Has Anyone Else Signed Up to TOO Many Challenges?...

I love Autumn! So much so that every Autumn challenge thats popped up on my reader, I've pretty much signed up to.

I'm going for Colettes Autumn Challenge as I didn't do the Spring one. I know what I want to make I'm just unsure how reigned in my palette is going to be.

I also like that its a 10 week challenge. For me this means a target to aim for with the weight loss. I'd like to be a size smaller in 10 weeks. So most of the stuff I'm making is going to be a bit small for me now but by the end of the challenge I will be rewarded with a lovely capsule wardrobe!

I'm hoping anyway! The clothes that are easy to take in are being made in my normal size. Just because I'm short on clothes as it is at the moment. Plus it would be nice to do some reveals throughout Self Stitch September.

Here is my Fall Palette inspiration Mood board I'm preparing the fabric and patterns mood boards but they aren't ready yet.

*Credits are for Keiko Lynn and Patty from Snug Bug.

SSS'11 is the second challenge I've signed up to for Autumn. I'm quite exited about it but know my limitations a bit better than when I did my first in June. I know that I can't photograph and blog every image every single day. Its just not practical.

The plus side though is I now live with my in house photographer so he can't run away and leave me to take my own damned photos like last time.

I've been a bit cheeky and already started on some of my Autumn Pieces as a couple are the Sew Weekly challenge for Plaid/tartan. I've almost finished the skirt but its too small! Something else to slim into!

More Wardrobe Musings...

So yesterday I listed the 10 essentials and what one's I currently own.

But I also made a list of extra things that I think my wardrobe needs.

It was interesting that Karen said she doesn't like following other peoples rules when it comes to her own wardrobe, and to be honest Its never really occurred to me until recently either!

But I am finding it helpful to use them as guidelines to build up a useful wardrobe!

Heres what else I put into the plan that I know I would put to good use:

Silk Pjs

Cotton jersey Pjs

Block Colour Pencil Skirts

Block Colour Trousers - Grey, Tan, One strong colour

More Smart Shirts in Block colours

Harem Pants for the Gym

Plain Shirtdress

Printed Shirtdress

Winter Jacket

Cape/ Capelet

Various tops in block colours with different detailing, Most in Jersey

Wool Shorts

Denim high waist shorts

Plain wool circle Skirt

Pegged Trousers

I am not going to attempt to sew every single item on this list! Far from it but I am going to make sure I can get the best that I can afford so that they will last!

New Wardrobe Musings...

Yesterday was one of those weirdly productive but not, kinda days. I sat in the house all day but I did organise almost all of my wardrobe and made a comprehensive list of what I was missing.

I found a lot of Project Runway helped!

I pretty much pulled all of my favorite clothes out of my wardrobe and put them on a rail downstairs. Originally this was to help me work out what I had that was handmade ready for Self Stitch September. Because of my harsh culling in the wardrobe pretty much everything I now have was sat on the rail.

The photo at the top encapsulates the main colours that seem to be the bulk of my wardrobe. Its quite a summery group of colours and I'd like to introduce more Autumnal colours this season.

I then looked at Tim Gunns Essential Peices list to work out what I had and what I needed. Tim Gunn's 10 Essential Items Every Woman Needs

• Basic black dress
• Trench coat
• Classic dress pants
• Classic white shirt
• Skirt
• Blazer
• Day dress
• Cashmere sweater
• Jeans
• A comfortable alternative to a sweatsuit

I currently own:

A patterned Blazer from Boden but i'd like a plain one too

Trench Coat Aquascutum

Jeans that are rapidly becoming too big

Day Dresses

Skirts but I have only one plain which is my needlecord Beignet (now too big)

Which means I need:

Cashmere sweater

White Shirt

Black Dress

Jeans

Sweat Suit Alternative

These are just the basics! I have another long list of extra things I am going to need!

How do you organise your wardrobe?

Finally a GIVEAWAY!!!! CLOSED

Yes as promised I have been deliberating about what to do as a giveaway to celebrate both 100 followers and my one year Blogiversary.

I have decided to give away fabric this time. But not one... Three!

Two of the fabrics are cotton and are about a metre each.

No. 1 is a lovely ditsy print.

Number 2 is this beautiful green quilting cotton with gold swirls.

Number 3 is 2 panels of this amazing Jersey fabric. It has 1970s style people looking awesome on the width! How kool is this?! I wanted to give away something super special as its taken me so long!

So here are the Rules:

To comment and enter you must be a follower my blog. You must also specify if you want fabric 1,2 or 3.

If you'd like a second chance or to go for a different fabric you need to be following me on twitter @bbvintagedress and liking us on Facebook.

If you'd like a third entry slap my new button on your own blog OR if your techphobic (I don't blame you!) Blog about the giveaway and link me up!

I will be revealing this blog button in the next couple of days. All you got to do is just copy and paste the HTML into your design box!

This giveaway applies to any country and I will announce the winner in about a weeks time!

Good Luck Lovelies!

Have I Done This Yet?... Self Stitched Sept 11

I forgot that I was signing up for Self Stitched September!

I enjoyed the last one but as I said i'm not a baring all summer kinda girl. I am however a tights and tweed, Autumnal kinda girl! I am hoping that the colder weather will make it easier for me to wear some of the stuff i've made.

This time around I'm still going for one handmade item a day. I am however worried that some of my winter items will be too big.

At this moment in time I'm concerned I am setting myself up for failure here. But I have a million UFO's that if finished could make this easier.

Me Made June taught me that I should sew with a plan. Since then I haven't done that at all! Although I think I'll be pleasantly surprised by some of the combinations possible in my wardrobe, I am slightly dreading this. I have a few more jersey items compared to last time and I think comfort was an issue throughout the month. I am hoping that it won't be so bad this time around.

So here goes nothing!

Are you participating?

Autumn/ Fall Inspirations... Plus a catchup!

Gosh I would love to walk down the road in that outfit!

Today i'm all about thinking towards Autumn. September is on its way and I would love to go back to University looking a little slimmer and more stylish than last year.

I am one of those people that relishes the Autumn, and the cooler weather it brings .

I'm not a baring all kinda gal and most of my skirts and dresses are worn layered up with long sleeved tops and wooly tights. Ironically this is the time of year my dresses get the most wear.

With my rapidly depleting waistline I am trying to think smartly about what I sew in the future until I meet my goal weight.

I intend to Ebay a lot of my old clothes and start again from scratch if you will. Lots of different things have inspired me this year and I'm finding it hard to pin down a colour palette.

When I shared with you my previous plans on what I wanted to make I hadn't planned to shed the pounds and when looking back not many of them co-ordinated with each other. I think using my jerseys for some basic tops is still a good plan. However I need to focus on things that can be layered
This is from the Last Floremark. I adore this dress and I happen to have the pattern. I can see something like this being worn with tights and a nice thick cardigan!

Ok, so there are a few projects I'm concerned about this autumn...

One is my Lady Grey Coat that I didn't start last year. Due to the weightloss thing the fitting is going to be tricky to say the least! I bought about £60 quids worth of 100% wool so I really don't want to ruin or waste it.

Also I have a heap of UFO's that I am hesitating on the finishing for because I don't want to finish things that will be too big.

So naturally I've been sat thinking of new sewing plans for more Stuff! Stay tuned as this post is already getting longer than it should!

Everyones Comments...

Hey all, I just wanted to say thanks for your brilliant comments on my post about sewing and losing weight. All of you had some good things to say and I am going to continue sewing throughout my weight loss. Just tweaking the way I sew. I am going to have to get to grips with Jersey a bit better. Plus looser styles which I'm not normally a fan of. Heres a few I found in the inspiration folder...

I love the colours in these dresses. Its a great way to use up panels.

Sewing V Weight Loss...

Its a very rare occurrence for me to not blog about sewing but this week I have literally done none...

I started on the scary path to losing some much needed weight and I have been a grumpy hungry, achey mess this past week and haven't really wanted to make anything that is likely to be too big and need taking in, in a months time.

This lead me to think...

Have any of you lost significant amounts of weight and kept sewing throughout?

I don't want to have to adjust everything I've already made. Do you sew for how you are now or how you will be?

I started on my bombshell fitting planning to wear it to a wedding in October. But I'm concerned my body will have changed by then...

Any thoughts?

My Bombshell Progress...

Or start should I say! I'm no where near any kind of fabric yet except muslin. Even after adding 1.5 cm it is miles too small in the bust. Gertie said to put a style line where you would like the cup to sit.

Mine has some growing to do! Around the ribcage isn't a bad fit considering there is no seam allowance. It still needs to be increased where my boob is supposed to end!

See? My toile is covered in pen scribbles most of them saying increase! The band without the cup is cut to the lower line drawn on the other side. This is a much better fit under my bust.

So now I have the long and arduous task of translating these back onto a second toile!

This is going to be a time consuming project but totally worth it. I have a wedding to go to in October and I intend to wear it then with perhaps a nice wrap...

Just to show You I haven't been Doing Nothing...

A bit of a double negative title but there we are.

Don't you just love sweetpeas?

I have been messing about with various projects and not really finishing anything. I have a twinset of top and cardigan I have been working on but Jersey is a notoriously tricky friend of mine. I love it but I haven't yet mastered the trick of cutting the right size and taking in. This is the cardi so far.

Its a bit dull but It leaves lots of scope.

Here is the top. McCalls 6164 Much too big too! I'm glad I have Adele as I started it when I was visiting my parents which made it really hard to take in on myself.

Look at how much I had to take out the shoulders! Still it looked much better when I started taking in the side seams. I did have to take the sleeves out AGAIN (It's like the third time) The gathers have been giving me a tough time and leaving holes just above the sleeve band. It will be totally worth it though I really like the design of this top and I think I'll get a lot of wear out of it!

London is Burning... Riots Must Stop

Both the Piemaker and I, have been watching the violence and rioting as it unfolds. Its a truly horrifying sight. One man says these people have a "disregard from human life" and I have a tendency to agree. It is such a shocking thing to watch as I have friends in London I am worrying for and praying for, hoping they are going to be safe from the fires and violence. It is demonstrably scary and I am hoping that anyone that is responsible for any part of this is truly disgusted with themselves and will face consequences.

I hope they are made to meet the people who's homes and businesses they destroyed. I hope they are made to be truly sorry.

Party with OONA!

Hello!!! Sorry I'm a bit late! Takes a long time to walk from Brighton to the U.S. I'll have you know!

But don't worry I bough Vilmos... My family's secret weapon of Hungarian Liquor that comes out at the end of an evening for shots!

Heres my lovely new dress all finished for such an occasion!

Thanks for the invitation Oona! Now who wants some?

Blogiversary!!! The First Year

On the Second of August I had my first ever Blogiversary! My blog (or at least its incarnation into a sewing blog) occurred a year, plus a few days ago!
Over that time my sewing has blossomed and I have learnt loads! Not only that, I have found so much joy and inspiration from reading the blogs of others and there has been many an exited dance when my own follower count went up one person!

I thought I'd put up a couple of photos from some of the highlights of this year!

The First Brighton Blogger Meetup and my first Blogger Meetup EVER!

Second Blogger Meetup in Brighton

During the year I have made myself clothes I couldn't have imagined making, honing in on the style I never knew I had. Ran my first Sewalong and have completed a Me Made Month even with the mad process of moving house in the middle. (Complete with fab new Sewing Room!)

There Is also hilarious mistakes to remember like the Butt Pocket on my first Beignet!

But I feel best of it all is that I have made so many wonderful friends through blogger meetups and comments.

Its lovely to not feel so alienated by my hobby any more. I love that it just takes a phonecall or an email or forum post and I can blab for hours about fabric and sewing to someone that has the same obsessions and can help out with the common worries!

Sew Weekly meetup and Goldhawk Road Fandango all in one day!!!

Now comes the Resolutions... I did some at Christmas of course but a few for next blogiversary won't hurt:

I'd like to make a capsule wardrobe.

I'd like to make one historical costume

Use more of my Burda Style Magazines. Lets say make 3 garments from Burdastyle/Patrones

Perhaps sell something I've made

Set up a sewing group of my own or take a class to improve my tailoring and master trousers.

I thought I wouldn't ever get to love sewing again once I'd finished college but having you lot around to encourage and support my sewing endeavors has made this year a pure joy!

Heres to many more pretty clothes and great friends waiting to be discovered!!!

Stone(d) Love... For Fabric!

This week we went to my favorite place in Devon with my Mum and Dad, Totnes! If your in the area I totally recommend it! Its such a cute little place and the best thing about it? Stone Fabrics.

I was so exited on Sunday, we drove the 2 hours from Bristol and got there... To my horror the shop was shut along with most of the high street. So Mum and I took a second venture down today in the glorious sunshine and had a wander around.

Most of you probably know of Stone Fabrics from their excellent online reputation. When I re-picked up sewing after college the first dress I blogged about (The Joan Dress) was made from a Linen/poly mix from there. I went in today and it is like a sweetshop for fabricaholics. Luckily true to my word, I have cut 3 pieces of fabric into garments so I was allowed one fabric treat.

I'm not going to lie here it is UBER expensive. However they have the most beautiful and good quality fabric as well as kind and helpful staff.

I wanted something for my bombshell dress and didn't want to skimp as I intend to spend a lot of time and effort getting this looking perfect! Its an investment and I chose a hot pink cotton sateen at £12 per metre!

I liked the tiki feel of the red version Gertie made so I went with that style

They even wrapped it so it felt like a present to myself!

This of course helped with the decision!