Winter/Spring Sewing Plans

I appreciate it should be A/W and S/S but seriously, in the UK winter and spring are colder and wetter, and summer and autumn much more temperate. It was still warm in October ffs! So I decided to go with W/S and S/A as my sewing seasons. Deal.

Moving on... I firstly wanted to share with you a list that is on my sewing room pin board. It is nothing I do not know, but it serves as a reminder when OMG-CUTEFABRIC might strike, or if an OMG-AMAZEBALLSPATTERN comes to town. It happens to the best of us.

I thought I would save you my raggedy scrawl and give you a boring but legible version.
These are just things that will really make or break something for me, and I don't like to make things I know I won't wear. Mostly sleeves is because I generally prefer them, but will make an exception for a vest top, or a summer dress if necessary. Buttons>zips is because having made a dress with a back zip, and worn one with a side zip, they are not my friends! I do not like needing assistance in dressing/undressing, and my t-rex arms combined with a boob mountain mean I cannot contort to do up a long back zip, and I find it tough to get hold of a side zip. For some reason I never encounter one that easily goes up and down using one hand (picture a monkey like arm movement). Is it just me being unlucky?! This also means I can't comfortably play an acoustic guitar should I want to inflict my lack of musical talent on anyone...first world problems hey ;)

So with these points in mind, I have made a brief outline of my projects for the coming weeks/months.

1) A new pair of Ginger Jeans. I need to wash the pair I have more often, so another pair is a priority!
2) New pants. I'm going with the rosy ladyshorts. I would like utilitarian practical versions for every day, and some sexy pairs for those occasions.
3) A rip off lady skater style dress. Black ponte.
4) Black tshirts, I'm giving the SBCC Tonic Tee a whirl. It's free, liked the look more than the other free t-shirt patterns available.
5) Sleeveless blouse - gingham dress recycling.
6) Another Bruyere blouse rip off
7) Black ponte dress refashion into skirt

There are a few other projects floating about in my head, but these are the ones I've settled on. I desperately wanted to make the Leanne Marshall coat, I have the pattern all muslined up and everything...but the fabric is short by a meter. I bought the fabric intending it for something else, the something else was not going to work in the fabric, so I thought it would make a nice coat. If it wasn't for the damn collar/shawl I would have enough! The lady I got the fabric from hasn't got any more, and so I really don't know if I should find a contrast fabric in the same colour (black) or just get whole new yardage of something else for it. It makes me sad. I did in fact burst into tears when I discovered I didn't have enough fabric - I was having one of those days!

Ginger Jeans - Closet Case Patterns

Rosy Ladyshorts - Cloth Habit

Tonic Tee - SBCC

Simplicity 1254 - Leanne Marshall

I have the line drawings for my current plans drawn out and on my pin board. I find this is a useful way to keep a check on what I'm doing, but the drawings are a bit dodgy so no sharing them here. I got a book out of the library that is aimed at fashion students, "Technical Drawing For Fashion" by Basia Szkutnicka, to try and improve my line drawing. I think it would be useful when imagining franken patterns and new designs, and just a nice skill to have, I certainly have no desire to design patterns for commercial sale, far too lazy! I have been thinking about having a couple of sketchbooks, one for ideas, and one for documenting patterns made with the info about alterations/fit issues etc. Anyone else do this? Is it useful to you?