2019, A Retrospective

My sewing focus in 2019 was all about making items that would be worn constantly.  I made very little frosting and a lot of cake. I will continue this into 2020.  After two years using a closet app on my phone, I have a pretty good picture of what gets worn regularly and what doesn't.  My most worn items of 2019 are skinny jeans and anything black (insert eye roll here).  As much as I try to inject colour, black is one of those neutrals I reach for time and time again, so rather than avoid it I am just going to have to embrace it.  My black Tessuti Berlin Coat that I made at the beginning of winter has been worn a whopping 26 times largely because I find it an easy warm layer to throw on for my work commute.  My self drafted black cardigan that I made last winter has been worn 25 times which is no surprise as this also goes with just about everything in my wardrobe.  The most worn dress in my wardrobe is the banana leaf Burdastyle shift which has been worn a total of 11 times.  This dress and it's twin are the dresses I reach for when the temperature sores in summer.  They function equally well for work with sandals and on the beach with jandals.  There could be room for one more in 2020.

My favourite makes for the year are as follows:

Merchant and Mills Fielder in all of it's forms has been a real standout.  I love the tops in linen for summer and the dress is a regular weekend favourite.  A surprise favourite using this pattern is the scrappy one I made a few months back with a mix of sweatshirting and Liberty lawn.

As I mentioned previously both my versions of Burdastyle 04/2013 in linen have become firm favourites.  This is no surprise because this was not the first outing for this pattern and definitely won't be the last.

 

June saw me complete a blazer using Burdastyle 03/2015 112 using some wool suiting that I picked up in an auction.  This version was intended to be a wearable muslin but it has become a tnt in my winter wardrobe and the final version never quite materialised.

In July I made Papercut Sapporo.  This pattern had been in my collection for some time but I was put off by the volume of the coat.  I solved this by printing it at 94% and was rewarded with a coat that retains the oversized feel of the intended style but much more my style.  This is another coat that I have worn a lot to work because it is warm without bulk.

Special mention has to be made also about the Goldstream Pea Coat I made my husband.  He has worn this daily over the winter months.  It was a lot of work but well worth the effort when I see it worn so much.

It was in August that I began to feel overwhelmed by the amount of scraps I was collecting and made Vogue 1316 in an attempt to deal with them.  I am thrilled with how this dress turned out and it makes regular appearances in my day to day work wardrobe.  I fully intend to wear this styled with a merino underneath next winter.

In September I finally found a jumpsuit I am comfortable in in the form of Deer & Doe's Sirocco Jumpsuit.  It has been retired for the summer now because being made in ponte, it is too warm but it has made several appearances at events in the lead up to Christmas.

In November I made Closet Case Pietra Shorts and Pants.  I love my Pietra shorts and these are now my favourite shorts.  The pants have made a very handy addition to my weekend wardrobe for those days when it is too warm for jeans but too cool for bare legs.

In December I made my linen look Dawn Jeans using the reverse of some cotton canvas.  I love the fit of these and they have been worn quite a bit despite being a trial version.  I am now on the lookout for another suitable piece of fabric to make another pair.

In 2019 I have been trying to focus on sewing from my stash.  For the most part I have succeeded but I haven't been quite so good about not letting more fabric creep in.  The size of my stash didn't increase last year but it didn't decrease either which weighs on my conscience quite heavily.  I am at the point with my sewing that I really have no need for more clothes and with this in mind I did manage to spend $115.27 less on sewing my own wardrobe in 2019 than I did in 2018.  It is not a huge reduction but it is a start.  I also find I have trouble with parting with the clothing I make.  I like to think that when I send it to The Hospice shop it will be passed on to someone else who will love it but the reality is, a lot probably does inevitably end up in the landfill which saddens me.  In a nutshell, my aim for 2020 remains the same.  I will sew what I wear and wear what I sew and hopefully reduce my fabric collection some more, in fact, a lot more!