Weekend Review: How to Keep Your Clothes Forever

 

How to Keep Your Clothes Forever / Leah Giblin
Melbourne, Australia: Smith Street Books, c2025
223 p.

This was an interesting read! Aimed at regular consumers, not strictly sewists, it talks about things like how to maintain and care for your wardrobe, buy more sustainably, and maybe even learn some easy sewing. 

I thought it was a good read -- there is lots in it for people to learn, especially if they are newer to the idea of sustainable wardrobes. What I loved was that there is no strict minimalism or bland neutral colours on show here. It's more about being conscious of what you already own, and what you actually need to add to your wardrobe. There is a small section on thinking about WHY you buy clothes, and I think that could also apply to why we make clothes. 

The book is broken up into three main section: Buy Less, Care, and Keep. Buy Less is pretty obvious - it's here that she talks about options for buying & shares the ethical triangle ranging from "use what you have" to "buying fast fashion". Sewing our own ends up somewhere in the middle, closer to the more ethical side.  

Care covers laundering, closet maintenance, and fibre awareness. Keep goes over ways to make your wardrobe exciting again, whether by mending, refashioning, trading with friends, restyling new outfits, or deciding what's best to do when you need to dispose of something in your wardrobe. This section has some easy sewing and mending projects in it to inspire either making your clothes wearable again, or using their fabric for projects like a moth bag for your closet or a sunhat or a produce bag, etc. 

There are plentiful photos throughout the book, featuring models of diverse kinds, and lots of encouragement for the new sewist to try out some of the techniques. Many of the shopping and wardrobe maintenance tips are applicable to our own sewing as well, including fabric purchases. It was a cheerful book despite the discussions of the perils of fast fashion, and has lots of great ideas in it. There is a bit of a fresh perspective from this Australian author, too. I'm glad I came across it!

Small Mends

Do you ever have small mending projects to do that you avoid for months and then realize you can do them in about ten minutes? I did two of those kind of projects this weekend!

First off there was a corduroy shirt that my husband wanted me to fix somehow - one elbow had gotten so thin that it just tore one day. It was way too big of a tear and the fabric too worn out to patch. So, because it was such a lightweight fabric, he wondered if I could just make it short sleeved. Of course! Eight months later, this project was done in about ten minutes start to finish. 

I used one of his other shirts to find the right length for the sleeve. Fortunately there was enough fabric above the tear to make it his preferred length. I just added a 1 inch hem and cut it. Then of course I had to cut the other sleeve the same way - can't have a one sleeved shirt! I just pressed the hem under and stitched it down. I didn't have any matching thread as I don't sew in tans or browns for myself, so just used a brownish grey that I had in my greys. It worked out fine! Now that is complete and off my mending pile. 

The next one was really more of a little fix than a mend. I made a Burda dress from green linen last year, and found that I didn't wear it because I felt like the bust darts were too pointy and this fabric is hard to press, it doesn't like to lie flat. So I unpicked the side seams from about an inch above to 4 inches below the dart, unpicked the dart and just gathered the fabric uptake into the side seam. There are more visible gathers at the seam than I'd like but it's under my arm so not too obvious. 

This now allows the dart uptake to be spread out over that area, but there is no pulling or poky dart ends in sight. It has taken a few steam presses to get the dart lines out of the fabric but I think I will be more likely to pull this one on now. I'm happy with it - it's a "good enough" fix. I'm really trying to get some of those longstanding projects off the pile!

A Blue Mood for Mend Day

I have a strange resistance to fixing something after it's done & in the closet. While I am making it, no problem to rip a seam & do something over or shorten something a little more. But if I have "finished" something I don't want to go back to do those same little fixes!

But I do want to be comfortable wearing what I make so this week I did go back & do a few minor repairs to pieces which all happened to be blue!

First I had this blue linen Rush Hour Dress by Lisette. I love this one. The issue was the back walking slit. The lining was stitched to the edges of the slit but it was pulling it, making it uneven & a bit puckered. This fix took about 10 minutes - I unpicked the lining around the slit, repinned it while the dress was hanging to avoid fabric gathering & restitched it. Done & now perfect.

Next was not a mend but it was a kind of fix. Ever since I made the Style 1065 top last year I have wanted to put shoulder pads in. I made this top with fabric from an upcycled dress & knew I had kept the original small shoulder pads somewhere! I finally found them & added them to the top & I think it improves the fit a lot, at least I like it more.

And last is a  top I made recently, Burda 109 from the August 2021 issue. The problem here was length. I had added an inch when I made it but it was just too long. I wanted it to sit on my hip, so I tested a few lengths then made the chop & picked one! I like it much better even with just one inch of difference.

 And now I can wear all of these more comfortably knowing they are just right. 

Weekend Review: Sustainable Wardrobe

Sustainable Wardrobe / Sophie Benson
London: White Lion Books, c2023.
160 p.

This was a lovely find, a book about sustainable wardrobe building which approaches the subject in a variety of ways. The author, Sophie Benson, is a freelance journalist working in the area of sustainability in fashion, beauty, culture and so forth -- so this book is an interesting mix of mending & upcycling projects, blended with information about global fashion issues, waste colonialism, greenwashing, collective action and more. It really works! 

The focus is on informing readers on sustainable fashion topics, including interviews with people involved in the fashion world in some way, from factory workers to fashion psychologists. It covers a lot of basics that many sewists may know, like the production cycle of a t-shirt, but will also provide new angles on many similar things. I think someone who buys all their clothes but is interested in starting on a more sustainable path would find this one a great resource. There are minimal projects in it, and some of them are ideas for events like clothing swaps, so if what you want is a book just on mending/upcycling techniques, you could try one of the many other books out there focused more on the practical matters of mending. 

This was inspiring, though, and well worth reading. The book is laid out nicely, with lots of photos, and feels well organized and accessible. I liked her writing style; it is clear and concise, bringing up many important topics in a tone that is not at all condescending. It feels like she is assuming the best intent in all of her readers. No judgement, and she opens the book talking about her own path toward sustainability and shares many of the mistakes and habits she started with. 

There is enough here to intrigue a reader new to the ideas of sustainability, from the basics of replacing a button to dyeing with natural dyes. And it feels inviting, and encouraging. I really enjoyed it! 

You can find more of Sophie Benson's journalism on these topics at her website, as well. 

Summer Sewing Plans: A Quarterly Update

What am I planning to sew for the summer? Well, not much has changed in my sewing vision for this year, but I'm doing a quarterly update just to keep myself on track. I got a little distracted from my wardrobe plans by the PatternReview Sewing Bee -- although that was a lot of fun. So I'm looking at my previous plans and updating them to reflect being halfway through the year, and to plan out my projects for the summer months. 

This year I have set out a couple of different plans: first off was my Make Nine/Use Nine at the beginning of the year. 

So far I've made the multicoloured NL 6525 dress at top left, the black NL 6598 blouse top centre, and the blue Vogue 8612 smack dab in the middle. I really do want to make the Perth Top (centre left) and the pink sheath (bottom left) for the summer. The others can wait til Fall!

I also made some Spring Sewing plans, based on the mood I was after. And then I switched to some Blue & Yellow specifics after Ukraine was invaded, and don't plan to stop that anytime soon. I've been working away at this plus adding a few more items, like my recent Burda dress and some bunting too. 

So from these two plans, plus a few new ideas, my Summer Sewing looks like this, for now anyway! 

Perth Top in upcycled rayon

Butterick 3978 Sheath in pink silk noil

I'd like to make at least one of these 80s dresses but I haven't decided on fabric suitable to either one yet!

I also want to make one of these light summery jackets in yellow -- it will depend on the yardage in my stash. 

And finally I would like to make the skirt & short sleeve tunic from Simplicity 9115. I do have a deep yellow jacquard cotton sheet in my stash that I think would be perfect for this outfit! 

And one little bit of sewing for others - I want to make another pair of Butterick 3777 shorts for my husband since he wears the first pair I made him so much. I found a lightweight & soft navy suiting in the stash, perfect for this pattern. 

And I think that's enough planning for the summer. I can sew until late August when I will switch over to Fall sewing again. As always these are ideas & I will sew them as long as I don't change my mind halfway through 😄

MeMadeMay 2021 recap

Well, that's a wrap on another MeMadeMay! I enjoyed myself this year -- didn't demand daily photos of myself, just  focused on paying attention to what I was reaching for. 

The weather this month was all over the place -- cold, then hot, then cold again -- so there was a wide variety of things coming out of my closet this month. At the beginning of the month, I noticed I was reaching for warm things, and many of them were in purples and reds. I know I love purple, I should make an effort to get more of it into my closet! I also found that as I was relaxing at home, I was reaching for the same few long sleeve tees that I've made. I don't have a lot of casual makes, especially separates, so this is something I should try to add to. 

A couple of the comfy warm tops I wore early in May

On other days, and particularly when I was going to work, I reached for favourite dresses - and they are favourites because they fit well and were comfortably designed. And had pockets ;) So I know that I tend to wear dresses more when they're not overly fitted and they include pockets. And they are easy to move in, very important. Nevertheless, I do tend to wear my woven dresses more -- so I can keep on track with my summer plans for a few more lightweight, floaty woven dresses with pockets. 

I've added a few more easy tops into the mix as well. I made two this month (the Factory Dress in top view, and the Adrienne Blouse). They will allow me to wear my basic skirts a bit more. 

I think that this month showed me that my wardrobe is basically made up of things I enjoy wearing. I have a couple of items that I put on and took off again, and those may be en route out of my closet. And I noted that I need more comfy lounge wear. And that I don't really have a ton of separates besides the basic skirts I've made. That's the reason for my summer capsule plans - a few more coordinating separates to get the wardrobe moving. 

But otherwise, it was just a fun time wearing my me made wardrobe, and also following the hashtag on Instagram for lots of inspiration and new people to follow. I found a few patterns that I'd forgotten about which looked great on other people, so I need to dig them out of my stash and go to work! 

Did you enjoy your MeMadeMay? Any new plans coming out of it?

Weekend Review: Tim Gunn: a Guide to Quality, Taste & Style

Tim Gunn: A Guide to Quality, Taste & Style / Tim Gunn & Kate Moloney

New York: Abrams, c2007.

201 p.

Although not a book with patterns like the last two I've shared, this slim little style guide from the early days of Tim Gunn's style guru status is also quite dated! It is lightweight but not too bad overall. It covers a bit of closet diagnosis, style mentor discovery, posture, affordability, identity and finally also shopping.

I actually found the chapter of posture and fit most interesting. He notes that standing correctly will always make your clothes look better on you, and I definitely have to work on that. Like most North Americans (in his judgement) I do slump and lean a bit too much!

This book provides an interesting look back at style from over a decade ago -- not for the actual clothing discussions but for the assumptions. Things have really changed in the last decade. He states right out, early on, that good clothes should make you look slimmer and taller. I think even Tim Gunn is far more aware of body positivity and the changes in perception about clothing that has occurred over the last few years.

I did like his differentiation between style and trends. He recommends against buying fast trends that will languish in your closet after one wear, and also against being sucked in to buying overpriced and inefficient purchases like the "It" bag of the moment. It's a bit unusual for a fashion guide to say so.

He does talk about body shape and what clothes are 'best' for short chubby people like me -- but I don't agree with never wearing big prints or bright colours. So I will dispense of that advice; once again, it's tied to the desire to make a person look taller and slimmer, neither of which are primary goals in my own closet. I'm not ever going to magically become taller, and I am perfectly happy with my shape. In this section he also mentions that the tall, long-legged, slim figure has hit the lucky jackpot... clearly it is the ideal. Despite that, he does say that sizes are just numbers, and in wardrobe building you should be focusing on fit and not a random number. I think most sewists would agree that fit is paramount!

He also talks about tone, ie: making sure your clothing and makeup/hair styles and accessories all match, in the sense of being at the same level of casual or dressy. I agree with this -- for example, I dislike seeing gorgeous gowns on the red carpet on someone who is wearing normal everyday hair and aren't really dolled up with any makeup or jewelry to go with it.

Anyhow, for a book so old, I still enjoyed it. He is so entertaining, and I like the erudition in his books. He invokes Kierkegaard and the dilemma of choice in his chapter on closet cleanouts, which amused me. But it also kind of makes sense!

As an addition to my study of personal style and wardrobe building this year, this one had some useful tidbits.

February means #BHMPatternDesigners Challenge!

I participated in the Black History Month Pattern Designers (#BHMPatternDesigners) Challenge on Instagram last year and really enjoyed it! I learned so much from the posts that co-hosts @SewNaturalDane and @MyraLorraine were sharing about black fashion history and personalities, and found lots of new current designers as well.

So when they announced that they are running the #BHMPatternDesigners Challenge again this year, I knew I was in! This year they've added in the extra element that participants should think about their own fashion inspiration when they are making their outfits. Hmmmmm, I'll have to ponder that.

Here's the rules, according to the original Instagram post: 

View this post on Instagram

GET READY...GET READY...GET READY!!! Kicking off tomorrow💃🏾 @onesewsweet and I are so happy to announce the 2nd annual #BHMPatternDesigners challenge. Thank you to all of our sponsors: . @mydailythreadzme @sewnmagazine @bayronhandmade @thanksimadethem @sewmuchfabric @stylesewmepatterns @claire_cochran @laststitch @montoyamayo . We are also EXCITED about our 4 FABULOUS Ambassadors: @Lejanarobpatterns @crystalsewsandstuff @crumpetsteaandsewing @islandsewcialist . PLEASE GOT TO MY HIGHLIGHTS ☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽 to see the various Black Pattern Designers. ***THIS IS NOT AN ALL INCLUSIVE LIST*** . Rules for entry: . 1. YOU MUST MUST MUST tag @onesewsweet and @sewnaturaldane AND use the #BHMPATTERNDESIGNERS in order to have your entry counted. . 2. You can ONLY SEW & POST your item (garments, handbag, knitting item, etc) between February 1st and February 29th. Your entry is due February 29th. . 3. You can ONLY use a Black Pattern Designer. **LET'S HAVE SOME FUN AND GOOD LUCK***

A post shared by Pronounced = Nah-Tea-Duh 😉😉 (@sewnaturaldane) on Jan 31, 2020 at 11:49am PST

Last year I used a Tracy Reese pattern from my stash; this year I'm looking at the variety of Khaliah Ali patterns I also have in my stash and have never made up. These patterns are great value, as many of them are wardrobe patterns. You could make yourself a nice capsule wardrobe using these.

I'm thinking that I'll make the longer sleeved blouse (yellow floral print version) from 2230 in this rayon challis from my stash:

And then maybe try adding the skirt from 2344, either in a neutral black or in a hot magenta from my stash that will pull that tone from the blouse. The gathered neck tee from 2344 is also a great shape, and in a navy print from the stash it might go with my next item too.

And that item is, if I have time, another jumper! View A from 2232 (but in knee length) would be nice in a navy blue suiting that I've had in the stash for a long time. That seems like an awful lot to try to get to, but hey, February has an extra day this year ;)

My real goal is to get the blouse done and we will see how it goes from there. Meanwhile, don't forget to check out the Instagram accounts of both hosts and their ambassadors for lots of great #BHMPatternDesigner Challenge content!

Weekend Review: Dress [with] Sense: the Practical Guide to a Conscious Closet

Dress [with] Sense: the Practical Guide to a Conscious Closet
Christina Dean, Hannah Lane, Sofia Tarneberg; illus. by Charlotte Trounce
London: Thames & Hudson, c2017.
224 p.

I picked up my own copy of this book recently, after having read it via my library. I wanted to own it, as it is a clearly laid out, practical, and also pretty book about fashion and ways to be more conscious with your closet.

The three women who wrote it started Redress, an NGO that focuses on reducing textile waste in the fashion world. They have an interesting website as well, with lots of info and events that they hold locally to them, in Hong Kong. 

The book is broken up into four sections: 

BUY better & make more responsible choices when shopping

WEAR clothes more creatively

CARE for your clothes -- laundering, mending etc.

DISPOSE of clothes by non-trash means: swapping, up/recycling, donating etc.

The structure is very logical, and the content is useful and inspiring. The way the book is designed encourages quick reading, and hopefully will engage those who won't pick up a huge tome of research based arguments as to why we need to think about the environmental impact of our wardrobes. 

The book is really lovely -- the illustrations are charming, there are single page comments from well-known models, actresses, bloggers and other fashion revolution folks who are into sustainability, and there is a fair bit of useful information I haven't seen everywhere, like how to make your own stain removers that are non-toxic, as just one example. There are also a lot of photos; this feels a bit like a chunky magazine. 

The BUY chapter talks about the impact of fashion, and how to buy more consciously, break bad habits, and take action via options like Fashion Revolution. It encourages you to think differently about buying, like perhaps shopping for a capsule wardrobe instead of impulse buying. 

The WEAR chapter looks at editing your closet, tailoring, mending, diy-ing and refashioning. This article published by Redress goes over the Edit Your Closet steps which are also shared in the book but in a cuter, illustrated way.

The CARE chapter is interesting, because it goes more in-depth into this area than other books I've read so far. Redress even gives local workshops on washing and drying your wardrobe more sustainably. This chapter covers how to understand care labels, suggests hand washing, spot cleaning or airing out clothes rather than washing after every wear. If you do want to wash your clothes, it's key to understand your machine, wash in cooler temperatures, and hang to dry as much as possible. It also talks about mending, storing, hanging clothes properly, finding professionals to mend your clothes and shoes, and so on. There are recipes for refresher spray and stain removal mixes made from natural ingredients, too. I found this chapter really helpful!

The final chapter, DISPOSE, is a tough one since there really is no ideal, magical tech-based solution to the problem of too many clothes. There just needs to be fewer clothes in the first place. But, they do go over ideas to divert clothing from landfill.

These include hosting clothing swaps (with a how-to included), or reselling your clothes in-person or online. There is a section of different charities who accept donated clothes for various purposes, in case you want to direct them somewhere besides just the local Goodwill. 

The book finishes with a section of resources for further study -- suggested books, websites, and organizations to check out. This appendix is small print and four pages long so there is lots to explore.

I enjoyed this book and found it informative, even if it doesn't really talk about home sewing. The chapters on wear and care are most directly useful for sewists, I think; there is a lot there to use when I'm looking at my own handmade wardrobe. From choosing the original materials to caring for them so they last as long as possible, this will add to the sustainability of my own sewn closet. I'd recommend it if you can find a copy. It's a quick read, not text-heavy, but I think it would appeal to readers newly interested in this topic.

Weekend Review: Change Your Clothes, Change Your Life

Change Your Clothes, Change Your Life / George Brescia
NY: Gallery Books, c2014.
288 p.

I picked this book up recently, drawn in by the cover and the idea. The beginning of a New Year is a good time to re-evaluate a lot of things, and I thought that perhaps this book would give me some ideas about how to approach my wardrobe and my sewing planning for the next year. Short answer: nope. 

Let's start with the good:

This cover is glorious. The colours, the texture, it's all immensely appealing. I hope the designer got a bonus for this one, since it makes a mediocre book seem irresistible. It has visual interest and a tactile appeal as well. Great job on it. 

The other good I got out of this book was Brescia's reflection that your clothing speaks for you -- when you put an outfit on, ask yourself, "What does this say?" It's a good question to have in mind when I'm looking at what I have in my closet, or fabric stash, and when making plans for the next project. 

Sadly, not much else about this book can be recommended. Though why I thought a white guy from NY would be able to add to my style conversation, I'm not sure. 

It's much of the same old "styling tips" that are seen everywhere. He uses the old-fashioned colour types for women, and the most notable thing there is that his colour types are pretty much for white women. Everyone else can get squeezed into a corner with brunettes, maybe. And there is his belief that a straight, blow-out hairstyle is the best (ie: sexiest) one to have. So much for anyone with natural curls, you're just friendly, not hot. Another element is the tired idea of must-haves for everyone's closet - the nude (ie: light beige) pumps, the little black dress etc. Yawn.

And the whole point of his style makeover seems to be the idea that every single woman who wants to have style is really aiming to be hot and appealing to men. In the last chapter he smugly says that a middle aged client of his reports that she is now so stylish that she got cat-called! Hooray! I personally don't find that an outcome to look for. 

There are other flaws too; he mentions librarians twice -- the first time to say how frumpy we all are, and the second to praise the sexy librarian stereotype. Neither of these statements helps our profession AT ALL, and the second in particular has caused actual harm. So I didn't feel very warmly about this use of  'funny' commentary. 

The most egregious elements are simply the complete disregard for women of any skin tone besides white. He doesn't say it right out, but in all the silhouettes, the assumptions about dressing for work, the colour tones and hair styles -- it all points to rich white lady as his primary client. Which, if so, should have just been stated right out at the beginning so the rest of us could avoid the book. 

Other readers have also mentioned his disdain for ugly orthopedic shoes with no awareness of why people might be wearing them (if you're not wearing heels every day, you're apparently a lost cause). And his view of "style" being defined as the most effective way to please the male gaze. 

So, let's just say this was not the style book I was looking for. Good thing I found it at the Goodwill for only a dollar. Save yourself that dollar and pick up one of the books on style and fashion written by women -- like Stacy London's The Truth About Style -- or a book on fast fashion and sustainability, which also covers wardrobe, like The Conscious Closet by Elizabeth Cline or Dress [with] Sense by Redress. 

Handmade Wardrobe Planning

I was recently offered a look at the ebook  hWardrobe: Designing Your Handmade Wardrobe in a Creative, Fashionable and Sustainable Way, by Valeria Speck, of  hWardrobe.com

photo via hwardrobe.com

It's an ebook put together to help you plan out what to make, how to organize your sewing queue, identify your best silhouettes, colours etc. -- all the things I'm not very good at. I'm usually more of a slapdash, mood-based sewist (kind of like how I read, as well).

I've tried to follow along with the Colette Patterns Wardrobe Architect series in the past, but that kind of lengthy introspection and weekly assignment structure just doesn't work for me -- I dropped out a couple of weeks in, both times I tried it.

So this book held out some promise for me. I can work through it all at once and then again at my own pace. It efficiently lays out some of the same principles but not as exhaustively - for me, that's a bonus.

And there are illustrations and worksheets, along with encouraging commentary. She talks about the body being the key to the wardrobe, and working everything else around your shape and what suits you. It starts by leading you through the process of measuring and drawing your own shape for a personal croquis, in order to be able to create style that suits you from the start. The tone throughout the whole book is very accepting and welcoming of our own idiosyncrasies.

photo via hwardrobe.com

Valeria is from Russia, and it sometimes shows in her choice of words or phrases. I thought it added charm to the book and reinforced the idea that all of us sewists, wherever we are, are on the same page...quite literally here. I also liked how she added a couple of of her wardrobe drawings alongside a photo of the finished piece: it shows how the practice of sketching out our projected makes can really be useful in finding just the right pattern & fabric for a great result.

I have already started looking at some of my stash with a keener eye after reading through this book once. And I plan to work through all of the suggested Q&A and activities, to give myself a kind of structure that I can live with in my sewing room. While I don't like the detailed to-do lists and project flow charts and super-organized plans which some sewists thrive on, I do need a better level of organization. This should help me get started working a little bit more logically and thus -- hopefully -- using my stash better!

You can purchase a copy of this ebook here if you are interested; I am not an affiliate & make nothing from this. I just wanted to share as I found that this book was better suited to my sewing style than many of the other systems I've tried before and think it is an interesting & useful read!

Through the Wardrobe, Part 2

And now for the third & fourth items I made for Sewing Pattern Review's Mini-Wardrobe Challenge...

Along with making the dress and cardigan I decided to make a skirt and a blouse. The skirt was intended to challenge my very basic skills -- I would have to insert a zipper and I also determined that I was going to add a lining. Somehow I've avoided these procedures for oh so many years ;)

I used New Look 8643, another pattern that I've owned for ages, for the skirt. Plus a brown floral print microfibre that I've had in my stash for ages and ages. You can't really see the floral here but it's a great embossed effect. I also, as usual, added side seam pockets. I love this skirt, even if there are a few flaws -- the first zipper I ever did worked out pretty well! Except there is a small gap where I mismatched the top of the zipper & the waistband, sigh. Not too noticeable though.

Love my brown skirt

A closer look at the full Sorbetto

Then I used my first ever downloadable pattern, the infamous Sorbetto tank top from Collette Patterns. I added sleeves though, thanks to this downloadable addition from Sew Incidentally, as I do prefer a bit of sleeve. I had to make a muslin first to adjust the fit, as I've noticed a few reviewers mentioning that the fit can be a bit wonky, depending on your own shape. I know I have to alter shoulders, neckline & length often, so I tested this one and found that I did indeed have to alter. I took up 3/4" between the shoulder and bust, and 1/2" in the underarm seam. I also added 1.5 inch to the overall length, but may shorten it by a touch. This was fun to try, but I really can't imagine making a complicated design via print-out-and-tape-together patterns. I don't know how people do it!

In any case, this project was really engaging and a lot of fun. Here is the final snapshot of everything all together. I like how each piece turned out, and the colour pallette too. Glad that I decided to give it a go and challenge myself as I get back into the sewing groove. 

Through the Wardrobe, Part 1

In August I joined Sewing Pattern Review -- it's a great website for anyone who sews. Really helpful and inspiring!

In September I participated in their monthly sewing challenge, the Mini-Wardrobe contest. The challenge was to sew 4 items that could combine to make 4 different looks. I'm a basic level sewist, but I thought it would be great to challenge myself and see if I could make 4 pieces of clothing in one month.

The contest is now closed, and my entry is posted there -- I actually finished!! I had a lot of fun doing this, and learned quite a lot. It was also great to get into the habit of doing some sewing regularly. Here are the first two of four pieces I chose -- part 3 & 4 coming up tomorrow:

Simplicity 2474

I have owned this pattern for a long time, and decided to make the dress and knit cardigan from this wardrobe. I had a lovely turquoise-y knit in my stash so used that for the cardi, which I love -- I think it's my favourite piece. The problem however, was that I had already cut a long slash in the knit in preparation for making a wrap, which looked horrible, so I wanted to repurpose the fabric. Fortunately when I laid it out, I just missed the slash!

Doh! Big hole in the fabric!

Finished deal, with dress
Soooo soft :)

And then I made the dress from the same pattern, using this shiny print that has just the same tone of blue as an accent. I added side seam pockets and cut the front on the fold, taking in an inch at the neckline, but otherwise didn't make any alterations.

Straight up

With a belt

This was a great challenge, and I love these new pieces. These two were the "easy" ones for me, very few alterations and they sewed up pretty quickly with no major problems ( if you don't count the sewing on of sleeve bands inside out and the resultant unpicking and resewing as very major...)

Tomorrow: pieces three and four...