This is Not How Camouflage is Supposed To Work

I am completely aware that dark green and brown camouflage against the purest form of white will make you stand out like a sore thumb. Still there is something to be said for using what you have on hand, and I happened to have camouflage fabric with the perfect amount of water resistance and a fuzzy warm lining for snow pants. I also have an 11 year old son with no snow pants and gigantic irresistible piles of snow outside my house.

It’s a good thing that 11 year old boys are incredibly weird and are drawn like a magnet to things that make no sense, like a talking sponge that drives a boat under water, and camouflage prints that don’t blend in with their intended environment.

This refashion project has been nearly 10 years in the making. The pants began their life as a terribly uncomfortable pair of pajama bottoms. When I first started learning how to sew my husband asked me to make him something warm to sleep in. So off I went to the fabric store with a credit card in hand and no clue what I was looking for. I grabbed a few yards of fabric that had a smooth almost plastic feel on one side and a thick fuzzy back.  He did ask for warm after all.

I used a simplicity pattern and even added my own creative touch with a few pockets, because who doesn't need a few bulky pockets while their trying to sleep. He suffered a few sweaty nights in the hot, slightly lumpy pants that didn't breathe before casting them aside. They then took on that magical property that allows clothes that are never worn to make their way back to the hamper almost every time you do the laundry.

Re-sizing the pants was fairly simple. I only needed to adjust the waistband, take in the crotch and inseam, and adjust the hem. Okay it sounds like a lot, but honestly it only took about an hour. 10 years of taking these clean pants out of the hamper, refolding them, and putting them back in a drawer where they did nothing but take up space, all solved in one hour.

Of course had they been any other pair of pants they would have been tossed in the trash a long time ago, but hand sewn items have a sentimental hold over me that make them so much more difficult to get rid of.

If your looking to make a pair of snow pants and you don't have a refashion project to start with, you can find a great tutorial here. I'm thinking about using it next year for the girls. Here's to hoping we don't get anymore snow this year.

What do you do with your failed sewing projects? Do you toss them out or hold on to them until you find a way to reuse the fabric? What is the longest time you have ever held onto a piece of clothing (homemade or store bought) that you never wear?

The Queen of Hearts Ball

Last week my daughter attended a Queen of Hearts Ball. It’s a fun little event that a local party planner runs from time to time. It involves 30 or so little girls getting together to play dress up, dance, have some tea, and beat up a pirate, who I’m fairly certain has the world’s worst job. Little girls can be pretty rough when it comes to stealing pirate treasure.

The girls loved the ball, and it gave me a reason to try to sew again. I didn't want to take on a huge project right away so I decided to start small with an accessory. 

If you look down in the bottom corner of the picture you may recognize a project that was recently posted on MellySews. Obviously there was way too much fun to be had, and not enough time for posing, so I wasn't able to get a good shot of the bag in action, but if you scroll down a bit you will find a close up.

Melly’s flower clutch was exactly what I need to reignite my passion for sewing. The project was fun and relaxing at the same time and there was plenty of work to be done without the sewing machine, so I could keep busy while waiting for someone to help me set it up.

Did I mention that it involves playing with fire? I will admit that was my favorite step, but I took my time with every part of the process, and enjoyed making the bag as much as I enjoyed seeing the end result.

My version turned out looking more like a succulent plant than Melly’s delicate flower, but I still love the overall look of it. If I were to make it again the only thing I would change would be to add a little bit of interfacing for structure, especially around the zipper.

The best thing about this project is that it has me wanting to sew again. I think I will stick to smaller projects for a while and focus on enjoying the process. I don't want to push myself to take on big projects right away or I risk getting overwhelmed and giving it up all together.

Maybe I’ll get through some of the scraps and craft fabric in my stash before I buy anything new. Maybe I’ll even try some new techniques to see if any of them are as much fun as singeing fabric.

What is your favorite part of the process of sewing? What technique have you had the most fun with?

Wardrobe Building Exorcises

How often do you wear the things you sew?

 Every once in a while I'll get lucky and sew something for myself that becomes a regular part of my wardrobe, but most of the stuff I make is only worn once or twice. It really is quite frustrating if you think about it.

It’s not just a matter of the time and money I put into a project, but it also adds to the clutter and waste that I have to deal with. I happen to hate clutter and waste so this is very troubling. 

It’s a problem that has been plaguing me for most of my adult life. Not just with sewing but with clothing in general. I am a victim of the disposable clothing mindset.

I keep hearing over and over again that the solution is to by quality over quantity, but that isn't always possible. Sure I would love to by a $200 ethically made designer silk shirt, but I would also like to pay my electric bill.

Another solution that is popular among bloggers is refashioning. I have made some amazing outfits for the kids with this method, and they are things that get worn over and over again all year round. 

However it doesn't seem to work out that well when sewing for myself. I have had some great luck finding shoes in thrift stores but never any clothes that I can see myself turning into something I would wear.

The way I usually acquire a new item is to see it on a blog or in a store and then purchase it (or the materials to make it), just like most people. But what if I turned things around a bit. Maybe the solution is to figure out what I like to wear first, and then buy or make only what fits that description.

I’ve been following a series on The Colleterie (My most favoritist blog ever) called WardrobeArchitect. It’s designed to make you think about designing a wardrobe that fits your tastes, body shape, and lifestyle. As the series goes on I believe she will also talk more about making it all work together.

Each week Sarai posts a new topic that builds on the previous weeks and an assignment to help you work towards building your perfect wardrobe. Part of the assignment involves collecting pictures to help you get a visual idea of the look you want. I've been using a Pinterest board that I named Core Style. Hopefully by the time I am ready to take on my next big sewing project I’ll be better equipped to make something that will get used over and over again.

If anyone else decides to make a Pinterest board and follow along with the Wardrobe Architech series be sure to add a link to it in the comments section of this post so I can follow along with your progress. 

Disconnection

The other day the school called me to tell me that my daughter had dirty ears. That annoyed me like you wouldn't believe. Don’t they realize that I am busy taking care of frozen pipes, sick kids, and trying to recover from my own surgery? How could they bother me with something as petty as dirty ears.

I was in a bad mood for the rest of the day and well into the night over that phone call. I even stayed up half the night wallowing in it until I was to tired to keep my eyes open. My husband asked me what was wrong, but that just pissed me off more. I tried to explain it to him but he is a man. Of course he wouldn't understand.

His response was

  “I can’t believe that nosy school nurse had the nerve. Doesn't she have enough kids to worry about every single day. How dare she take an interest in one of them, and assume her parents were too overwhelmed to notice her ears. What makes it worse is that this is the very same school where a teacher picked up on our son’s disability and went out of her way to get him help, all while grieving the death of her husband. You are completely right in thinking they are out to get you. They’re probably sitting around the faculty room discussing what a bad mother you are as we speak, you know with their spare time in between taking a personal interest in each of the 300 + students that attend that school.”

Then came the smug smile. Oh how I wish I could think quickly on my feet and throw out a comeback to wipe that smile off his face. I absolutely detest when he is right about things. 

So my daughter’s ears are clean now. I also made her scrub underneath her nails as well, just for good measure. But it’s not enough. Her ears are just a symptom of a much bigger problem. And I’m the only one who can fix it.

It’s time for me to stop being angry. I got sick. It sucks. But there is no one to blame, and that is the worst kind of anger to have. When you have no specific target to be angry at, then you end up being angry at everyone. I couldn't do the things I loved to do, so I got angry at every one who could. I stopped visiting friends, both in the real world and virtual one. I stopped communicating because nobody else could possibly understand what suffering feels like. I completely disconnected myself from the world.

Today is the last day in January, and I haven’t yet made a New Years Resolution. I think it’s time. This year’s resolution is connections. To make new ones and mend the old ones. So what if I can’t carry my sewing machine to the kitchen table, just yet. I can still visit everyone else and enjoy seeing your own creations. That’s what I have been doing for the past few days and I am overloaded with inspiration that I am stock piling for the day that regular sewing can be a part of my life again. In the mean time I’ll be looking for some other creative outlets that I can do right now. I've already started knitting, and as of today I am back to writing.

Look for me in the comment section on your blogs as well as here. I’ll be sure to check in as often as possible, when I am not busy visiting friends and cleaning out ears.

Someone once told me that if you want to get better at sewing the first thing you need to do is quit those quick and easy sewing projects. A 30 minute skirt is a great project for a beginner, or somebody who is happy with off the rack style clothing, but not for someone who wants to master their skill.

I think I've reached a point in my sewing where I am ready to take that leap. I'm no longer happy with quick and simple, just like ready to wear items I've made. In fact I am not very happy with most of the ready to wear item's I've bought either. 

• I want clothes that I love so much, I can wear them again and again and never get tired of them. Not more clothes than I know what to do with.
• I want clothes that fit me like a second skin, that glide over my curves and flatter my figure. Not something that the fashion industry has decided is a “good enough” fit for most people.
• I want clothes that will stand up to repeated washing and wearing, and on the off chance that they do get ripped or stained, I will care enough about them to fix them. Not clothes that are cheap enough to throw out when the seam comes apart after the first washing.

I want quality over quantity, and that is why quick sewing projects just aren't working for me anymore. What I don't want is a bunch of clothes that will amount to nothing more than clutter.

So that's the decision I've made when it comes to sewing clothes for myself. But what about the children?

Kids grow out of clothes so quickly. Is it really worth spending so much time on something that they're only going to wear for a little while?

For me it is because I currently have 6 nieces and nephews, with number 7 on the way, all of which are younger than my own children. And all of which are beyond worthy of high quality homemade hand - me -downs. Spending more time on each item means that they will last longer and still be in great condition by the time they are handed down.

If I am spending more time sewing each item, won’t I have to buy more ready to wear clothes to fill in the gaps?

If I am spending more time on each thing I sew for them, you have to assume that they are going to have less finished items. I don’t want to make up for it by buying them more low quality clothes, but I can't afford to buy them designer jeans.

That answer came to me when I was putting away their winter clothes. Most of the store bought items were in rough shape and ended up being cut up and made into play clothes for the summer. But two items stood out to me. A pair of Nikes and a Hannah Anderson long sleeve T shirt. They were both in impeccable condition. The Hannah Anderson T shirt looked almost brand new, and the Nikes only had slight wear and tear on them despite the fact that they had been worn almost every single day of that school year.

The best part, I had spent less than $10 on each of them. Turns out those more expensive clothes aren't just made well enough to be handed down. They are also made well enough to be purchased second hand.

Of course finds like these take a little bit of searching. I keep a Thred Up Pinterest board and every once in a while check to see if the items I pinned have been reduced in price yet. Usually the item sells out, but every once in while something great will slip through the cracks, just waiting for you to grab it up.

Which Brings Me To The Reason I Haven't Been Posting

Right now I am working on the Hawthorne dress from Colette Patters. I am on my third muslin and I have almost got the fit just right. Once I do, I’ll post pictures of the finished dress.

So what are your thoughts? To you prefer the instant gratification of a quick and easy sewing project, the lasting reward of a slow and meticulous sewing project, or a combination of both?