Another unintentional long silence, but here I am again! It’s been a rather crazy busy several months, with my first school year of trying to homeschool all 3 of my kids. Technically, I don’t legally have to teach my daughter until next year, but since I have a preschool program I like and she’s old enough for our co-op, we’re doing this. I’ve also been taking a larger role in said co-op, leading my younger son’s class. So much of my time to write is currently dedicated to preparing for those.
That being said, I do have a few finished projects that I wanted to share before the year ends. My sewing is still slower than ever, but I’m working it in when I can.
First up, I made a second pair of the Jalie Vanessa pants. Since the denim Tencel pair I had from before is still a good fit, I went ahead and made them in the same size. That may have been a mistake, since I forgot to account for the higher amount of drape in this olive rayon twill. The result is that they’re a bit baggy for my taste. I’ll need to think through options for what to wear on top, aside from this perfectly-matching Anthropologie sweater that I bought way back for some engagement photos, but I at least got a few wears out of them in the fall, before it got cold enough that I’ve been pretty much in my boots all the time.
The second is a refashion that I made on a whim for my daughter. She’s rather obsessed with the Frozen movies, and when I was meeting with some of the other moms in our co-op, the one who was hosting offered us first pick on some clothes that her daughter had outgrown. When I saw these two pairs of Frozen-themed pajama pants that had no matching tops, I instantly got inspired to turn them into a dress. The waffle-knit blue top was in there too. So I cut the pants into rectangles, inserted some triangles from some stashed white knit to give it maximum twirl — a very important factor for my daughter, along with the mandatory pockets– resized the top a bit, and added Elsa and Anna as appliques. She was thrilled with it, and has worn it several times since.
The last one is the Busan top, by Itch to Stitch. I’ve had a regular jersey knit that was gifted to me along with the pattern, when my mom gave it to me a few Christmases ago, and I’ll still make that up at some point, I’m sure. But I’ve also been wanting to make a new holiday party top, since the sequined one I made a few years ago lost a lot of sequins and really looks terrible now. I had this teal crushed velvet, and while it was a risk using it on an untested pattern, I figured taking the time to test it would mean I wouldn’t get it done until February. As it was, I still didn’t manage to get it done in time for either of the two annual parties I go to, or Christmas Eve, but I did get it done in time for New Year’s Eve! I’m considering reworking the neckline to a more open one, because this reads kind of 1980s to me and I’m not a fan of that fashion era. We’ll see what happens.
So, to revisit my Make Nine goal for 2023, I managed 4-5 of the nine. I’m counting the Busan as frivolous, and the pants as something for fall — I’m not sure it quite hits the wardrobe gap. As for the quilt, I did start it, and got as far as cutting all the blocks and figuring out the design. But then I set it aside. For one thing, my husband spontaneously repainted the room over this past year, and since I pulled fabrics from my stash with the old wall in mind, the colors don’t quite go anymore. Also, she told me she wants a Frozen bedspread instead. Lately she’s been asking about the quilt again, so maybe it’ll happen?
This did end up being a bigger quilting year than I anticipated, either way. My church started a quilt ministry to make blankets for local foster children, so I’ve been helping out with that around once a month. I did finish one lap-sized quilt top, and have a second started. And I did start a quilt top for myself with some panels I bought last year, though I don’t really have the design entirely worked out yet.
This is usually the part of the year where I post all my grand goals for the next, but this year, I’m keeping it simple. After all, this is likely the smallest amount of sewing I have to show for any year since I started this blog, except for maybe the baby years. So, while I have things I’d like to accomplish in 2024 (I’m looking at you, swimsuit fabric), the only goal I’m setting is to sew for at least one hour every week. There were big chunks of the year where I didn’t make a stitch for weeks at a time, and I’m feeling a need for more consistency again. Whether this makes a good dent in my ongoing stashbusting, or I do manage to get back to the wardrobe building outfit chains I’ve done in years past, or whether I only manage a few garments all year, it’s fine. At this stage of my life, I just don’t want to lose touch with a hobby I’ve loved for so long, and integrate that into the stress relief practices that I need to build for my health.
sew adagio 