Old Fabric, New Plans

Part 2: How i got my sewing motivation back:

Here is the second part of my story of how I rethought my sewing plans during the coronavirus lockdown. At the end of my last blog post: it was Spring 2020, I had planned to sew a collection of stylish office wear, but I was freshly unemployed and lacking all motivation to sew. 

Here are some things that helped to motivate me to think creatively and get sewing again:

  • Me Made May: the Instagram challenge when you share or wear a piece of handmade (me) made clothing during the month of May. I had never participated in this before, but with a lot of free time on my hands in May 2020, I decided to finally start posting to Instagram regularly. I enjoyed seeing what other people were sharing and sewing, and discovered some new patterns by browsing my feed. 

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  • A giant quilt: Sometimes I just want to make something with my hands without thinking about the process or the final outcome. Cutting out quilt blocks is a perfectly mindless craft activity. I cut out a huge stack of quilt blocks for the Arlo quilt, and later decided on how to piece them together. It was a relaxing activity that also gave me a lot of time to think about my next projects.




  • Fall 2020 DYW: Participating in the Seamwork Design Your Wardrobe program got me excited about sewing clothes again. For the Fall 2020 season, I decided that I wanted to design and sew a mini collection of outerwear for social distancing.



When I was ready to take another look at my pre-lockdown sewing plan, I considered a few adaptations. For example, maybe I could still make some of the patterns I was initially excited about, but in a different fabric. Or, I could do the opposite, and use the fabric I had to work with a totally different pattern style. Lastly, I really thought about the projects I had started, but had not yet completed, and considered whether I was still interested in wearing the finished garment, or if I could cut it up and start a new project from the leftover scraps.



Here is what I did with my old plan:

Cut it up! 

I ended up taking scissors to a few half-completed makes, and cutting a new pattern out of the pieces. At first it was difficult to cut into a project that I had already invested time and thought into making. However, I decided that I would rather have a finished project that I would want to wear, rather than a dusty pile of half finished makes. 


The first project I cut up was the Seamwork Bo top- the pattern pieces were already cut out, but never sewn together. I was able to cut a new, casual short sleeved button up top from the original pieces. 

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I also cut up a nearly complete project- the Seamwork Kimmy dress, which I was no longer excited about wearing. Working carefully, I salvaged the largest pieces of the skirt to reuse as lining fabric for another jumpsuit.

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Mix it up!

I challenged myself to reconsider fabrics that I had once bought to make one thing, and think of a new make that would fit my lifestyle and sewing goals now. I wanted to figure out what to do with the yards of black stretch wool that I had originally designated for office worthy pants. I considered the qualities of the fabric - lightweight, wrinkle resistant, slightly stretchy, neutral color- and decided to make a jumpsuit that I could layer with my other makes. The jumpsuit was a welcome addition to my wardrobe, as something that I could dress up or down, depending on the occasion.


I also made a pair of elastic waist pants with my black stretch wool. Elastic waisted pants were something that I didn’t enjoy wearing or making before. However, I found that the Closet Core Pietra pants had a flat front that I liked, and they were also extra comfortable for wearing all day. 

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My goal was not only to challenge myself to reconsider my project planning, but also to sew from my fabric stash. I usually buy the fabrics I love first, and then think of a project to make with them. Many of the fabrics I used brough back memories of shopping in the Garment District during my lunch break. Now when I wear my black stretch wool jumpsuit, it will remind me of all these things- a Midtown shopping spree in 2019, my initial 2020 office wardrobe sewing plan, and my 2021 pivot to making something new.

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Catching up on 2021

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Abandoned Plans