Thursday, January 10, 2013

Sewing Goals 2013

I had a great year sewing in 2012, and I am not ready to let the good times end!  However, I wanted to make a list of my sewing goals so that I don’t get so bogged down in everything that I want to do that I end up not wanting to sew at all.  Now that I feel like I have the basics down, I would really like to spend the year working on expanding my skills and trying new things, but I still want to stick with the basic goal of creating clothes that I actually want to wear.  Specifically, I want to:
1)      Learn how to make a button hole.  I really don’t want to, but is time.    
2)      Make a matching skirt and jacket out of interesting material and line it.  I already have this project all planned out, now it is time to execute it!  Starting with muslins (or practice garments) for each piece.  Which brings me to…
3)      Use muslins when starting working with a new pattern.  This is hard for me as I am impatient, but for some things it really does save a lot of heartache and expensive material.  Which brings me to…
4)      Make a pair of pants.  I don’t even wear pants that often, but this is just something I need to prove to myself that I CAN do.  So far, I have made a total of four Clover muslins, none of which were really good enough to wear.  But, by the fourth pair, I feel pretty confident about the fit and feel-like I am finally ready to make a wearable pair.  I am glad that I am branching out and trying new things.  Which brings me to…
5)      Try using a vintage inspired pattern.  I have tried, twice, to use vintage patterns, so far with mixed results.  My 1950’s dress turned out well (you can see it here), my 1930 dress not-so-much (you can see it nowhere because it was a mess).  Vintage patterns can be hard to use for several reasons, one of which is that they were often made for women wearing girdles which I am just not going to do.  However, my sister bought me a reprint of The Walk Away Dress, which has been updated for the modern consumer.  Yay!  I am very excited to try it, but I need the right fabric.  Which brings me to…
6)      Use materials that make me uncomfortable.  Up until now, I have mostly stuck to washable, non-stretch cotton.  Although I love the look of cotton, and the fact that it is totally washable, I really want to try to make pieces that make people stop and ask, “Where did you get that great dress???” I have gotten that a few times (brag, brag, brag), and it is a great feeling. Sometimes simple is best, but sometimes it is the details that makes a piece special.  Which brings me to…
7)      Use more lace and other small touches more often in my sewing.  I already have few special pieces of detail material that I can’t wait to use.  I also want to add small details to some of the dresses and clothes that I have already made, especially concerning the basic construction of a few pieces that I made at the beginning of this journey before I learned the tricks that really make a piece stand the test of time.  It isn’t too late to save them!   
8)      Lastly, I want to try out two new pattern books that I have that I haven’t had the confidence to try yet.  I will review them both after I try a few patterns from them, but for now I will just say that they scare the bejesus out of me, especially since you need to trace the patterns rather than cut them out (the horror of adding an extra step overwhelms me!!!).   
Other goals I have related to my sewing are to blog more about each piece I make, organizing my sewing and craft room, getting a cork/ white board to display ideas for new projects, and maybe even getting an Etsy site to start selling some of the stuff I make.  That last one might be a good one to think about a bit closer to 2014 though.  :)
I have learned so much this year and had such a good time sewing.  Still, my head is spinning with ideas of things I still want to do and lessons I still want to learn.  I want 2013 to be a creatively fulfilling year for me, and I already feel like it is going to be. 
When I started this journey, I was afraid to thread my sewing machine, afraid to pick out fabric, even afraid to walk into a sewing store and be sniffed out as an imposter who knew nothing and shouldn’t even be there.  But I really really wanted to finally try to become someone who sews her own clothes, and I have!  If there is something that you really want to do, don’t let fear of the unknown stop you.  Don’t let your early mistakes frustrate you and slow you down.  Just try, try, try again, especially if it is something that brings you joy.
Have a great day, and a happy, creative 2013! 

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