Sewing with less stress...
(join in So I Sewed This' Focus on Enjoyment Re-sew-lution)
I didn't do a big sewing resolutions post this year. I felt that my resolutions last year really helped guide me last year so much so that I don't need new general resolutions this year. Sure I want to do specific things like sew a coat and use my stash but I don't have enough of those things to make a full list.
However I do have one thing I genuinely want to work on this year regarding sewing and I want to know if anyone else has this problem, too...
While a lot of sewists make resolutions to sew more in the coming year I think I'm going in the opposite direction. In the last two years I've made a boat load of garments. Not all have been winners but many have and now a majority of my everyday wardrobe is handmade. I don't do a "Me-Made-May" or a "Self-Stitched-September" - I do a "Self-Stitched-Life!" I feel a big sense of pride that most of my clothes are me-made. I love getting compliments from friends and family in real life and I like showing off my projects on the blog.
But it's gotten to the point that I feel disappointment in myself if I go out and I'm not wearing a single me-made garment. Or even worse if someone asked me if I made something I'm wearing and I have to say "no." I feel like I am pressuring myself to sew all my clothes. Maybe this me-made pride is getting a little out of hand? I even feel guilty if I have to go buy clothes in a store because I just don't have the time to make something or do a lot of fitting. And those damn Gap jeans fit so well, too! I just can't compete! (Breathe, Dixie, breathe!) This is a legitimate problem, I'm telling you! It's like, "sewist's guilt" or something!
This manifests in other ways, too. I am constantly inspired by new styles but heaven forbid I buy a trendy garment from a store like a normal person. I can make that myself, goshdarnit! So then in my quest to make every idea that pops into my brain I get distracted and the projects that take a long time to develop, like designing my own patterns, take a back seat to the quick and dirty "fashion fix", the instant gratification I can get from sewing with pre-made patterns. Sure, I can crank out several garments a month but my pattern development schedule suffers.
Perhaps giving in and buying the occasional piece will free up some time for me to make more patterns or work on more complex projects?
So this year I resolve to chill out when it comes to buying clothes vs. making them. It is just impossible for me to make all the clothes I ever have an idea for and sometimes there are clothes that I like and would be great in my wardrobe but I just don't have the desire or excitement to sew them (which is perhaps why I have one button down top that I've been working on for months 'cause I'm a little bored with sewing it even though I know I'll like it when it's done).
Plus, I already know that I can make jeans or coats or bras or some other difficult item but that doesn't mean I have to make them. I should sew what I like making! I'm going to try to focus on enjoying sewing and not feel pressured to fill every corner of my closet with stuff I've made.
But I will try to at least buy clothes that are decent quality and buy from designers I admire like what I've decided to do since reading Overdressed.
Phew, ok, I'm glad I got that out of my system. It's going to be a hard resolution to keep - not necessarily buying clothes but not feeling bad about doing so. Does anyone else have this problem or am I just crazy???? I think I'm a little crazy...
I didn't do a big sewing resolutions post this year. I felt that my resolutions last year really helped guide me last year so much so that I don't need new general resolutions this year. Sure I want to do specific things like sew a coat and use my stash but I don't have enough of those things to make a full list.
However I do have one thing I genuinely want to work on this year regarding sewing and I want to know if anyone else has this problem, too...
While a lot of sewists make resolutions to sew more in the coming year I think I'm going in the opposite direction. In the last two years I've made a boat load of garments. Not all have been winners but many have and now a majority of my everyday wardrobe is handmade. I don't do a "Me-Made-May" or a "Self-Stitched-September" - I do a "Self-Stitched-Life!" I feel a big sense of pride that most of my clothes are me-made. I love getting compliments from friends and family in real life and I like showing off my projects on the blog.
But it's gotten to the point that I feel disappointment in myself if I go out and I'm not wearing a single me-made garment. Or even worse if someone asked me if I made something I'm wearing and I have to say "no." I feel like I am pressuring myself to sew all my clothes. Maybe this me-made pride is getting a little out of hand? I even feel guilty if I have to go buy clothes in a store because I just don't have the time to make something or do a lot of fitting. And those damn Gap jeans fit so well, too! I just can't compete! (Breathe, Dixie, breathe!) This is a legitimate problem, I'm telling you! It's like, "sewist's guilt" or something!
This manifests in other ways, too. I am constantly inspired by new styles but heaven forbid I buy a trendy garment from a store like a normal person. I can make that myself, goshdarnit! So then in my quest to make every idea that pops into my brain I get distracted and the projects that take a long time to develop, like designing my own patterns, take a back seat to the quick and dirty "fashion fix", the instant gratification I can get from sewing with pre-made patterns. Sure, I can crank out several garments a month but my pattern development schedule suffers.
Perhaps giving in and buying the occasional piece will free up some time for me to make more patterns or work on more complex projects?
So this year I resolve to chill out when it comes to buying clothes vs. making them. It is just impossible for me to make all the clothes I ever have an idea for and sometimes there are clothes that I like and would be great in my wardrobe but I just don't have the desire or excitement to sew them (which is perhaps why I have one button down top that I've been working on for months 'cause I'm a little bored with sewing it even though I know I'll like it when it's done).
Plus, I already know that I can make jeans or coats or bras or some other difficult item but that doesn't mean I have to make them. I should sew what I like making! I'm going to try to focus on enjoying sewing and not feel pressured to fill every corner of my closet with stuff I've made.
But I will try to at least buy clothes that are decent quality and buy from designers I admire like what I've decided to do since reading Overdressed.
Phew, ok, I'm glad I got that out of my system. It's going to be a hard resolution to keep - not necessarily buying clothes but not feeling bad about doing so. Does anyone else have this problem or am I just crazy???? I think I'm a little crazy...
