Notions Of Fabric

I know people say this every year, but how is it the end of 2019 already? It has been a big one for us in many ways. We had to leave the UK for a few months to get new visas at the beginning of the year, I lost a job, I got a new (better) one, we have travelled, I have seen much theatre, and as usual I've bought more fabric than I've sewn! Of course, this is a common problem among sewists and I will do a post in a week or so with my intentions for the year 2020 but for now this is a wrapping up post! In terms of sewing, I did a lot in the beginning of the year. It helped to pass the time while I was back at home for 2 months, unemployed and with my family at work every day. And that period of time was a real eye-opener for me! I made three projects which were challenging me in different ways - piping and pattern matching, trousers, and many buttonholes! After that, and the successes which I had with those, I realised that I need to challenge myself more in my sewing. So then ...

My next big project for the summer was always going to be a swimsuit. I do find shopping for swimsuits hard, because I am bigger up top and want sufficient support, plus coverage on the lower half. In the past I have just kind of avoided shopping for bikinis in particular. I currently own one RTW bikini, which I adore but took me a lot of effort to find and which I have had for years. Enter the  Sophie swimsuit   This is my perfect silhouette - plenty of support up top and a gorgeous high waisted lower half. I earmarked it as soon as it came out to make at some point. Then I began to gather supplies. But the real reasons it took me so long to make were twofold: firstly that it was another new skill (and that’s scary), but also because I suffered from some extreme fabric indecisiveness - firstly over the fabric colours, then over the fabric placements! There are just so many possibilities, and I really wanted this first suit to be actually wearable and not just a toile. I bough...

No new photos today, folks. My regular photographer ran his first real (Olympic plus distance) triathlon today and we are both much too tired! So instead, I have a question. Or a quandary. While I was waiting for the race to finish, I grabbed some pencils to match fabric swatches. My current queue is one Kew dress, and then my next BIG project - a Closet Case files Sophie swimsuit! I am equal parts intimidated and excited for this project. Notions were actually quite easy to get - I just ordered a basic kit from Emerald Erin in nude and it has everything that I will need! So that was easy. I have spent an reasonable amount of time looking for fabric, before deciding on a splurge from Blackbird Fabrics. I've never ordered from them before but have been looking for an opportunity for a while, so I order 3 fabrics which I thought would coordinate with the thought to mix and match across a bikini. So I spent a few hours colouring in some of the croquis, using the closest colours that I...