2015

Happy New Year everyone! 

In the sewing blog tradition, I'm going to look back through my 2015 blog posts and pick out the hits and misses - what really got worn, what was loved, and what simply didn't work. 

This year I feel like I had a lot of misses.  Apart from the garments I'm listing as certain misses there were several more that I'm in two minds about - for example there were a few where the fit wasn't good but the fabric was awesome, and a few more where I wasn't sure whether the "look" of the garment was my kind of look, even though it was perfectly fine as a garment. 

Hits

Love it but wear it only occasionally:

I don't think I've EVER worn this out! It's too sexy for work with its very low cut underarms and fit, but surely there's got to be an occasion for this dress? 2016, I'm looking at YOU!!

 

My frocktails cape and dress - of course! I love these both so much...  I've worn the dress out to dinner a few times, but the cape had its only ever outing in Melbourne at Frocktails last year.  Sadly every time I've got it out of the wardrobe I've put it straight back, thinking "oh no, what if I drip soy sauce on it!".  This year I'm going to resolve to wear the cape out at least a few times, and either steer clear of messy food or try to become more zen about food stains.  

And this one - as loud as I am quiet! Well, when you first meet me, and sans alcool! This one turned out just as I'd envisaged it. I've worn this out a few times in broad daylight and it's been a fun dress to wear - woo hoo for statement clothes!

Love it and wear it heaps:

This Vogue top - the perfect weight for weather that's just a tad chilly, and in several of my favourite colours!  I wear this lots, and it always feels special.  

Oh and this Ruby top, which is beautifully airy when the weather is hot and sticky. And because the outer fabric is seersucker it doesn't need too much work from the iron to look fresh and lovely.  

This top and skirt set make me feel like I'm on holiday somewhere slightly fancy.. so I'm wearing them as much as possible...   

Practical is my middle name:

Sometimes the useful stuff is not particularly exciting. This "miaow" top was supposed to be test top, but has already become a wardrobe staple; and the skirt refashion saw a never worn dress turn into a garment that garners compliments just about every time I wear it (which is often). 

This simple Vogue jacket is ideal for Sydney's mild winters, and the aubergine / purple fabric seems to go with most things in my winter wardrobe. 

Misses

Fabric woes:

I wish, wish, WISH I had waited to find some proper fabric before making this "deckchair" dress. The fabric is just so awful (thank you Lincraft) that I didn't even let this dress enter my wardrobe :(. 

This painterly fabric looked good but sewed badly, and the wrinkles you can see in the blog photos never went. I wore this dress several times till I realised I'd be embarrassed to tell a colleague I'd made it. It's gone.    

I quite liked this jungly fabric, but not enough to want to wear it. Every time I looked at the top I thought of the plain white cotton top I really wanted to make from the pattern... And then when I wrote that post on vents I noticed how bad these vents looked! Gone... 

My New Year's resolution is fit:

OK, so these shorts also tell the story of inappropriate (interior decorating) fabric, but the main problem is that they're too tight. They probably fit me now, but I don't need disco shorts. 

Ah Inari, why do you TAUNT me so??  I chose the wrong fabric (no drape), but really, the pattern didn't fit me very well...

Sometimes a dress is really a top - or a cushion - in disguise: 

This merino dress is very handy when I'm cold but I hate the way it looks - too clingy and a dowdy length. For next winter I want to turn it into a top and a lined, elastic waist skirt. 

And I love the Gabby dress pattern and LOVE the Nani Iro fabric, but together they seem to jar. I think the fabric would be better on a child - or a cushion. I might be able to get two cushions even... 

How was your sewing year? Did you have more hits than misses? Any surprises? 

Aside from what you've seen on this blog, 2015 was a very social year for me. I'm pretty active on Instagram, and I've been meeting up with lots of sewing people in real life - I hope 2016 can be just as much fun :).

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I've been sewing up a storm over the Christmas / New Year break and have lots to blog, so I'll be back soon! 


- Gabrielle xx