Wednesday 21 January 2015

I'm moving - MakeItNifty.com is Live!

It’s official, I’m moving. My new blog MakeItNifty.com is live and so I’m going to be blogging over there now. Woohoo!







As I mentioned in this post it is time that I try something new with my blogging.  So, I’m pretty excited to say I'm moving over to MakeItNifty.com.

It’s not perfect, but it’s a pretty good start. There are a few things that I still need to do like update the RSS feed and let Bloglovin know that I’ve moved. But for the most part I’m up and running over on Wordpress.

So come check me out over on MakeItNifty.com and don't forget to update your RSS feeds (just in case my attempt at updating them goes awry.

Come over to the new site and leave a comment to say Hi!

I'll see you over at the new blog,

Friday 9 January 2015

::Blogging:: Top 5 Goals of 2014


I actually spent a lot of time in the first few days of this year thinking about what I want out of 2015 in the broader sense of life goals. I ended up with A LOT of sewing goals, but I think what is most important is the general intentions I have around my sewing. So here are my 5 themes for my sewing in 2015.

Keep trying new things
I really love experimenting and the challenge and problem solving that comes with trying a new technique or sewing a new garment. So I want to continue on that journey. Don’t let the “Perfectionist Monster” get in the way of starting projects with new and interesting patterns, fabrics, techniques; and have fun.

Play around with patterns and my pattern blocks
I enjoyed doing a couple of pattern hacks this year and it was an interesting way to reuse patterns in my stash. I want to learn how to use my pattern blocks to get a better fit with commercial patterns.
Drafting patterns from scratch is a lot of fun and I really like patternmaking and the critical thinking that comes with it. I’m so grateful that I was able to take a patternmaking course so I need to continue putting those skills I learnt into practice.
The mini patterns from patternmaking course
[source]

Sew more, buy & read less
As I mentioned in my reflections post I spend a lot of time “think sewing” so in 2015 I want to shift that into actual sewing. I have a lot of patterns and a fair amount of fabric. It’s a good exercise in creative thinking to use what I already have at hand. So that means sewing from stash as much as possible and trying quell the “Shiny Syndrome” so I don’t buy fabric when going to buy notions; and muting the “Me-too Mindset” when new patterns are released.
Most of the sewing related reading is online so I need to get myself off the screens (also, out of the books and out of my head) and in front of the sewing machine or in front of the pattern drafting table. Make my ideas a reality.

Continue my approach to garment sewing
My current sewing formula is a combination of planned and spontaneous projects. The planned projects are the ones in my SWAP list; which I’m very much slowly chipping away at. However, I need the freedom and flexibility to sew something on a whim too; like projects for The Monthly Stitch. It’s a formula that seems to be working for me at the moment, but I would like to crank up the number of FOs up a notch.
My sewn garments tally board at the end of 2014

Continue interacting with the online sewing community
I’ve really enjoyed the interaction I’ve had with people in the online sewing community this year and I’d like to continue to do that this year. Participating in The Monthly Stitch challenges and Sewcialist challenges that suite me are definitely something I plan to have fun with this year. I’d like to keep reaching out to other sewing bloggers through blog comments and Instagram, but I think I should narrow my focus down to people who reciprocate.

~Final Comment~
So, these are 5 themes for my sewing in 2015:
  • Keep trying new things
  • Play around with patterns and my pattern blocks
  • Sew more, buy & read less
  • Continue my approach to garment sewing
  • Continue interacting with the online sewing community
It will be interesting to see how much they impact my sewing in the coming year :)

Concluding #SewingTop5
Writing these #SewingTop5 posts has been lovely and challenging.
It was good to write a list of hit garments, despite my “perfectionist monster” seeing flaws in most of them. It’ shows that a hit garment doesn’t necessarily need to be perfect. Seeing what garments made the misses list and why was a great way to define what I should avoid in future.

Finding highlights from 2014 made me realise that it wasn’t a complete “meh” of a year for me so I’m really grateful for that. Writing down my reflections was a great way to channel some of the fleeting thoughts I’ve had about my sewing (and life) in 2014 into something comprehensible.

I’ve really enjoyed reading other people’s post for the New Year; whether they’ve been #SewingTop5 posts or not. I think it's important to see where you’ve come from to inform future direction.

Are you a reflector? Or do you prefer to focus on the future?
Leave a comment below, I'm interested to read what you are :)

#SewingTop5 posts for 2014

Top 5 Hits
Top 5 Misses
Top 5 Highlights
Top 5 Reflections
Top 5 Goals


Until next time,

Let's connect online :)
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Thursday 8 January 2015

::Blogging:: Top 5 Reflections of 2014

When I started this post it was a rambling mess about lots of things that have popped into my mind as I look back at 2014. It was all a bit much so I started from scratch again. I did a dot point list of the things that first came to mind and then went from there. So here are the things that learnt and continue to learn…

"Think sewing" is not actually sewing
I spend way too much time thinking about and reading blogs, perusing sewing books, pinning researching sewing and drafting than actually doing it.
For me, it’s really a form of procrastination; I don’t want to start a project because of my silly fear of not making a “perfect project” and “wasting” fabric.


Focus is not a strong point
I have obsessive tendencies. I can be completely infatuated with one topic or project and then the next week I will have moved onto something else. I can be that way about sewing sometimes. I’ll start a project and then not be that into it and move onto something else “shinier”.
“Shiny syndrome” also hits me when I’m going through my fabric. So, I’ll go to my stash to start a project and then an hour later find myself sitting on the floor surrounding by fabric and with a head full of ideas. But. Nothing. Has. Been. DONE. *Sigh* Oh well. I’ll just put my fabric away again…

Sewing productivity is about quantity of FO’s not quality
This is not really a new revelation after my reflections at the beginning of this year and seeing what I’ve made this year. All of the garment’s I made this year aren’t perfect, BUT, a lot of them are still in high rotation in my wardrobe. So at this time in my sewing career, my focus isn’t really on perfection, it’s more about getting a project (started; as per the previous reflection; and) finished.

Interacting with the online sewing community is fun
In the past I’ve not really interacted with people in the online community on a regular basis until this year. I suppose it reflects my extrovert tendencies. It’s been fun chatting to people online and have commenting conversations. The challenges I've participated in with TMS have been great to participate in and have helped push me to make things I probably wouldn’t otherwise.

Guidelines help make wearable garments
It has been really rewarding to wear more me-made in my everyday wardrobe, at the moment I'm usually wearing at least one piece a day. The S.W.A.P. Analysis from a couple of years ago has helped me make garments that get worn because they are the right colour, the right shape and suite my lifestyle. Although, I’ve felt of late that I don’t really have a ‘style’ as such.

~Final Comment~
I find it interesting the combination of new ideas and old in this post. I’m finding this series helpful to get the thoughts I’ve been having out of my head and making them ‘concrete’.

Do you ‘think sew’ instead of doing the real thing? 
Do you procrastinate instead of starting projects? Do you have ‘shiny syndrome’ too?
I’d love to hear about the your reflections. Leave a comment below :)


#SewingTop5 posts for 2014

Top 5 Hits
Top 5 Misses
Top 5 Highlights
Top 5 Reflections
Top 5 Goals


Until next time,

Let's connect online :)
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Thursday 1 January 2015

Happy New Year 2015!!!

I'm looking forward to this new year and I can't wait to get a wiggle on :)


I'm really excited about the possibilities. How about you?
Let me know in the comments :)

Until next time,

Let's connect online :)
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