Friday, March 1, 2013

Diving In

Here I am, in fashion limbo.  It's been this way since the birth of my daughter 15 months ago. Nursing breasts to be accessed easily. 25 pound weight-gain. Moving to the hot, sticky tropics from a dry, wintry desert. These kind of things can mess with a person's wardrobe.

Searching through the clothing racks that are in my price range, I find a lot of polyester. I find a lot of shirts that are too short or slide off my shoulders funny, revealing my hefty nursing bra strap. I find bottoms that give me a serious case of muffin top. I used to love going to thrift shops and now I can't seem to focus and power through the racks. I can't find anything that seems to work for me.

Back in January I remembered Grainline's Tiny Pocket Tank. I had come a across it a year or so ago and knew it would  meet all the criteria I had been searching for in a top:

I could make it in a non clingy breathable fabric.
It could be in a print to hide the many stains my daughter likes to deposit on me.
It would fall away from my donut belly, instead of accentuating it.
It would be long enough.
It would be inexpensive.
It would allow me to nurse my daughter easily.

I sewed one up out fabric from my mom's old stash. The feeling I got was amazing. I quickly sewed up another one, recycling a rayon beach dress that was too small for me. I went on a sewing frenzy and I sewed some things for my daughter and my niece and a couple of dresses for myself. I found myself on a tour through various sewing blogs and was inspired by those who were building a great wardrobe through their sewing efforts.

 I love the nervousness and uncertainty going into a sewing project and the thrill that starts to creep in when things start taking shape. I love that I can feed my creative needs and have something practical to show for it.  It's a kind of high I don't get with many of my other creative endeavors.

A few days ago, I purchased 15 patterns at an online Butterick/ Mccall's/Vogue sale, determined to build a new wardrobe out of home sewn clothing and to expand my humble sewing skills. I'm excited to see what comes of it!

1 comment:

  1. I understand exactly what you're describing, i feel the same way! I can't wait to see what you make out of those patterns :-)

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