Wednesday 5 August 2015

planning

A few days ago I started thinking about what additions to my pattern and fabric stashes I'd be making once pay day hit. I found a couple of sites which sell patterns from small indie companies and within about half an hour I'd amassed a wish list of well over 20 patterns. It's probably fortunate that it was so many, because if it had been ten or so I'd probably have just bought them all and then got massively overwhelmed when they all showed up on my doorstep. As it was, my sensible side was forced to come out of hiding.

SENSIBLE JEN: This is ridiculous. You may buy four patterns, maximum.
REGULAR JEN: Four? How am I meant to pick four? Look how pretty everything is!
SENSIBLE JEN: What do you actually need in your wardrobe? What will you actually wear?
REGULAR JEN: ...need? ...actually wear?
SENSIBLE JEN: Well?
REGULAR JEN: I... hadn't actually thought about that.
SENSIBLE JEN: In that case, you can't buy anything until you've thought it through properly.
REGULAR JEN: Awwww.
SENSIBLE JEN: See, you stayed up too late and now you're getting all cranky.
REGULAR JEN: I'm fine! What do you know, anyway?

(...yeah, sometimes it's a little bit like I'm babysitting myself)

So I thought, and looked at all the patterns again, and read some blogs, and flailed around a bit. I thought about the things I've already made and how little I wear most of them, I thought about my wardrobe, I thought about my fabric stash. Pay day came, and all I knew was that I was definitely getting the wrap dress pattern I've been thinking about since before I learned how to thread a sewing machine. I bought that, and I made a dress. This will have its own post so I don't want to go into too much detail now, but the next day I made another dress, with fabric I bought a month ago specifically for wrap dress purposes. I was SO PLEASED with myself. Pleased enough that it gave me a tiny epiphany: maybe don't buy things if you don't know what you're going to do with them.

I went back to the patterns and came away with three ideas: a black brocade jacket with electric blue lining, a heavy burnt orange autumn skirt, and a pair of high-waisted olive green trousers. Those were the patterns I allowed myself to order. I don't actually have any of these fabrics, but I do have a dark green that ought to make a nice skirt and a super soft grey that I've been hoarding for months as trouser material. So I'll make those too, because I can. This is the month I learn to make trousers (erk), and, hopefully, make stuff I can actually wear on a day to day basis. Looking forward to it, August. Please be nice to me.

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