133 Sewing Patterns - I Better Get On It!

I don't really have a problem with fabric. I could tell you exactly what my stash contains at the moment and what I intend to do with almost everything in it. Want proof? You can scroll all the way to the bottom of this post, where I've made a list, just to show that I can. :)

What I do have a problem with is patterns. I have an extensive stash. 133 patterns, all but one of which I took photos of over the weekend (I forgot the one...I'm working on it right now, so it was in a bag with the rest of the stuff for that dress). I uploaded all the photos to Flikr, inspired by Lauren at Lladybird to take stock of what I've got. It's insane. I bought most of these as a lot, which explains the mysterious presence of children's patterns in spite of the lack of children in my life. And also explains all the 70s patterns, which I will probably never, ever sew up. It's definitely time to sort and purge. Maybe Etsy?

Anyway, I thought I'd share some of my favorites with you. These are all patterns I'm hoping to sew up this year, since I love them all so much. They do actually include a couple of tops that may or may not be 70s-ish (late 60s? early 80s? I'm terrible at dating patterns!).

This is what I'm working on right now. I'll be tracing tonight. Yay!

If you're interested in seeing the rest of my extensive pattern collection, you can check it out here. :) I know I enjoyed drooling over Lauren's. I'm also thinking this will help immensely when I'm thinking about buying something new, so I don't come home with something similar (or identical).

Question of the day: Do you keep patterns you don't really like on the off-chance that maybe someone you  know will someday want to make them? What if your (hypothetical future) kid wants to be a hippie for Halloween one year, and you have the perfect dress/pants/tunic pattern? Or do you just get rid of them to make room for other things that you truly love?

And the (considerably shorter) list of fabrics in my stash:

1. Navy polyester chiffon with blue dots - sheer collared shirt (Butterick 4042)
2. Dusty rose crinkled polyester chiffon - sheer shirt (either Butterick 4042 or Simplicity 9559)
3. Teal cotton with dark green pattern - sun dress (undecided on pattern, but it's mid winter, so I have time...Maybe Anne Adams 4543?)
4. Gold poly satin - overskirt for Renaissance costume
5. Pale lavendar linen - shirtdress
6. Cream silk with pink and red flowers - blouse (Colette Jasmine)
7. Multi-colored rayon - sundress (Simplicity 2145)
8. Pink cotton - top based on Gertie's bombshell class
9. Blue and tan check mystery fabric - winter something: coat, dress, skirt
10. Lavender, pink, and gray plaid seersucker - sun dress
11. Pink, gray, and white firework polyester - Simplicity 3562
12. White embroidered cotton - Simplicity 3562
13. Tan and brown twill from Grandma's stash - undecided

Post-holiday Reflection and Gifted Additions to the Stash

My Christmas was wonderful. I got up early in the morning and walked the dogs in that magical time just when kids are starting to wake up and shake their parents awake. When we were little, my sister and I used to jump on my parents' bed, then sit impatiently at the top of the stairs until Dad had decided it was a decent hour to get out of bed. :) While I walked the dogs, I imagined similar things were going on in the houses I passed by. There is nothing quite so magical as Christmas morning for a child (especially when it was pretty much guaranteed to include a box full of books! my favorite gift every year...).

I went to my parents' early, and we opened gifts, ate breakfast (I brought over oranges and squeezed fresh juice), watched a movie from someone's stocking, and basically hung out until my dad's side of the family got there. Then, we had dinner. Yum.

I am incredibly lucky, and I received several really great gifts, including a Pier 1 chair (for A and me) and tickets to see Lady Antebellum. One of the little things I got was an ornament my mom made me, and I thought I'd share that here. She always gives my sister and I an ornament that symbolizes something important from the last year. Sometimes they require explanation, but this one definitely didn't. :)

The other thing I got that you all reading this will be interested in was a box from my grandpa. My grandma died quite a few years ago now, but he's been holding on to her stuff, probably hoping to find someone who would appreciate it. He gave me her sewing machine a while ago (my dad is fixing the cord on it, so I have yet to actually see the machine, but I have the table in my sewing room), and on Christmas, he brought me a box. I didn't really know what to expect from it, and I was pretty surprised. My grandma was a quilter, but I guess I didn't realize just how much non-quilting sewing she did. She had three unfinished projects in the box. The first was an apron with an eyelet skirt and floral bib.

The second was the expected quilted pieces. I'm not a quilter or even an aspiring quilter, nor am I a big fan of brown, so I'm not sure what to do with this.

The third was an A-line skirt with those cool diagonal pockets set into the side seams that I don't know how to do. :) It's pretty wrinkly, but you get the idea. I wouldn't have chosen the fabric, but it's all cut out and ready, and it looks like it'll fit me, so I might stitch it up and wear it in honor of her.

There was also a fat quarter of blue flowers on ivory and a couple yards of a heavy tan and brown fabric I can't identify.

  

And then there was the box within the box.

Yup. That's the box I put my gift for my grandma in when I was in 3rd grade. I had a little trouble with spelling, but at least I got our names right! :) And just in case she couldn't tell what the object I'd given her was, I labeled the inside of the box lid:

Now, you should know that I have a terrible memory. Like, notoriously bad. My first memory is of walking down the hall toward my bedroom and realizing halfway there that I'd forgotten what I was going there for. Yes. You read that right. My first memory is of forgetting something. But I remember those hot pads. When I was in 3rd grade, my dad made 36 little hot pad-sized looms for my class. Mrs. Roy taught us how to weave on them with yarn, and I remember thinking that this was the coolest thing ever. The 3rd grade class made a little woven quilt out of them, and it hung on the wall in the school library. I loved making those squares. So much that I'm pretty sure I made a "hot pad" for everyone I could think of. It makes me want to take up weaving!

Because this is already quite the long post, I'll just finish with a photo of what my grandma kept in the box. At some point, I'll share some photos of the other things of hers I've gotten from my grandpa, and the details of what's in this box. It's nice to use the things she left behind, to be able to connect with her in this way.

Butterick Sale = More Patterns

So.... I bought some more patterns over the weekend. There was a .99 sale at JoAnn on Butterick patterns, and at the thrift store, I found that Simplicity pattern for .25. It'll be a great basic pattern I can use to base new dresses on.

I think I have a problem. I currently own more patterns than I think I'll be able to sew up in the next five years. Cutting back would be a good idea, but in a way that encourages creativity and productivity. Hmm...

I'm thinking out loud here... I could only buy new patterns (one at a time) if I have an idea for them already (like they're included in my SWAP). Or I can buy a new pattern for every three old patterns I stitch up. Looking through my stash, there are quite a few beautiful vintage patterns that just aren't quite my style or that won't look good on someone as A/pear-shaped as me. I'm thinking a giveaway might be in order. I haven't done one of those yet! Check back next week. I'll have something beautiful for someone. :)

Sales and Thrift Stores

Over the weekend, I did a little shopping. It's getting to be an addiction, and I think I really need to stop until I've sewn up the fabric I already have. It's just that I go to the store meaning to just get some muslin for pillow forms and cording for piping, and I find fabric that's so gorgeous and on sale, I can't resist. :)

I bought three yards of this patterned rayon. The drape is just amazing. I wanted two yards each of the dusty rose and the blue and white dot fabrics to make sheer blouses, but got just over a yard and a half of each. I bought them even though there's not enough for a long-sleeved blouse, and I might see if the other JoAnn's has more of them. If it doesn't, I'll just make short-sleeved blouses instead. Anyway, all three fabrics fit perfectly into my Fall Palette, but they're not exactly fall weather fabrics. Ah, well. I don't regret them at all!

I also stopped at one of our local thrift shops. I was anything but disappointed at the selection of their craft section. I'm excited to try out this Built by Wendy Simplicity pattern. I might use one of the fabrics I just bougt to make it up. I also found a tracing wheel, embroidery needles, lots of cool/pretty buttons, snaps, and tiny eyelets. I got it all for $3, which amazes me, because I never win anything and I never find anything for a steal. :)



I'm still working on my Ginger. Why I decided to use a pinstripe fabric I will never know. All those tiny stripes to match up! Also, I've discovered that it's slightly stretchy in one direction, which I'm hoping won't be a problem. :(

A Trip to JoAnn

Today, I went to JoAnn to buy thread and a zipper for my Colette Ginger. Here's a photo of the pink mystery fabric with gray pinstripes and the gray lining from my stash that I'm going to use for it. I took a photo of that tonight:

While I was there, I also bought a yard and 7" (all that was left) of this gorgeous navy-on-white fabric. I saw it, and I couldn't resist. I have no idea what I'll make with it, but I'm in love. Maybe a skirt, if I can find a pattern that only needs 1 1/3 yards. In my haste to get it home, I forgot to take note of what it is, but I think it's a cotton broadcloth (I could be entirely wrong...I'm not good at identifying types of fabric yet!). If you've seen it and can recall, let me know!

Building a Small Stash

I spent this weekend collecting the beginnings of my new wardrobe. I went to the PTO Thrift Shop and bought a blue flowered queen flat sheet, a white flowered full flat sheet, over 2 yards of charcoal gray lining, over 2 yards of blue and tan plaid wool, and an irregularly-shaped piece of thin yellow cotton with little raised white dots, all for $18. I also spent $38 at JoAnn's Memorial Day sale for five Simplicity patterns (2176, 2250, 3877, 2886, and 3823), New Look pattern 6557, nine skeins of DMC embroidery floss, two yards of a gorgeous silky gray fabric with white, lavender, and rose dot bursts, two spools of pink thread, and an invisible zipper.

I'm so excited about all of it! I think the first pattern I'm going to make is New Look, view B, in the blue flowered queen sheet. It'll be a more casual sundress-type dress, and it would be really cute paired with a white cardigan. Something I'll actually need to purchase ready-made. Ah, well. Can't make everything. :)