Wardrobe Architect, week 4: Silhouettes

This week's discussion was all about figuring out proportions and silhouettes that I want to bring into my wardrobe, based on the shapes that I figured out in week 3. Sarai suggested using Polyvore to play around, so I did. I'm honestly not too much of a retail shopper anymore--the closest I usually get is the thrift store--so my goal was more to try to put together different outfit ideas based on things I already have or would be likely to bring into my closet. Of course, even though the challenge was more based on shapes, I couldn't ignore prints or colors! So I thought I'd share what I came up with.
What I learned overall:

• I will completely ignore a silhouette if I don't like the print or color. I probably need to work on embracing the solids, don't I?
• I'm somewhat limited in my shoes--since I know I can't find a lot to fit my extra-wide feet, I tried to stick with ideas that would use similar shoes to what I already have.
• No wonder I'm having trouble with winter clothes--most of the sweaters I have don't fit the silhouettes I'm drawn to.

And here's my various collections! The first two were actually two sets I made on Polyvore years ago, but they fit the project nicely, so with a few tweaks, I used them.

From "My Core Style" Pinterest board

 I think these are probably pretty self-explanatory with the silhouettes-- I made this one during one of my other "figure out my style" phases to show how I'd typically dress for when I'm teaching my flute lessons.



Same with this one--more of a casual weekend look.

And now, on to the ones I made specifically for this project! For these, I tried to think of ways I could vary a particular outfit, either to make it appropriate for another season or just to mix it up. I did two for summer, two for winter, and two that could go either way, depending on what I wear with it. So let's start with summer, shall we?

Even though this one is made with a dress, I think the same principle could apply for separates--a fitted top with an A-line skirt, for instance. Some kind of lightweight layer for when the AC freezes me out, sandals, and chunky jewelry. The fall variation would swap out the cardigan for a jacket. And my brown boots aren't exactly like that, but close enough. (Also, this outfit is reminding me that I need to replace my falling-apart tan sandals this year. Ugh. I hate shoe shopping.)


For my second summer look, I decided to go maxi! The flats would most likely be sandals in the summer. But I thought this would be a potentially good look for how to wear my t-shirts, too. (Incidentally, it's hard to find the type of graphic tees that I actually wear on Polyvore, but I did find one, thanks to Etsy. It says, "I never received my acceptance letter to Hogwarts. So I have left the Shire to become a Jedi.")  Of course, for this to actually work, I probably need a maxi-skirt or two that's actually solid...

I noticed belatedly that I didn't have any shorts outfits on here. But the truth is, even though I have to own them for at least my retail job, I'm actually a lot more comfortable wearing skirts and dresses in the summer. Probably because they're generally longer. I probably should come up with some kind of shorts silhouette I can live with, though, because skirts aren't always a practical option in my world.


For my first winter look, I decided to go with more of what I'd want to wear to work--in this case, skinny pants with boots, a longer top, and a sweater. This is how I've been wearing that short sweater that I dyed back in the fall, and I surprisingly like the look. So I'll have to attempt making skinny pants at some point so I can play with this sort of thing more.

My second cold-weather look is much more fall-ish, due to the color scheme of what I found. In the real world, I think I'd be more likely to wear the straight skirt with a looser sweater and the A-line skirt with a more fitted sweater. Also, I wouldn't wear that particular print. It was just what happened to go. Also also, I need more tights. Or maybe leggings to wear as tights.

 Finally, my two looks that I tried to make multi-seasonal:
This is the closest to what I actually have. Those grey pants could quite easily be Thurlows--and are very close to the one pair I have left to show up. I actually own those particular black flats, even though I had to import them into Polyvore to make it work. The top could be a woven or a knit, and I do like peplums. I also have yarn to knit into a cardigan very similar to that one, if I ever finish the Roheline. But with the right layering pieces, this could be very versatile.

I tried to come up with a versatile maxi-dress look, too, since that is something I do like to wear and it would be nice to find some ways to wear them that will transcend summer.

So how did I do? I'm not saying I'd only wear these particular silhouettes, obviously, but it's a starting point. I'm looking forward to seeing what tomorrow's challenge is!

of shapes and stitching (in-progress sewing and Wardrobe Architect, Week #3)

I don't really have anything new to show sewing-wise, as I'm currently in the throes of assembly line sewing. (Which is actually working out pretty well, but "throes" is just fun to say.) And since this week's Wardrobe Architect worksheet was pretty short and straightforward, I figured I'd just do a little roundup of in-progress sewing and that.

Pictures first. I'm currently making the two denim versions of the Thurlows, and therefore am doing a few more jeans-like details. Namely, I topstitched the darts. And I'm also topstitching around the welt pockets, which has the bonus of reinforcing the stitching. (The brown pair is coming undone already, because I've washed and worn it so much!)





Also, pockets! The cherry print is particularly fun, I think. It's a shame I didn't have enough of that for the waistband facing, too--that will have to be plain black. But I did have just enough to squeeze these and the welt pockets out. As for that purple-y hand-dyed stuff, I had more than enough for the pockets and facings for both this pair and the future grey pair. Plus a ton left over. I may have to resort to using it for things like wearable pajama muslins or something...

As for the Wardrobe Architect project, this week's assignment was thinking about garment shapes. Which was really nothing too ground-breaking for me, but I figured I'd share some results anyway.

I seemed to end up in the middle of a lot of things-- I like most things either somewhat fitted or somewhat loose, but not too tight or especially too loose. Some more garment-specific results:

•  Skirts: I'm most comfortable in skirts that are either knee- or maxi-length, A-line or with some other kind of flare (but not too full, as that always makes me feel like my hips look huge), and with either a hip-hugger waistline, or occasionally a more natural waistline. I'm still getting used to the latter, which is probably a result of being a teenager in the 90s when everything was cut lower and I just got used to it. I don't like high-waisted things, mainly for the practical reason of they feel restrictive when I'm playing my flute and need to breathe deeply. Also, I don't tuck shirts in too often anyway. I'm also not very comfortable in shorter skirts, though I'm more comfortable when my legs are covered by tights or something.
• Dresses: I'm most comfortable when things are either somewhat fitted or somewhat loose, though I tend to lean more towards fitted. Too tight and I feel self-conscious, too loose and I feel like I'm wearing a sack. Length and skirt fullness preferences are pretty similar to my skirt answers, though I'm more likely to wear a fuller skirt here since the dress can provide more obvious waist definition than one can often get with separates. I'm also more likely to go for a higher or natural waistline here, or none at all if it's a princess-seam type dress. No dropped waists, since 20s-style silhouettes were not meant for curvier ladies!
• Pants: My waistline preferences are similar to my skirt preferences. I prefer somewhat fitted to loose (hello, Thurlow marathon!), though I do have the one pair of skinny jeans and was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked the look on me. I'm more comfortable in full-length pants as opposed to shorts, though when I do wear shorts, I prefer them to be around mid-thigh length.
• On top: somewhat fitted is my main preference, though I'll also go for very fitted or somewhat loose, depending on what I'm wearing on the bottom. Length preference is above the hip to tunic-length, as opposed to cropped. I'm more likely to bend these rules when it comes to layering pieces like cardigans and jackets. 

There were also a few more detail questions about necklines and sleeves.
Favorites: V-necks, cowl necks, or scoop necks; sleeveless, above-elbow length or long sleeves (depending on the season).
Also like:  Boatneck, Square, Sweetheart necklines-- I'll wear these, and have made things that I like that feature these necklines. Three-quarter sleeves and short sleeves fall under this category as well--I have lots of things that are these lengths, and like them, but I think the other three sleeve lengths are perhaps slightly more flattering.
Neutral: Spaghetti strap and halter necklines. This is more under the category of it's not that I don't like them, it's just harder to wear a bra, so I have to take extra considerations (like the bra I built into my Lonsdale dress specifically for this reason.) To be honest, most of my spaghetti strap tops are actually camisoles, and only worn as layering pieces.
Dislike: Off-the-shoulder and strapless. The former is just super-annoying, both due to arm position when playing flute, and the feeling of having to adjust it from falling down all day. I always feel like strapless is going to fall down on me, too, and the only thing I own of that category is the red dress I took with me on the honeymoon. And only because it fit me so perfectly at the time that it couldn't fall down. I certainly wouldn't plan to make something strapless. Unless it was something like a strapless corset top that I was specifically planning to wear over another top. (I wouldn't put that past myself.)

So, like I said, none of this is really any surprise to me. Or probably to you, if you looked through my collection of finished objects that I've shown on here. But it was still a useful exercise.

Wardrobe Architect, Challenge #1

So you've all heard about this project that Sarai started over at Colette Patterns by now, right? Since I've been working on trying to figure out my style for years now, and one of my goals for the year is a more cohesive wardrobe, the challenge couldn't have come at a more perfect time!

She posted a series of questions recently to help narrow down your own individual fashion story. So I figured I'd answer these questions, with photographic evidence when I can.

1. History- How has your personal history informed the way you dress? When did your tastes crystallize? Have they changed over the years, and why?
I grew up going to a private Christian school, up until my college years. I did not have a uniform, but we had a fairly strict dress code that included things like no blue jeans, no t-shirts, and no skirts shorter than 4" above the knee when kneeling. So aside from weekends and summer vacations, much of my teenage wardrobe was a combination of staying within the rules while still displaying my own personal style. In addition, my mom made a lot of my clothes when I was a kid, and started teaching me to sew before I was done elementary school. So this meant I was used to having clothes that weren't exactly like what the other girls in my class wore. As I went into junior and high school, I discovered thrift shops, so my style was generally a combination of things I found there, things I made myself, and things inspired by the 60's and 70's, some of which were things my mom had sewn for herself in the 70's. I think this is still a big part of my style today. I also still love blue jeans and t-shirts, and pretty much wore that straight for a lot of my college years, since I couldn't in high school.

I couldn't find many photos of my day-to-day look, unfortunately, since digital photography was just starting to appear and wasn't quite affordable for a college girl yet. So most of the photos I have from high school and college were from "special" occasions that I could justify using my precious film on. I think this pic of me and my two best friends from college was probably fairly typical, though. (Even though I have no idea what sort of goofy pose we were doing at the time...)

Now that I'm in my early 30s, I still love a lot of the same things, though I've tried to maintain at least some level of professionalism in a lot of my clothes, as I'm partially self-employed and would like to make a good impression with my students.

2. Philosophy- How does your philosophy, spirituality, or religion affect your aesthetics and buying habits? Or, what aspects of those things would you like to see reflected?
Growing up (and still being involved) in a church culture definitely affected my style. We didn't dress like nuns or anything, but modesty was important. I still shy away from things that are too tight, too low-cut, too short, etc. It's honestly not really a sense of being uncomfortable with my figure. I just don't really care to flaunt it in an overly provocative way, though I still want to be stylish.

3. Culture- How has your cultural background shaped the way you look? How did the aesthetics and values you grew up with affect your tastes as you got older?
My background is classic western European--heavily German on my dad's side, and predominately English/Irish/Scottish/Welsh on my mom's. I definitely look more like my mom, and do have a strong leaning towards Celtic-influenced designs and British culture. (What can I say, their books, tv and music tend to be great!) 

4. Community- How are you influenced by the people around you, including friends, family, and other communities you're involved in?
My family is generally pretty casual, and my church increasingly so. Also, a lot of my friends are moms of fairly young children. This means that I often feel overdressed when I wear my dresses in particular, even though they're really fun to sew! My mom has always had a thing for bright colors and funky prints, and this has most definitely rubbed off on me. I do have to admit that I'm also often influenced by geek culture, and like to work subtle references into my clothes when I can! (You know, TARDIS skirts, Lord of the Rings-inspired shirts...) This also explains my t-shirt collection, which I've included a sampling of here! Finally, as a classically-trained musician, I do tend to keep an eye out for black clothes that have interesting details, because I always need black for performances.

5. Activities- How do your day-to-day activities influence your choices?
When I'm at my garden center job, I don't really have much choice in the way I dress. Just thrifted jeans that I don't care if I wreck, and the company t-shirt (and whatever layers I need to get by if I'm outside). When I'm teaching, I generally like to go for an artsy-professional look, which is a lot of what I sew and show on here. If I'm just bumming around the house, or hanging out with friends on weekends, I tend to go for jeans and t-shirts or other casual tops.  

6. Location- Does the place you live inform the way you dress? How does climate factor in?
I do get 4 seasons, so I need to have clothes for both hot and cold weather. It gets really humid here in the summer, which is when I tend to go for things that are flowy and sleeveless and such. I also get cold easily, so in the winter, I just want things that will keep me warm! Which usually equates to sweaters and jackets, as long as they aren't made of wool. Spring and fall here can go either way--it can (and often does) swing from the 40s to the 70s within the same week, or even the same day! So layering pieces are a necessity for me. I'm much more likely to wear skirts/dresses in the warm weather, and pants in the cold weather.

7. Body- In what ways does body image affect your choices in clothing? What clothes make you feel good about the body you live in? What clothes make you feel uncomfortable or alienated from your body?

I wouldn't say I have huge body image issues, though I can be a bit self-conscious about my butt and thighs, and prefer to keep them covered up. I generally feel best in clothes that have waist definition and are fairly modest. I feel like a slob when I wear sweatpants (and only own them for exercising), or clothes that are just shapeless.

Are you playing along with the challenge? I'd be interested to see others' take on this!

Top 5's of 2013, part 2: Goals

Since I didn't actually use this format last year, I'm going to pick the more sewing-relevant goals from last year's list, and deal with the rest later. 

In 2013, I wanted to....

1. ...finish my wedding dress, obviously. Definitely a check! 
2. ..find a way to work craftiness in on a more daily basis. I had mixed success on this one. Having my own permanent creative space in the new place definitely helped! And I've found that knitting and even scrapbooking, to some extent, make pretty good projects for when I'm hanging out with Doug and watching tv. Sewing has been a little harder to work in than I'd hoped, since I'm still trying to get control of my work schedule and longer commutes. So I think this one will be an ongoing goal as I try to keep working on a better work/social time/housework/personal time balance.
3. ..sew a few basics--or cake, if you will--that will help tie various parts of my wardrobe together. Somewhat successful. I did make pants, which is big. And a few other more basic pieces that ended up being pretty good wardrobe additions. But this one is ongoing as well, I think.
4. ...IF time permits, try another mini-wardrobe. I did manage to put together a pretty decent wardrobe for my honeymoon, though I only sewed two new things for it. Not quite what I meant, but oh well.
5. On the blogging front, I really would like to make some changes around here--a new blog design, if I can figure out how, and most definitely improving my photographs. I did make a new blog header, which I think is pretty nice! The photography....well, that still needs work. Part of the issue is that my new house doesn't really have a good outdoor spot for photos--I'm in a middle townhouse, our front yard faces all the other houses, and our backyard overlooks one of the busiest highways in the state! Especially in the summer, as it's the main route to the beaches. (The yard is basically a big doggy toilet, anyway.) Part of the issue is that by the time I get home from work, the natural light is often gone. And, though he puts in a valiant effort, Doug doesn't really like using my SLR camera. I think that I'm going to have to invest in a remote one of these days. 

Top 5 2014 Sewing Goals:

I'm mostly trying to avoid calling out specific projects this time, due to my complaints in the last post about time management issues. I don't want to plan a whole bunch of things and then not get to them, like I did this year. And I also want to allow myself some flexibility to participate in sewalongs as they come up, or try out new patterns that excite me! So here goes...

1. Create more cohesion in my wardrobe. This goes back to sewing those basics. For instance, I still plan on making those other Thurlows I didn't get to this year! But this also encompasses being more mindful in my fabric choices, and trying to choose things that can go with things I already have. Especially when it comes to prints, because you know I'll never give them up. They're just so much more fun to shop for! I also seem to have an ongoing idea that I need to develop my "style", so this ties into that, too.
2. Beef up my cold-weather wardrobe. This carries over to knitting as well, tbh. But this is a huge one, because once again, I found myself bored with all of my clothing choices by November! This isn't to say that I won't sew anything for the warmer months, especially the things I already have fabric and patterns for, but the fall and winter months are honestly the bigger need. (And the bigger challenge, given my extreme wool issues.) This also includes a needed new winter coat, since my current one is getting shabbier by the week. I'm pleased to say that I did purchase some non-wool fabric (even though it was another scenario of them running out of fabric and me having to substitute and pay more money, grr!), so now I just need to get some Thinsulate and I'm good to go.
3. Branch out. I'm reluctant to set a specific goal here, since who knows what fraction of what bounces around in my head will actually make it to the machine. But, as stated in the last top 5 post, I have several new-to-me pattern companies to try out that I already have patterns from. I have a couple of patterns in styles different from what I usually wear, like the Archer--way looser than I usually wear--and Espresso leggings--aside from under my jeans when I'm stuck on outside register, I haven't worn leggings pretty much ever.  I've had the thought of trying to sew some underwear, since I always have knit scraps that aren't big enough for much else, and I hate throwing away potentially useful fabric. Or maybe trying new colors--who knows where this will take me?
4. Start refashioning again. I didn't consciously choose to stop doing it. But I barely did any in 2012, and unless you count my dyeing experiments from about a month ago, and a bag I remade for a friend and didn't blog, or the sweater I'm currently knitting from another sweater I'd unraveled, I did absolutely none this year. I have a giant bin full of clothes to chop up and use for projects, and I need to start dealing with that. And I think it's good for me to have that creative challenge every so often, of working within those constraints. Some of my most interesting projects have come from those! 
5. Use up some of my more challenging stashed fabrics. After all, there has to be some way I can incorporate organza or brocade into my everyday life, right? And the more on-hand things I use up, the easier it will be for me to justify buying more fabrics to help me with #1 and #2 in particular.

 There's other things I can think of, like working on my fitting and pattern alteration skills. But these are things that I can and should incorporate into nearly every project anyway, right? What goals or plans do you have in mind for the upcoming year?

The problem with winter clothes...

Happy February, everyone! First of all, thanks to everyone who has taken the time to vote on my little poll in the last post! There's been 19 answers so far, with the hairline seam taking the clear lead. Brooke suggested some nifty thread that vanishes with an iron steaming, so I think I'm going to get some of that and run with it. I probably need another spool of white anyway, considering that I'll have to start busting into that for basting and such. I've been using my one spool of ecru for that and the inside seam finishing, in order to save the white for where it shows, and reached the point where I'm about half a skirt's basting away from running out.  In other exciting dress news, I'm at the point where I can start basting the skirt together! The waistband is on the bodice as of yesterday, and the seam between them is all stitched down nicely.  Out of necessity, I'm waiting to do the center back edge finishing (and therefore the neckline's too) until I get the zipper in. The last time I checked it, the placement of the side seams were great but there was too much room at the upper back of the dupioni part, so I'd like to have the skirt on so I can check the fit all at once.

From my Fashion Inspiration Pinterest page

But back to the subject at hand. I was thinking about this last night, as I was browsing the women's fashion section of Pinterest while half-watching a hockey game with Doug. I should probably say problems in the plural, because as far as I go, there's quite a few:

1. I have basically no internal temperature regulation this time of year, no matter how unseasonably warm it gets. For example; on Wednesday, it got up to 66 degrees. Practically balmy, right? While I did manage to brave 3/4 sleeves, I ended up keeping my favorite bulky brown hoodie cardigan on all day, too. And I was STILL cold enough to drink several mugs' worth of tea.

2. The obvious answer would be to wear wool. But I can't touch it without my hands prickling uncomfortably within seconds, and the one wool hat I've owned made my forehead break out in a line of hives. (Ironically, my soon-to-be last name contains this very fiber name! I'm going to be allergic to myself!)

3. If the Polyvore-type sets that abound on Pinterest, such as the one above, are any indication, winter clothes are just boooooring. Everything is solid and neutral, mostly grey, black and taupe. I can appreciate a good piece in the first two colors, but isn't winter in the northern hemisphere dull and neutral enough?
Where's the color? Where are the prints? Incidentally, I'm pretty bored with everything in my closet too, and kind of resent that it'll be at least another 2 months before I can consider diving back into my shorter-sleeved things without potentially freezing.

4. I'm just more inspired by warm-weather clothes. I always have been. If you look at the aforementioned Pinterest board, sleeveless tops abound. The only winter outfits I can find that I like to pin on there generally have slouchy sweaters and tailored jackets. I have sewn a few jackets, so that wouldn't be an issue, except...

5. I don't necessarily have things to go with those jackets, and my fabric stash also has a VERY heavy bias towards fashion for the warmer months. Remember this jacket? Or this one? I still like them both, and so I'm not going to purge them from my closet, but I've hardly worn either because I just don't really have much to go with them. Topwise, it's not so much of an issue with the BurdaStyle book jacket because it doesn't look right if I leave it open at the front, but as I've complained on here multiple times, I am in dire need of pants that fit well and aren't too short or worn out. Thus the desire for that Thurlow-fest I keep saying that I'm going to do after the dress.

I know I can't do much about it now, obviously, since I still only have about half of an unlined wedding dress, and there are a few summer things I need. Plus there's that stashbusting pledge. Not to mention that February means that I have anywhere between less than 4 to 6 weeks before I'll get called back into my retail job. Two years ago, it was mid-March, but last year, I got "promoted" to head cashier/office assistant out of necessity, and got called back before February was up. (I'm selfishly hoping for more of the former, so I have more dress-sewing time before I'm balancing my part-time teaching plus a part-time job masquerading as almost a full-time job plus finishing up the wedding planning and moving process.) But I figured that if I write this down now while I'm thinking about it, and I can make a decent dent in my stash, maybe I can make this better for me in future winter seasons. I need to:

1. Evaluate my winter wardrobe/dressing habits. This isn't too hard, because I know that once the temperatures drop below 45F, I never, ever want to wear skirts or dresses, because there are no tights in the world that can keep my legs warm. Making those pants will help a lot, so at least that's the one thing I can do this year and still keep to my stashbusting pledge.

2. Improve my knitting. Because so often, I just want to wear sweaters. And Goodwill's been letting me down lately.

3. Buy fabric/yarn based on what's actually in my wardrobe, instead of just buying because I like it. For instance, I know I need tops to go with that blue jacket, so I should look for some knit prints that will coordinate. Or I recently splurged on some slouchy grey boots, since I'd been wanting something like this for months, only to realize that most of the things I have to go with them are more geared towards the fall and spring and I don't have the layers to winterize them yet. (Off-topic--I'd definitely recommend their shoes. It's the second pair that I've bought from this particular company, and even though they're pricey, they're well-made and super-comfortable. And they fit me. This is huge.)

4. Find some alternatives to wool that will keep me warm. For instance, I can wear that 30% alpaca/70% acrylic stuff that I made my Cadence sweater out of with no difficulty. So it might be worth finding some yarn and knitting up accessories in higher percentages of alpaca to figure out what my tolerance is. I also know that this suedecloth top keeps me warm. (This will be especially important, as my peacoat is starting to look a little worn in spots. I think I can squeeze one more winter out of it, and I'm impressed with how well it's held up. But the embroidery is pulling out in multiple spots, and I'm developing a tear by the pocket, and the satin inside is getting all pilly. And, well, this brings me back to the debate that led me to make a coat with a quilted lining that's so thick it practically stands up on its own to begin with....what can I make a coat of that will keep me warm without making me break out in hives? It's at the point where I'm seriously considering attempting to use wool as an underlining for something else, even though my hands will hate me for it during the entire sewing process.)

5. Color, color, color. I need it this time of year.

2012's Greatest Hits

Because I've been enjoying reading all of these top 5's, and I wanna play too!

Courtesy of Gillian at Crafting a Rainbow

I honestly don't feel like I had a lot of misses this year, mainly since I didn't have a lot of finished projects, and I already talked about my goals for this year and next, so I think I'm going to focus more on wearability of the things I made this year. This is certainly not to say that I don't like or wear the other things that I've made this year, but these have gotten the most wear so far. So without further ado...

5) The "Junior Mints" Jacket
Out of the several jackets I made this year, this one has turned out to be the most versatile, probably due to its more neutral color and fairly basic shape. It's been great for throwing over t-shirts when I want to dress them up a little (or just be warmer), and has worked well with some of my handmade tops and dresses too. Like my "Christmas in July" dress, or the "Moving Target" shirt. This may be a good candidate for a 6-way styling post, come to think of it. 






4) The "Mighty Jungle" dress
I finally successfully sewed a maxi-dress! And although I'd probably change the skirt a bit if I were to sew it again, like add a slit or a godet or something for ease of movement, I can walk in it pretty well. I was very proud of myself for finding a way to use some cool but difficult fabric that I'd had for years, the cotton means that it's still comfortable in mid-Atlantic summer humidity, and since it's a tougher, batik cotton, I don't have to iron it as much as I would if it were just regular old quilting cotton! I'd say it's a win.







3) The Convertible Dress
There's just so many reasons I like this, even though I don't really see myself sewing it again for awhile--a girl really only needs one dress like this in her wardrobe, right? It was super-easy to sew, once I managed to actually find a piece of fabric that was big enough. The rayon bamboo is super-comfortable in that aforementioned mid-Atlantic humidity. There's multiple ways to style it all by itself, and I can even mix it with some other stuff that I have. The color is fun. And this dress has some pretty serious sentimental value now, since it was what I was wearing the day that Doug proposed!






2) The Vaguely Celtic Renfrew Top

I've seen a lot of Renfrews pop up on these top 5 hits, and with good reason. This top fits me so well, and the only tweaking I needed to do was to grade the waist right out of the envelope. It's fitted enough that it makes a good layering piece, which means I'm still wearing it even though it's 3/4-sleeved and I have a ridiculous inability to stay warm this time of year, but not super-tight so I can wear it alone, too. The print is neutral enough that it goes with lots of different bottoms, but it still has some fun punches of color. The tube cowl is brilliant for not showing the underside, like some of my other cowl-necked knits have done. I really mean it when I say I want to make a whole bunch more of these--this is going to be the TNT pattern that I compare all of my other knit tops to from here on out!



1) The jeans, of course.

Because as fun as it is to dress up, I'm really a jeans girl at heart. And I've been wearing these at least once a week since I finished them, they haven't fallen apart or gotten holes in them yet, and now that I've gotten them a bit more broken in, they're super-comfortable. And they still don't gap in the back! So you can bet I'll be making more of these in the future, too, once I tweak the pocket linings and figure out what to do about that front waistband stabilization issue.

My top 5 wardrobing  lessons learned:
1) Jeans will always and forever be my ultimate "cake" project.
2) I like to wear knits, and I should make more things that use them.
3) Notice 2 of my top 5 are prints, and 2 of my top 5 are things that go really well with prints. Those aren't going away for me. Probably ever. So I'll be much happier if I embrace that and figure out what will tie all of those together.
4) Solids are ok to sew as long as they either have an interesting style, like the Convertible dress, or are lined with a funky print, like the Junior Mints jacket.
5) I have warm-weather clothes down pat. What I need to focus on more are the things that can span multiple seasons and/or keep me warmer when it's cold. Because I'm still bored with my fall and winter wardrobe. (This may be a bit of a challenge as I work through the stash, because I'm not sure what I have that qualifies for this.)

MMM, Day 2: The holes in my wardrobe

To be perfectly honest, this isn't my favorite outfit. (Nor my best expression-- my boyfriend was kind enough to take pics on our way out to grab some dinner and spend an hour or two together, and I guess I was in the middle of blinking. But this one does show the whole outfit the best.) 

Shirt: "Flowery Explosion" top, blogged here
Cardigan: Old Navy
Pants:Lee, from JC Penney's
Shoes: Naturalizer, from Maryland Square (I think)
Necklace: Me-made
Earrings, which you can't really see here anyway: Lia Sophia



Here's how it went down: I had my outfit all picked out and ready to go for after work at the garden center today. But when I picked it, it was supposed to get up to around 70 degrees. In actuality, it didn't even crack 60. (And yesterday, it was around 80! The weather in my little corner of the mid-Atlantic is pretty whacked out this year.) So I had to improvise, and fast. And I mean fast--the cashier who was taking over for me got there late, which meant I got out late, and I had the span of about an hour to refuel my rental car, take it back to the repair shop where my little Honda was getting its reconstructive surgery after its fender bender, drive home, change my clothes, grab the vacuum cleaner to give the floor a quick once-over before teaching, and then immediately have to put it away before cleaning, because my first student arrived earlier than planned. It happens sometimes when they stop by on their way home from school.

I knew I wanted a colorful top, because this day has been very dreary--either rain, thunderstorms or clouds all day. I wasn't in the greatest mood, either, because work was pretty craptastic today. Bright clothes with cheery prints just make me feel better! It was way too cold for sleeveless, though, at least for me. I originally had cuter shoes on (my silver gladiator sandals), but by the time I got through my couple of hours' worth of teaching in the basement, my feet were cold! So I changed to the more practical shoes before going out for dinner. I think the concept of the outfit is ok....it's just that it's too pale overall. I'm going to blame the pants--for what is supposed to be a neutral pair of pants, these are so hard to fit into my wardrobe! I think it would have worked better with my camel linen pants, color-wise, but I haven't ironed them since I last washed them and certainly did not have time to do so today.

I do think the necklace was a good pick, though. This was a fun one to make-- basically, I took all of the white/clear/light tan glass beads I had that didn't go with anything else, made 3 strands of bead links, and then stuck it on some decorative chain to make this necklace. Since this top verges on too low-cut for my taste, it fills in the space nicely! I also think the half-buttoned cardigan looks a little odd/unflattering in the pic, but it looked weirder to have the minty green band halfway up from the tieback sash. Oh well. It's honestly not my favorite cardigan, either, and I also have found this surprisingly hard to fit into my wardrobe!

Over the last few months, I've been taking a close look at my clothes to see if I can identify the holes in my wardrobe, and I think this outfit illustrates a couple of them. For both the pants and the cardigan, these wouldn't have been my first pick of things to buy--they were both cases of I needed something fast (a pair of khakis, a cream-colored cardigan to wear over that Modcloth dress that I just shortened, when I was wearing it as a dress to a friend's wedding), and this was the best option I could find at the time. And even though the khakis don't seem to really go with the rest of my clothes for some reason (and are a little too short even with my flats), and I just don't like the way the cardigan's looked with anything so far (too preppy, I guess), I've kept them because I don't really have anything else to fill those holes yet. Especially for the pants-- I have a list of 6 things I've often wished for in my winter wardrobe, and half of them are different colors of pants to replace ill-fitting or just worn out ones that I have now.

I'm on my way to remedying that-- I looked through my stash notebook and found two pieces that would make good pants, in addition to the charcoal lightweight denim that I specifically got for that purpose for Christmas-- a more camel-ly khaki corduroy, and a chocolatey-brown twill. I had also recently been debating buying some fabric, and ended up getting twill in grey and olive, and a lightweight denim to replace the too-short trouser jeans that I have now. So once I get through my palette challenge and have the jeans-fitting technique down, I'll find a good pair of pants, make some test shorts like I did for those linen pants that I mentioned earlier in this post, try it on one pair of pants once I get the fit, and then go assembly-line style and just knock them all out. I have it in the back of my mind to knit a new cream cardigan at some point too--something a little more interesting, like maybe this, or this, or perhaps this. Though I don't think it will happen any time soon, since I have two other bigger knitting projects in the works, I need to find some nice non-wooly yarn that will work, and I already have yarn that I can use to make a grey cardigan, which I also need. (Hopefully as this. I've been eyeing it for awhile!)

So, yeah....in the question of frosting vs. cake, I think I'll be ok with sewing more cake from here on out. Especially if I can get a nice tried-and-true pants pattern to work from, or maybe two, since jeans fit differently than the average pants. I've been finding lately that store-bought clothes just don't work for me long-term!

Colette Sewing Handbook!

Got mine in the mail the other day, and it's been a nice pick-me-up from the sweater fiasco. (Which, by the way, I'm now about 2/3 through the chart for the third time. And double-checking every single section as soon as I finish it. I just started the decreases last night, and have about 7 rows to go.)

I haven't finished reading it from cover-to-cover yet, I've only had time to flip through it. But so far, I like what I've seen. I'm certainly not a beginner seamstress, but I like the whole philosophy and aesthetic behind it--the "slow fashion", that anyone can start making well-fitted and well-tailored clothes right from the start, etc. But I think my favorite chapter so far is the second one, about a thoughtful plan.

I think this is where I run into trouble-- I tend to choose the clothes I make based on things like "I love the look of this pattern", without taking things into consideration like how it fits into my lifestyle. So, inspired by Tasia's post from yesterday, I wanted to do the exercise about choosing five things that I love to wear.

One thing I did realize while thinking about this is that I seem to have an entirely different aesthetic between my warmer- and cooler-weather wardrobes. (Probably due to the fact that I get cold so ridiculously easy that all I want to wear when it's cold is sweaters.) So, this is basically going to focus on what's in my closet right now, since all of my warmer-weather stuff is packed away under the bed.



5 things I love to wear (the cold-weather edition)

1. This vintage 70s leather jacket passed down from my mom

It's kind of an oddball color, but that's one of the things I really like about it. Even though the sleeves are a little too short for me, I wear this thing all the time this time of year--it's pretty much the perfect in-between jacket. (One of these days, I will get good enough at knitting that I can make some longer-wristed gloves to go with it! And the thought that it would go really well with this jacket was actually what inspired me to choose the yarn that I did for my Counterpoint Hat.) Wearing this always makes me feel really fashionable, even though it's older than I am!







2. A brown hooded cardigan sweater that I purchased about a year and a half ago from ModCloth. It felt like a big splurge, because between sewing my own things and my thrifting habit, it's very rare that I pay more than $20 for a ready-made garment. (Yeah, not counting cost of fabric in that estimate.) But it looked like the sort of thing that I'd wear a lot....and, well, I'll admit that the fact that the sweater was basically named after one of my favorite Weezer songs. It's just fun to sing along to! And this really has become one of my most frequently reached-for layering pieces. I like the fun wavy ribbing, and the pops of turquoise. (Though I did pull the hanging strings inside the sweater, because I wanted to be able to wear this for work.)






3. My Ayden shirt. It's proved to be a good transitional piece, since it works well with the sleeves rolled up to 3/4 as well. And it's easy to layer, so I'm warmer!

4. A pair of thrifted jeans (no pic, because it's just a basic pair of boot-cut jeans.) The thing is, they fit perfectly. Exactly the fit I want when I tackle jeans yet again later this fall!










5. This necklace/earrings set, which seems to go with everything that's not black. It's definitely one of my most go-to jewelry sets in the colder half of the year.


I find it interesting that most of the things I picked are NOT things I made. If I were to do this again for the warmer seasons, I think at least 4/5 things would probably be things that I'd sewn. The color schemes are also completely different. In the summer, I gravitate most towards cool, bright, watery shades like green and aqua and teal. In the winter, my wardrobe seems to be dominated by dull, dark colors. So I actually like my fall clothes better--everything I've been wanting to wear lately are spicy, warm shades like browns and mossy green and even the occasional orange. My usual love of prints is also not very well-represented by this "mini-collection" of sorts, other than my plaid shirt. If I look behind me at my closet, I see swirly, leafy prints, paisleys, and some stripes and florals. (I'm much more likely to go for a funky floral when it's warm, I think.)


So what do I think this means? I certainly don't think it means I feel best in clothes that aren't prints! I seem to be most drawn to things in funky prints with interesting construction details, like all of those piped seams on the jacket and the pleats and gathers in the plaid. I like color. I need more of it in my winter wardrobe, but up until now I've been largely limited to what I can find in store-bought sweaters. If I can just get past this Cadence chart, hopefully I'll be well on my way to remedying that. I like layering things, especially when it's cold. I'm more likely to wear pants when it's cold, though I'm hoping maybe I'll branch out from that this season, since I have some really nice skirts that I've made so far in the Fall Essentials collection. (In the summer, I'm much more likely to wear skirts and dresses, because I feel more comfortable going out in those than in shorts.)


Actually, in light of this thought process, I think I did a pretty good job in choosing the other things I want to make for FESA! And hopefully I can continue this thoughtful planning into the next season as well. Especially once I get my stash a little more pared down, and I have some plans for that.


Also, this may completely defeat the entire point of this post....but I kind of want the Truffle dress.