Welcome 2023-Sewtopia Returns to Garment and Accessory Sewing- The Modern Modiste

 

 *disclaimer: this is not my sewing room/studio. I wish! My jumble is so bad post-holiday, my camera would shatter with the first click!

Happy New Year. While not a resolution maker, I almost always set a sewing goal for the year. Like several before this one, the approach to my sewing life has changed focus, just a bit. I am more than a quilter, more than a domestic decorator, I sew. Lots of things. That is another reason why Sewtopia has had a bit of a shift. I remain happy to quilt and feature quilting, but that is only one component of life at Sewtopia.

 

 An evolution of soul has taken some time, but surely, it is the correct way to proceed in my retirement years. In speaking with a dear cousin recently, a few very significant elements emerged. After surviving serious illness, losing her spouse to illness, selling her home, and moving out of state, she is starting a new chapter in her life. She is young, she wants to live again. While my circumstances do not reflect her journey, mine have drawn me to sort out how I spend my time. Our days need to be full and happy to pursue interests that bring satisfaction.  

 Sewing does not have to be drudgery. It is a challenge, it is satisfying, it offers an amazing sense of accomplishment.

To start this January off with a bang, I want to review the important steps for you to consider. The most obvious is for you to make sure your machine (machines) are in good working order. Make sure you have nice sharp pins and scissors. I am a tool person. You name it, I probably have it. I will review as we go along because to me the right tool for the right project is essential. Some of my quilting tools I do use for garment work and find that each has their own benefits, not just one use.   

Within this category will be some accessories, a monthly apron (you all know how I am about the aprons) and occasional home decor piece. Feel free to skip any project you have no interest in following. I will occasionally refer you to video's and other online personalities for inspiration, techniques, and teaching moments.  

I have been re-inspired by some reading that referenced this project by Sarah Gunn. Her year long journey was to not buy any more clothes. She apparently had been quite the shopper for herself and her two lovely daughters for some time and came to realize she was spending a lot of money and much of what she bought she could maker herself! A link to the most recent project in 2021, HERE. A lovely and stylish woman, Sarah Gunn, shows you just how versatile and accomplished one can be in a project like this. Why? Because you make a challenge to yourself, to plan it, you sew it and learn with each project. 

She wrote a book with Julie Starr called the Tunic Bible, available on Amazon and in some quilt shops, is a great little tome to inspire you to make any number of tunic-style tops with simple variations. 

I do have the book, I have studied it a bit but chose to buy the Kindle version because I have enough tunic patterns to clothe the entire Roman Senate! Recently, a local quilt shop did a sew-along using this book, I have not watched all the video's yet but hope to get to it this year. 

• I plan (as I do with projects) to journal my plans, my fabric choices, my pattern and any alterations, in a simple wire spiral notebook. This is a compilation of ideas, sketches, and usually a list to check off progress.
• I hope to photograph progress.
• I will share tools and tid-bits.
• I will honestly document (here) fails and features.