refashioned sweater, and jewelry that I made for myself and the other bridesmaids for my friend Julie's wedding several years ago. With all those neutrals, I wanted a pop of color!

WA analysis: That pop of color was a good idea, I think. Otherwise, I probably would have been bored again.

Side note: I noticed this time that the armholes felt a little tight on the blouse. Not enough that I'm going to get rid of it at this point, just enough to be noticeable. But I'm thinking it's a result of trying to do an FBA, because I had the same problem with that Pendrell blouse that I don't have anymore.


Day 20: Went casual for this teaching day with my Happy Camper blouse, navy denim Thurlows, and a little leaf jewelry set I made back in college.

WA analysis: The colors are good. Also, denim trousers are the best. They're basically sneaky jeans!

Side note: The jewelry is also secretly geeky, because I made this during the era of the Lord of the Rings movies. And I purposely put 9 seed beads between every green bead--one for every member of the Fellowship. Yes, I'm a dork. And proud of it.



Day 21: More teaching! So I wore my brown Thurlows (I guess this was the unintentional week of Thurlows), my Sea Flowers top, a purchased cardigan, and--if I may say so--possibly some of my best-crafted pieces of jewelry ever.

WA analysis: I was a pretty big fan of this outfit overall, both in terms of silhouette and color.








Day 22 (yesterday): In the interest of keeping it real, this outfit is called "it got warm on the day where I hadn't bothered to shave my legs because it had been oddly cold all week." I'm pretty sure that's one of the reasons maxi-skirts are so popular! Anyway, I made the earrings, and embroidered the skirt back in college. The shirt is from ModCloth.

WA analysis: Definitely a better take on the peplum top and skirt look than Day 13! I still think it would have looked better with a shorter top, but I'm pretty sure I did that outfit last year. And I'm not sorry about wearing sleeveless when it was suddenly 80 degrees and humid, vs. the 60s and rainy that it had been the day before! Oh, Mid-Atlantic weather....


And I'm going to stop there, since I haven't actually had a chance to get my picture for today yet. Hopefully I can bribe Doug to snap that picture with some homemade pizza....which I actually need to start making.

Me-Made-May, part 2

I'm in the opposite boat that I was last week, when I had nothing new to show-- I managed to finish 2 projects and my first real refashion in awhile last week! Just need to take some pics and write up the details. For now, it's time to continue with my me-made wardrobe analysis. (And lots of doggy photobombing.)

This outfit was a lot of fun to put together! Worn for teaching. I wasn't 100% sold on the boots with it, but the weather was right on the borderline of too cold for sandals, too warm for shoes. So I decided to err on the side of warmer feet. I was also excited to find a way to wear this thrifted moto jacket and my me-made mahjong bracelet, because I hadn't found a way to wear the jacket in particular yet at all.

WA analysis: The grey boots and TARDIS skirt fit right in, color-wise. The jacket is this strange hybrid color between brown, plum, and maroon, so it's close enough to my palette, I think. (Besides, it reminds me of Martha Jones and Emma Swan, and neither is a bad association. The silhouette isn't quite one I'd called out--both pieces fitted, cropped top, high-waisted skirt--but I like it. Definitely geek-casual!
Day 7-- I didn't have teaching, but I did have a rehearsal, so I wanted to be comfortable. So I wore thrifted jeans, an H&M cardigan, and my Hummingbird top, along with a me-made bracelet and the Etsy-bought jewelry I wore for my wedding. I like these beads, they remind me of shields.

WA analysis: The cardigan isn't the ideal length for the peplum top, IMO, but the knit is casual enough that it works all right. The colors are definitely in my palette! I'd call this one cozy/casual/colorful.







Day 8: Another teaching day. I was hoping to get 2 wears out of these pants, since I only wore them for a few hours and they're a pain to iron, but then one of the goldies drooled all over them when I got home...oh well. Everything was me-made except the shoes (pants, top, and earrings. And wow, I'm wearing more or less the exact same outfit in that post with the top.)

WA analysis: I felt like the more fitted top and looser pants silhouette was working better for actual wearing than they are in this picture. Maybe it's the shoes? Or that my hair is pulled back? I'd say cozy/casual, and the green/camel/black, again, are very much in my palette.

My day 9 outfit was worn for a bit of teaching and grocery shopping-- I'd brought different pants, but then decided that my student wouldn't care, and stuck with the same thrifted jeans I'd worn to work. This is one of my Anthropologie-inspired refashioned tops, and I made the necklace and earrings as well.

WA analysis: Blue is definitely good, and the fitted jeans/top silhouette is one that I'm comfortable in. I do wish that the top had been just a little longer, though.






Day 10: I had to work in the morning, and we took my in-laws out to lunch afterwards for Mother's Day. So I took the chance of wearing my me-made jeans and earrings to work, and kept my Harry Potter tee on under my work tee so I could quick-change afterwards. I was a little warm at the time, but I'm glad I did jeans and sandals, because then some rain came through and cooled things down.

WA analysis: Moar blue!! This would definitely fall under casual-geeky, and I still love the jeans and t-shirt look. Especially for weekends. I'm also thrilled that even though they're tight, the me-made jeans fit again! Especially since I haven't been able to exercise for about 3 weeks straight now. I need to get back on that. (And make more jeans. With stretch, next time.)

Today: I asked Doug which dress I should wear between this and another one, and so he picked my outfit today! It was a good pick, as the Reeses'-inspired Tiramisu was comfortable and cute enough to easily go from church to a casual lunch at my parents' to grabbing some water ice and doing some cooking when I got home. This is also one of my favorite jewelry sets that I've made!

WA analysis: Finally, a different section of my palette! I like that this dress has a touch of yellow in it, as it's not a color that I have a ton of. I like the silhouette of the dress as well, and I definitely need to revisit this pattern sometime as well. I found myself wishing that I had some different accessories to go with this, especially to bring out the yellow more. (I'm definitely going to want to play with some beads again before the month is out, I think!)

Me-made-May, part 1

As much as I wish I could be posting fabulous new clothing items, I've still been very short on sewing time. Although I'm pretty close to finishing some much-needed PJ pants! And I've made progress on the costume from Shieldmaiden March (ha!), but nothing is actually finished yet. And that deserves a separate post. So I'm going to use this one to evaluate my outfits so far in light of the Wardrobe Architect component of my self-challenge.

I also have to say, I'm actually really enjoying doing the pictures with Instagram. I know they're not the best quality photos, but it's working for me!   Also, any close-up pics of jewelry are things I've made, I just don't necessarily have specific posts for them, depending on when I've made them. On with the show, shall we?

Day 1 was a teaching day, so I tried to dress the part. 
Me-mades: the top (Simplicity 5555, pre-blog), the Olive Thurlows, and the jewelry.

WA analysis: The core words I think of for this one are "casual" and "artsy". The colors are definitely in my palette, the print on the top adds some interest to the all-neutral outfit, and the silhouette is definitely within the range of what I called out (semi-fitted top & pants).

On a side note, I keep thinking I should revisit this pattern. I love the funky sleeves.
Day 2 was another teaching day, along with going to see a local school play (they did Sound of Music, and borrowed one of my mom's German shepherds to be the SS officer's dog.)
Me mades: the "Silk Road" refashioned top, the jewelry, and a skirt passed on from a friend, which I altered to fit me better.  

WA analysis: This strikes me most as a skirt riff on the "fitted pants, looser top" silhouette, and I think it works. It was pretty hard to get a picture of the skirt that didn't make it look like pants, though! Again, with all the blues, this fits right into the palette. Style is probably more "casual, colorful".

Day 3: This was the day that I didn't think would happen--if I look like I'm really forcing that smile, it's because this was shortly after spending over 10 hours at a retail job on a Saturday! In fact, the only reason I managed this outfit at all was because I'd asked Doug to figure out dinner, and he decided to just drive us to the Waffle House. So these horribly faded jeans are the same ones I wore to work--I only bothered to change my top and threw on the "Junior Mints" jacket.
WA analysis: The layered jeans and t-shirt look is definitely one I'd wear--just not these jeans, as I prefer darker ones. (My "work" jeans are all ones that I got at the thrift store, they fit well enough, and I don't care about the style because they usually end up covered in dirt and occasionally paint.) The red t-shirt isn't really my palette, but I love the design on it--they had shirts in colors I like better at this particular concert, but I liked this design the best.  Overall, I'd call this "casual, colorful, geeky."

I really wanted to wear something Star Wars yesterday (May the Fourth!!), but realized I don't own a SW shirt at the moment. Oops. I was running from church to a rehearsal to an orchestral concert, along with killing some time at the library, so I figured I should try to go with a more versatile outfit anyway. So I wore my navy denim Thurlows, and a me-made scarf. I'm really glad I also had my Smauglock coat, because it was a lot colder than it was supposed to be!

WA analysis: Definitely a "Casual, colorful, cozy" look. The white isn't quite the palette, but it's close enough to ivory. Also, it was surprisingly hard to find something to go with this particular scarf, which surprised me, because turquoise and royal blue are definitely colors I gravitate towards! This will have to be remedied, I think.


Today's outfit was worn for teaching again. Me-mades: the Eva Equestrian jacket and the "Zeros and Ones" blouse.

WA analysis: I feel like it worked better in my head than it does in the photograph. I think it's the pants. They're just a little too wide and too short for the boots, and the silhouette strikes me as dumpy. But that could also be me being angry that it's Cinco de Mayo and I'm still having to break out corduroy jackets--it's usually a lot warmer than this by now! Aside from the silhouette fail, the colors are definitely me. I definitely need to consider whether these pants should stay, though. 

Overall, I think that days 1 and 4 were the most successful looks for me so far. How's your MMM going?

Top 5's of 2013, part 3: Hits and Misses

Time to look back at what I actually made this year! Let's start with the hits, shall we?

Top 5 Hits of 2013: 
1. My wedding dress, aka the "One Dress To Rule Them All"! Yes, I only wore it once, but this was easily the most time-consuming and expensive thing I've ever sewn, so I have to include it, right? Plus, I never showed a really good full shot of the finished product, so here's my excuse to share some of the professional pics. Don't worry, they gave me the copyright as part of the photo package! We did get a couple of outdoor shots, but the lighting on the ones inside the church actually shows off the details of the dress better, so I went with those.

At Gillian's request, I'm including a mini top 5 of things I learned or loved about making my wedding dress.

a) I loved working with the fabrics! It's not every day that I can justify using a whole bunch of different silks, so this was both a lot of fun and a very big learning experience.

b) I learned and/or developed skills in a lot of different couture techniques. I'd worked with underlining before, for instance, but this had underlining, sometimes multiple layers of underlining, boning (and not the cheap plastic kind ,either!), regular lining, the works! So I think my handstitching improved quite a bit in this process!

c) I love that I was able to design an entire dress around that sunflower lace, since the only two things I'd wanted for my future wedding for ages was having sunflowers, and making my dress! So I got to combine them! I also love that my pattern modifications to the Cambie top worked so well for really showing it off. (Now I just need to figure out what to do with the rest of it, because I have probably at least 3 yards left! Any ideas?)

d) I learned that sometimes muslins, or even multiple muslins, are a necessary evil. I'm really glad I allowed myself the time to do that. My usual attitude towards them is to try to make them as wearable as possible, or just skip them altogether, because I have so little sewing time and "ain't nobody got time for that." But I'm glad I really took the time to perfect the fit before I started--especially since I was just barely able to squeak out the skirt with the yardage I had estimated! Plus, now whenever I do get around to making a "real" Cambie, I have it all modified and ready to go. Assuming I can find those muslin pieces. Gah.

(Disclaimer: I'm still probably going to stick more with wearable muslins for most things, because I still mostly don't want to take the time for that.)

e) I love that being able to sew helped me keep the costs down significantly! All together, I think the supplies ended up costing about $500. I think the most expensive fabric I got was the dupioni for the outside, at around $16 a yard. Given that I have a hard time paying more than $12 a yard for most fabrics, that's a LOT. But at the average bridal shop around here, that would get you a pretty low-end polyester dress. Mine was silk, custom-fitted, and I didn't have to deal with sorting through all of the trains and strapless bodices to find something I was ok with!

And now, on with the rest of the hits...

2. The Thurlow trousers. I'm quite happy with the fit, they're very comfortable, and I've worn them at least once a week since I finished them. In fact, I've washed and worn them so much that the fabric is already starting to pill on the thighs a bit! Not a huge loss, since this was only ever intended to be a wearable muslin, and the fabric was free, but that means I may have to make a new brown pair sooner than I thought. (After I finish the other 4 pairs that I actually bought fabric for.)

 










3. The TARDIS Hummingbird-esque skirt. Subtle geekiness for the win! This got a lot of love on Flickr (by my standards, which is pretty much anyone commenting at all), and I'm always happy when my pattern alterations turn out as I envision them. Plus, since it's basically a denim skirt, I have a feeling this is going to be a rather versatile addition to my wardrobe!














4. My plaid flannel shirt. Even though I'm still not a huge fan of the collar, it's warm and cozy, which is exactly what I need in my life right now. I'm also still feeling a bit smug about how many sewalongs I was able to apply this to! (And now I'm wondering if it's a crime against fashion to wear flannel shirts that aren't plaid, because I want a lot more flannel in my life!)















5. The purple Sadie tank top, which has proved to be quite versatile, even though it's not the most exciting thing I sewed this year. (Aaaaahhhh, look how sunny and warm it is there! Much nicer than looking out the window--it's actually pretty unseasonably warm here today, but it's also grey and rainy, which is why I'm home to finish this post. Work is soooooo sloooooow on rainy days that the manager told me to stay home!)

Thankfully, since I didn't have a huge output this year, I don't feel like I really had a lot of misses as far as my actual finished projects went. So I'm taking a slightly more tongue-in-cheek approach to this.

Top 5 misses of 2013:

1. The one true sewing fail I had this year was my Pavlova cardigan--the one that tore apart in the washer before I even had a chance to take a photo of me wearing it. I hardly even got a chance to wear it, either. Despite my usual cold-blooded ways, I was sufficiently comfortable both indoors and out to not wear it at all while I was in Jamaica, so I only wore it on the plane there and back. If I were to be honest, it didn't turn out as cute and flattering as I'd hoped, either. I still plan to make a Pavlova top again, but maybe more of a wrap top as intended. Or with knit fabric so it drapes better.

2. My timing in finishing my Tiramisu dress. It's not the dress itself, because I do like it. And if I'd made it earlier in the fall or even the summer, I think it would have been worn a lot more. But I only wore it once, because it got too cold almost as soon as I'd finished it! I'm definitely not one of those people who can go short-sleeved in the cold. I wonder how it would look with my brown corduroy jacket--too much brown in the middle?

3. Online fabric shopping. This wasn't a 100% fail. I did manage to find the right shade of nude organza for the wedding dress. I do like the rayon challises that I picked up for a couple of dresses that I didn't get to this year. And I recently got some organic cotton knit that is super-soft and I think it will make a great basic black maxidress next year! But I did have multiple issues here, from trying to find a solid emerald green to make wedding accessories (color of the year, huh?!), to the paisley I'd intended for a Darling Ranges dress that looked quite different when it arrived, to the stretch denim I recently ordered that looked like teal, but showed up more of a robin's egg blue and a lot thinner than I'd anticipated! And, of course, I also recently had issues in buying both fabric and yarn online, because in both cases, the website said they had more in stock than they actually had by the time they got to processing my orders. Both times, I had to make substitutions for things that cost more money. Aside from higher cost, the most annoying thing in both cases was that they were things I'd spent hours searching for in order to avoid wool! Blasted allergy...anyway. Hopefully I'll have more hits on that count next year, since I can't necessarily rely on Joann's to have what I need or want.

4. Pantsapalooza. It's not that I regret doing it, though I think I really could/should have managed the sewalong aspect of it much, much better. I guess since it was my first time hosting one, it's a learning experience, right? And I did get usable trousers, but only one pair out of my intended five. So that's not a palooza, that's just pants! (Guess what I'm most likely sewing first in January...)

5. Buying vs. using. Yes, a few of these were projects I intended to get to quickly--my Darling Ranges dress that I actually bought fabric for twice (see #3 above), or the Reglisse dress that I found the perfect print for almost right away, for instance. And then the summer just disappeared. A few of these I actually did get to right away--I'm thinking specifically of the Hummingbird pattern, since I actually managed to jump in on the official sewalong and use up some stash to boot! And I did buy and use the plaid flannel in a timely fashion, which is unusual for me. But overall, I think I acquired a lot more fabrics and patterns this year than I have in recent years past, and didn't necessarily use things up in a way to balance that out. (And it's not even Christmas yet, and I can usually expect to get fabric for Christmas from my mom, too!) My husband and I are planning to really crack down on the budget come January so we can pay off some debt and save for some things we're hoping to do, so this is something I really need to get under control again, and focus more on using what I have and being creative with it. (Incidentally, I loved the idea of the Sewcial Bee that I did last year, since it forced me to jump on fabric and patterns that were already in the stash! I hear rumors that there's going to be more next year, and I hope that's true!)

I did also lose track of yardage in vs. out this year, which is something I've been trying to keep track of. If I do succeed in my plan to get the room straightened up to start the new year, I do plan to re-tally everything that has significant yardage (like a yard or more) so I can start keeping tabs on that again.

Honorable mention: My #greendecember project. I got it cut out, then got caught up in a secret sewing frenzy, so that's as far as it got. But it only gets honorable mention, because it's another Renfrew top, which means there is a chance I can still actually get it sewed up before January 1!

Of personal palettes and mini-wardrobes

I'm sure that many of you have seen Gillian's Me-Made-May posts in which she aimed to wear clothes that fit into her own personal color palette that she's created. Which led to a discussion on Twitter in which she generously created palettes for a few other bloggers, myself included, based on the colors she found a lot of in our own me-made creations. So this is what she came up with for me:

















Figures that mine is loaded with blue and green, right? Even the wall behind me in this picture fits! The coral caused some discussion--it's not that I don't have any coral in my closet, because I do, and with all of these cool, oceany colors, I need some warmth in there! But when I first clicked on it, my computer monitor was reading this as a pinkish mauvish rusty color, which did not look pretty at all.

I've also been plotting out and packing my honeymoon wardrobe, as you know. So, just for fun, I figured I'd show what I'm taking and see how closely it matches with this! Prepare for a rather picture-heavy post...(with really crappy photos. Sorry. I had to have my bed model for sake of time, and I promise I'll try to start doing better with the photos after the wedding!)

1. Given that I'm going to a tropical island, I based it all around the swimwear, of course. I did not make either of these swimsuits, I bought them at the end of last summer specifically for this purpose. (Which is why this is the skimpiest swimsuit I have ever owned in my life--I went with two of my cousins and my sis-in-law, and they wouldn't let me leave the shop without a bikini! I'm usually more of a tankini girl, tbh.) The 1-piece was purchased because we were originally talking about going to a resort with this giant waterslide park, and I didn't want any wardrobe malfunctions! We're not staying at that resort, but we are going to one where you can take an outing to swim with dolphins, so avoiding wardrobe malfunctions sounds like a good idea there, too. Anyway, I'm basing the colors for the wardrobe as a whole around this bikini top, just because I can. And I did make the cover-up and the beach bag. The latter has seen better days because I made this years ago, possibly back in late high school/college years, when I was able to get access to my grandmother's embroidery machine and painstakingly programmed that design into the computer based on the lining fabric. But aside from re-stitching a bit of the lining to the zipper area, no holes yet, so I think I can keep using it for at least one more adventure.

2. The convertible dress, which looks way better on me than on my bed, because it's perfect for the airport--and easy to adjust for air conditioning vs. outside heat and humidity. 















 3. I tried to go a little mix-and-matchy here. So I have my reconstructed jeans skirt, a purchased turquoise tank top, the "Make It Work" Sadie tank, and a long white skirt that I purchased at the beach one time (because if you can't wear a skirt with real seashells sewn to it on a tropical island, where can you?) I also threw in the green tank that I re-embellished a couple of years ago, and some jeans cutoffs. (Nothing exciting, just some thrifted jeans I've been wearing to work that are obnoxiously slightly too short for my legs. I haven't even hemmed them yet, so I'll probably just roll them to whatever length I want.) Depending on what I choose to wear with what and how often, I potentially have 6 outfits here!


4. A thrifted strapless red dress, specifically at my fiance's request. I wore this one back around Christmas with a sweater over top, and he really liked it! And some of the restaurants within the resort area that we have access to are listed as "resort evening" dress codes, so I figure this can be my fancy dinner dress. (I checked, the resort has ironing boards in the room, so I can just give this a quick press and be good to go.)











5. A second-hand maxi dress that I added straps to somewhere around 2 summers ago, because this is another comfortable dress for summer heat. I thought I'd blogged this one somewhere, but I guess not...I just wasn't comfortable with the ability of shirred fabric to stay where it was supposed to without help! But this can be another fancier resort dress, I think.














6. In case I want to cover up some, either from sun or because I will be the one person who can get cold on a tropical island, some thrifted cropped jeans and the latest addition to my me-made wardrobe, the Pavlova cardigan. (Which is still going to get its own dedicated post later.)













7. Accessories--the turquoise shoes are for the beach because my feet hate flip flops and get nasty blisters between my toes whenever I try to wear them, the silver sandals for a dressier look and the flat black ones for everyday. Also, a big, dorky, floppy sunhat, because my heritage is "all the European people who sunburn the easiest", and I have rosacea to boot, so my face needs this! I did try to buy the least dorky one I could, but I just don't seem to have the gift of being able to wear hats and still look cool. Which is sad. There will most likely be some earrings in here somewhere too, but I haven't gotten that far yet.


So--no teal this time, and I have red instead of coral, but I seem to have hit pretty close to Gillian's palette! It'll be interesting to see how close I stick with this as I use up my stash and acquire new fabrics. And I'm strongly tempted to come up with my own new palette for my cold-weather wardrobe, since that's when I get the most bored with my closet and crave more color!

So how did I do with my island getaway wardrobe? And one week to go, eeeee! I guess that means this is probably my last post until after the wedding. So congrats to all of you who successfully made it through another Me-Made-May, happy sewing/crafting, and I'll see you on the other side. :)