Accountability 2014: Last Year's Goals and My General Awesomeness Rating

It is the first day of January, and I am in a blanket fort on the couch desperately trying to forget how sick I've been over the past week. You know that epic stomach bug that's been terrorizing North America? It. Is. Really. Awful. Lots of handwashing ok guys? I'm fine now, but super tired. Luckily, I can blog from my blankets!
I take a perverse enjoyment in rehashing the last year's goals to see how I measured up. Come join me as I crow about my successes, wallow in my failures, and spew word vomit onto the screen. Be grateful that's the only kind of vomit I'm producing now. Stupid Norovirus.
2013's Crafty Goals:

• Knit 15km.

Oh hell yes. 16.1km. That is so much knitting I can't even contain my smugness.

• Spin 9km.

I lost my spinning mojo towards the end of the year, which is unfortunate as I really could have made this goal. I clocked in at 7.6km, which is not too shabby. In other news I'm going to be doing away with my knitmeter widget in favour of a spreadsheet that doesn't get all cranky with me. Maybe a more pleasant inputting experience would make this meterage measuring less of a chore.

• Finish one of the three cross stitched Christmas stockings.

Yeah, no. Stupid fucking stockings. They are going to be worth it. They are going to be beautiful. I bought a snap frame to replace my traditional embroidery hoop and the stitching has picked up again over the past few months.

• Make a patchwork quilt.

I did! It's beautiful! I made my parents a nautical themed quilt for Christmas, and I loved the whole experience. I am planning future quilts as I type.

The back is simple unbleached cotton flannel. Isn't it cute?

• Knit the Evenstar Shawl.

I tried. I really did. I got out the yarn and pattern and needles, went to swatch, and then realized I'd done something I have never done before. I bought the wrong amount of yarn. I was short by nearly 200 yards. I knit a sweater with it instead, and I have some fibre to spin for the next attempt at the shawl of my dreams.

• Release at least four patterns.

Almost! 3 patterns in a year is a lot less than I'd ideally like, but still. They're good patterns.

• Slightly reduce yarn and fibre stash volumes.

Yarn: yes. Fibre: look I'm sure you have faults too. Why are we only talking about mine? It isn't all about me here.

• Don't buy more raw fibre, and work with what I have.

I didn't find myself even tempted to buy more, but I didn't use the fleeces nearly as much as I had hoped.

• Weave.

I am disappointed to say I failed this goal miserably. I'm feeling a bit stumped by my lack of weaving progress actually - I want to weave, I want woven things, but I just don't do it. I'll try harder this year.

• Knit sweaters.

Like a boss. I knit five in 2013, all of them for me. Sweaters for a lady of my signficance are no small commitment, so I am pleased with this.

• Knit selfishly and pursue other crafts if I prefer them over knitting at that moment.

I did! I got a little carried away with the Christmas crafting this year (OK, brag time. 4 pairs of socks, 3 of which were for man feet, 2 pairs of fingering weight mitts, a laceweight cowl, a hat, a cross stitched sampler, two handsewn neckties, and oh, just an entire quilt. Bask in my awesomeness, go on) but I did what made me happy, embraced crafts as they appealed to me, and was happily productive.

The aforementioned sampler

2013's Life Goals:

• Read.

While I am miles away from my pre-parenthood book-a-week status, I read almost a book a month this year (for comparison, last year I read a book. Like, one). I got a Kindle for Christmas, which has made reading while knitting possible by fixing the whole "paperbacks don't stay open if you're not actively holding them" problem. Also, I can read racy novels and nobody will ever know.

• Train the dog.

Loki has improved, for sure. Part of it comes down to the fact that he's (FINALLY) maturing. His leash manners are great, and he is extremely obedient if treats are involved. I taught him to roll over the other day, just for fun. He's a pest, but boy is he clever.

• Get my driver's licence.

I DID IT. My learner's licence has irritating restrictions aimed at a sixteen year old, but I'm working on getting ready for my first road test. I haven't even tried parallel parking yet.

• Improve my mental and physical health.

I was well on track with both, but a month of near inactivity due to bronchitis this fall has really set me back. I'm still very happy with my efforts, if not always with their results.

• Put more money in savings.

We moved into a bigger, more expensive home this year, and faced a number of unexpected expenses. Did you know that if your puppy's balls don't drop, a simple neuter turns into a $900 operation? Turns out the testicles had never worked after all, but hey. They're out now. No use crying over spilt testicles, amirite? I'm happy that we came out ahead, but I didn't meet my goal of saving 10% of our incomes.

• Better outward self care.

This goal was all about presentation - hair, makeup, clothes, cleanliness etc. I think I did a great job. I discovered the miracle of dresses, learned loads of new makeup techniques, and successfully transitioned my hair from black to platinum blonde without looking like a skunk in the meantime. Go me.

• Continue to grow my business.

Yes! I worked harder, sold more things, had more fun, got more exposure, and made more friends.

• Do fun things with family.

Not in the way I had originally planned, with camping trips and adorable Kodak moments, but we found a very pleasant groove in our family time.
When I do the (very official and quantitative) math, I earned a 61% in crafty goals, and a solid 81% in life goals. I'm pleased with me! Every time I feel like a failure in 2014 I'll remind myself that I'm more of a solid B minus. Yay?
I'll ponder and post this year's goals soon. Until then, dear readers, avoid touching strangers and sanitize everything!

Halloween Sewing: Pete the Cat Costume

I know Halloween is long over, but I had to share Rei's costume. I whipped it up from some polar fleece, with appliquéd felt accents and a bit of fabric paint. My rule for toddler costumes is that any store bought elements need to either come from her regular wardrobe, or be added to it after the event. The rest becomes year-round dress-up!

Rei wanted to be her favourite picture book character, Pete the Cat. Using her stuffed Pete toy as a model I made her a hoodie based on a shirt that fits, and painted up a pair of old shoes. A pair of blue leggings from Target and a handmade tail (stuffed with Rambouillet fleece because I'm fancy like that and also I ran out of polyfill) completed the outfit. Cute!

The best part is she can totally wear the hoodie as a regular sweater!

 

Sewing Again - Crazy Floral Top

I've been playing with my sewing machine again! I fell madly in love with some bizarre purple and green floral cotton lawn (or voile, or whatever -it's soft, thin, and almost sheer) a few weeks ago. Florals are trendy this year, and the garish lime green pleases me so much, so I was entirely justified in attempting to make a shirt, right?

I used a pattern from BurdaStyle; the printed tunic/clean cut dress.

I modified the neckline and sleeve length, and shortened the overall length. I also made it more fitted and shaped in the waist, added darts for fit, and fiddled about with the sizing. There are a few irritating fit issues in the back neck and shoulder, but I'll deal. I'm still learning, after all.

Pardon the wrinkles - I'd had it on for an afternoon of shopping and car rides by this point. I'd love to style it with a wide belt, but I don't have one. I would have one if I didn't keep blowing my entire clothing budget on more fabric. So many pretty things in the works!

See the weird fit problem? It likes to crawl up the back of my neck and go all poofy/pointy in the shoulders. I'm currently working on the same pattern in another fabric and I think I've got it under control. I'm short and round-shouldered - apparently they don't draft patterns for that. How dare they?

I'll share my next attempt soon!

 

Plus Sized Fashion - Your Sewing Machine is Your Greatest Ally!

I am sure you all know by now that I'm plus sized. Actually I hate that term. I'm fat. I'm also healthy and confident and body positive - three things that don't go hand-in-hand with weight nearly as often as you may expect. Sure, some days I hate my body - everyone has days. I have made peace with my curves, and that has been one of the most liberating changes of my life (another source of liberation? Did you know that nobody cares if you don't fold your T-shirts or pair your socks? You can just stick them in the drawer and nobody will be the wiser).

One of the drawbacks to being outside the "correct" size box is that great clothes are hard to find, particularly on a budget, and even more so if you don't live in an area that supports shops that cater to a larger size range. I love the idea of thrifted fashion finds, but it rarely happens here in Victoria, where I can count the number of shops with clothes that I a) want to wear, and b) fit into, on one chubby hand.

Long story short: I've taken things into my own hands. Knitting is my favourite method of making clothing, but it is neither practical nor desirable to knit an entire wardrobe. That's where sewing comes in. Most people will tell you that it isn't cheaper to sew for yourself. They haven't tried to buy a decently made dress in a size 22. This dress cost me approximately $24, including notions.

The fabric is a lighter weight decor fabric I got on sale at Ikea. It was a delight to work with, if a little heavy for garment use (but frankly too light for decor. What was it intended for??). The pattern is the BurdaStyle plus size Shakira Dress. This:

It's... really very, very ugly in that lumpy yellow fabric, but it looked like a very versatile basic pattern for $3, and I think it can withstand a lot of modification. There was an enormous amount of ease worked into the pattern - I had to take it in almost four inches from the size recommended for slightly bleow my bust measurement for a comfortable yet flattering fit. However, that means in a drapey fabric it could be made up into an entirely different thing! I love a basic princess seamed A-line and I'll definitely play more with this one.

The whole printing 50 pages and taping them together thing wasn't that bad, surprisingly, and I have a few more printable patterns in mind. And maybe I also bought fabric for them. I haven't done extensive garment sewing for years, because when I dropped out of my fashion design degree program in 2005, I experienced some pretty significant burnout. In fact, I've only just recently become interested in fashion again. I want to sew all the things!

So, do you sew, either in plus sizes or smaller sizes? I'd love to hear your sources for patterns and inspiration!