Wait… How is it the end of the year already?
So apparently there were a few things I wanted to improve on at the end of last year, namely restricting my fabric stash to the number of cards my swatch album can contain, finishing some UFOs and blogging more regularly. I am very proud to say that I did not achieve even one of these goals-not-resolutions! 😂
I bought more fabric than I sewed, I added one UFO to the box of shame and I let my blog sleep at about the same periods as last year. But I’ve been blogging on the (sort of) regular again since September, so there’s that!
Contrary to last year, I didn’t try and cram everything I’ve made before the end of the year. I still have to blog 8 things I made (two tops, two skirts, two cardigans and two jackets). You can get a peek of them at the bottom of the photo montage below of everything I made in 2016, and I’ll blog them in the next year. Some of them (Ondée sweaters, gathered skirt, probably the Chardon skirt, too) don’t deserve a post of their own, but I’ll make sure to include them in posts about other garments when the occasion presents itself. I’ll also make sure to edit this post with links to the future blog posts as I publish them: Gato Morado cardigan, Bronze Brynja cardigan, Enfin Lupin jacket, cherry print gathered skirt…
Here are all the garments I made in 2016 then:
I made 36 items this year, isn’t that crazy? Okay, one or two may be cheating: I finished knitting this cardigan in 2015 and only wove in the ends, blocked it and added the buttons in 2016. And I first finished the first dress of 2016 at the very end of 2015, only in January I made it much more wearable by lengthening it, changing the buttons and adding snap closures. Still, I’m pretty impressed with myself here! 😉
Just for fun, I’ve made some pie charts (on this website)! The first one shows the techniques (sewing, knitting, millinery – still no shoes this year) I’ve used:
The second one shows the distribution of garment types:
I’ve actually made four jackets, not two, but I included Monsieur’s and my goddaughter’s in the gift category. Also, I was surprised at how many tops I’d made, but then I remembered, five of them are Ondée sweaters. Not that surprising then! 😜
And the last pie chart is about the brands of sewing/knitting patterns I used:
I don’t think that blue chunk at the bottom will surprise anyone! 😉
I am really happy about how much I’ve been wearing most of what I’ve made. This playsuit is the only piece I haven’t worn at all, but I still find it very pretty so I’m not getting rid of it anytime soon. These culottes and tank on the other hand I’ve worn… but might end up donating nonetheless because I’m a bit meh about them. We’ll see how I feel about them come summer.
Other than these three, I think I’ve become really good at knowing not only what I like, but also what I like wearing. I almost always ask myself two questions before embarking on a sewing or knitting project: “What will I wear it with?” and “Would I buy it in a shop?” and this has proved to be very effective.
The pieces I’ve worn even more than the rest are my swallow print Sureau and my star print Cardamome, which are such nice replacements for my first Sureau, and this yellow rain jacket, so perfect for the Belgian climate! I’ve also worn my grey Lupin jacket a lot when the weather still allowed for a light jacket, but for now it’s waiting for Spring. All of my knits have been in heavy rotation, too. Even the last one I completed has been worn quite a few times already.
Before I let you go, I want to keep track of two non-sewing/knitting highlights of 2016. The first one is actually sewing related: I was lucky enough to fly to Toulouse and meet Eléonore and Camille to take part in a photo shoot for Deer&Doe, which was So. Much. Fun!
Source: Deer&Doe website
The second one has nothing to do with sewing: during our annual trip to Spain, Monsieur and I fell in love with a stray cat… and brought him back with us to Brussels (on a 12-hour journey of buses + plane, woohoo!)! Fernando was the most pathetic little thing; we gave him something to eat every day but he didn’t let us get closer than a metre without hissing and/or running away. Then one day I managed to get close enough and pet his head… and all of a sudden he became very affectionate with us and literally did not leave the front terrace of the house until we left! Pathetic skinny black and grey Fernando has now become a gorgeous black and white cat and, despite an estimated two years of living on the streets, seems to have perfectly adjusted to apartment dwelling. I was afraid he and Olivine, my first cat (who hates everyone but me – yes, even Monsieur!), would not get along at all, but they’ve been much more civil than what I expected. Olivine tolerates him, which is more than what I had hoped for!
The day after he arrived home!
To get back to the subject of this blog, this time I won’t take any resolutions nor talk about any goals, sewing or otherwise, and just wish you, just like I did for 2016, a happy, creative 2017!
Rue des Renards 