Tag: fashion

Space Ghost NSV

Ok, this title needs some backstory. So I’ve been on a self-care journey which included getting back consistent with my fitness/ nutrition regime. It all started with this picture in late April 2016😵😵

I literally looked at it and asked ‘Is this me?!!’ I was the heaviest I’d ever been at 218 lbs. What is funny is that I was so in denial about how much weight I gained (40 lbs over 3 years) that I thought my scale was broken or, at the very least, needed new batteries. I guess I needed a doctor’s appointment to confirm that my scale was indeed NOT broken since my weight was the same there as well. The additional copay added insult to injury over not needing a new battery.

I didn’t even want to sew anything for myself until I’d lost ‘enough’ weight. In fact, I had gained a lot of weight spending so much of my time sewing for others outside of being mommy, Mommy, MOMMY! I had to carve out time for myself. So I started working out consistently again (even through intermittent physical therapy sessions for a year after incurring some injuries because I tried to come back 40 lbs heavier like I had never left😂😳). I even became active again in an online fitness forum, Fitness Is NOT A Game (FINAG). Although I prefer to work out alone, being active there has been instrumental in my weight loss/ self care journey. The members are so supportive, share a lot of helpful information. A nice component of the group is celebrating non-scale victories (NSV) and there’s also plenty of sh*ts and giggles🙊

Even though I had not lost ‘enough’ weight, I realized I did have to start sewing for myself again since I still needed clothes. Sew, I did! Sewing is also part of my self care. It brings me great joy to create and see ideas materialize (literally). Part of my self care also involves saying ‘No,’ so the majority of my sewing is personal right now which brings me to my latest project, MCCalls 7610, Option D. I set some of my fitness goals in conjunction with sewing (two of my loves). My goal in January was to wear an all white fitness outfit, like Space Ghost 👻 😂🤣 I had a few hiccups, (mainly, my machine needed a tune-up) but I finally finished it, with some alterations. I made the front panel out of sports mesh. I planned only using that only for the back, but didn’t have enough Jersey fabric for the entire front piece. I twisted the back twice instead of the once per pattern instructions. I also added more ruching to the side seams to give the illusion of hips, since on paper, I’m a coke bottle but IRL, I’m an Oscar from the front…until I turn around🙊

So, I’m celebrating my non scale victory for Halloween with my version on M7610 as Space Ghost.

I still need clothes since the pieces I’ve made over my fitness journey are now too big #goodproblems😜 I’ll try to stay on track and not eat too much of my daughter’s candy today. Happy Halloween! 🎃 👻

Top Five Reasons WHY UFOs Exist

I saved some of my vacation time until the end of the year and I made it! I had been looking forward to using this time to do some research on some recent UFO sightings…in my closet. Yes, in my closet; I have a bin full of UnFinished Objects.

Like your conventional Unidentified Flying Objects, many sewists start projects and for whatever reason, we are no longer able to identify the object we had once envisioned. I wanted to use some of my vacation time to remove some of those UFOs out of my closet hangar. (I love puns)! This was no easy task, being that my 4 year old mini me was also home from Pre-K for Winter Break (which was my real reason for saving my PTO for the end on the year). I’ll post more about that another time. #schoolwinterbreakisnotavacation

Outside of our quality time, I did have a couple of productive moments. I was able to finish several projects, including some UFOs I’ve actually been wearing for the past year! There were some minor things that no one would notice unless I pointed them out, like waiting a year to hem a couple of tunics. Finishing the hem sometimes makes a difference in appearance like buying your garments from Old Navy versus Rainbow.

McCall’s Patterns M6121

Isn’t that what we do anyway? We go out as our unfinished selves for the world to see, except the world doesn’t notice (because nobody cares unless you point it out). So in honor of the new year and the motivation for self improvement that it inspires, I’ve compiled my Top 5 Reasons why UFOs exist:

  1. Something about the project didn’t go as expected (i.e., fabric didn’t work well, wrong fit, human error, etc.)
  2. Ran out of time
  3. Overlooked Details (I had a tweed cape I couldn’t finish because my machine couldn’t handle making buttonholes with that fabric. Buttonholes are usually the last detail on a buttoned garment. Just horrible!)
  4. Lost interest (Sometimes you weren’t that interested to start in the first place.)
  5. External Events (better known as LIFE!!) (Things that had nothing to do with the project itself, but rather affected time dedicated to complete the project.)

These reasons aren’t just specific to sewing; they’re transferable to whatever your unfinished object is. (Well the buttonhole example is pretty specific lol. ) Sometimes you need a pair of fresh eyes like when Monica, The Sewing Jurist suggested I use sew-in snaps after I vented about it on our sew date. It worked like gang busters! Thanks Monica! My UFOs have taught me to expect the unexpected, use time management and planning strategies as I discussed in a previous post, and last but not least, really taking the time to consider your motivation for starting a project or endeavor. Knowing that helps to stay the course when life happens. What are some of your UFOs and how do you plan to finish them?

Happy New Year!

Sew Many Projects, Sew Little Time (Top 5 time savers for sewing with an unrelated 9-5)

Sewing is my crack. Actually, if people really knew how many GB of RAM my brain uses for sewing and related creative activities, they’d wonder why I have such a limited wardrobe. My coworkers can probably guess my outfit for the next day because my business casual dress is even more scarce. Oh she’s wearing the navy pixie pants today; it must be Tuesday. This raises the question, if I think about sewing all day, then why do I have sew few clothes?!

The number one answer is TIME!!  While sewing takes up a lot of my mental space, the  amount of time I have to actually sew is limited mainly by two things: 1). my day job and 2). my mini me.  So between my child plotting to take over the world,  managing a career and having some semblance of self care (which includes sewing) and a social life,  I realized I needed to get more organized. I have found the following steps helpful in getting my ideas out of my head and onto my body (or my mini me).

  1. Pick out several patterns at a time. I pick out several projects I want to make in the immediate future and narrow it down to 2-3. This immediate future list is ever changing, so I find that having one at bat, one on deck and one in the hole helps to make my plans more concrete and keeps me focused.
  2. Arrange patterns by degree of difficulty (i.e., number or steps/ time to prep/ notions needed, etc.) I work on easier projects during the week. Those that are more involved, I break up into smaller steps (see steps 3 and 4 below) to work on over the weekend, so it’s more manageable to finish during the week.
  3. Make pattern adjustments and pretreat fabric (if necessary). I usually do this on weekend in case I need to get extra fabric or notions based on whatever changes I need to make to the patterns that I have lined up. (This also helps me to have a plan when going to the fabric store which I will touch on in the future 😜)
  4. Cut and mark fabrics for your chosen patterns. This is also something I try to save for the weekend as this tends to be pretty time consuming (especially when you have to keep the scissors away from the super helpful mini me who is always ready to be of assistance).
  5. Sew! Sew! Sew! Once you’re ready to sew, you’re pretty much done!

 

Image result for sewing gif

These are just a few of the things that have helped me to make the time I do make to sew more productive. I get my creative juices flowing while raising the vig on the wagers in the office wardrobe pool. What do you do to make your sewing time more productive?

Sources:

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjbg4Tj34fYAhWDOiYKHX1jCtAQjRwIBw&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.creativespotting.com%2F2015%2F03%2Fhappy-friday-adorable-moving-sewing-pattern-gifs%2F&psig=AOvVaw2HO5tB5q4DL3izEa6fcEeu&ust=1513280620886166<<<<<<&lt;