Happy New Year! Hope it is a good one, with lots of great memories, good health and great sewing.

I surprised myself and managed to tick all but one of last years sewing resolutions ( or resewlutions). So here I go again, hoping this will keep me honest…

Project 30 Wears is about trying to be more mindful of my sewing projects and purchases. I’m trying to reduce the number of fabrics I buy or things I make that don’t get used. You may have seen, that on my pattern reviews, I’m recording things like the quality and life-span of the garment and making a prediction as to whether it will get 30 wears on not. Over the last year, I’ve kept a rough tally as to how many times I actually do wear something. I’ll have more on that in a later post.

The 50 Yard Dash sew-along is on again on Patter Review. Combined with Project 30 Wears, last year was the first year that I have substantially reduced my fabric stash.

The Butterfly Effect came about with my choice of inspiration fabric for the Stitchers’ Guild annual SWAP. But it also symbolises a new direction to my wardrobe planning and adding a bit of Chaos Theory into my sewing. On a recent wardrobe cleanout, I made a list of things I actually needed. I’ve sewn so many neutrals/basics in the last few years that I only need a few replacements or additions. What struck me most was how little colour there was in my wardrobe. It was so dull and boring – I need colour – prints – accents.

The colour palette from the butterfly fabric gives me a lot of choices for adding colour back in. I probably won’t come out with a cohesive stand-alone wardrobe to fit the SWAP rules. I’m more interested in building on what I have and having fun with it.

I plan to draft more of my own patterns and raid the pattern stash. I know that my posts about self-drafted patterns aren’t as popular as those made from the Big 4, but I’m finding the latest releases aren’t really my thing. With a bit of luck the fashion will swing around in my favour at some stage.

There are a few new things I’d like to learn in 2019, such as playing with shibori dyeing, felting and of course watching more of the Craftsy classes that I haven’t finished. On the weaving front, I’d like to try making ikat fabric, a handwoven bomber jacket and having a go weaving with linen.

Whatever the new year brings, stay healthy, stay happy and keep sewing!