Wherein I Actually Plan Ahead...

Last weekend I spent a full day cleaning out my closet and getting rid of anything that didn't fit, wasn't flattering, or hadn't been worn in at least a year. I decided that there would be no hanging on to something because either a) I made it or b) it cost a lot if it didn't fit, flatter, or appeal. In the end I had 3 giant trash bags of things to give away, and in looking at what was left and what was leaving, there were a couple things apparent:

1. While I tend to buy and sew a lot of crazy prints, I tend to wear mainly solids or very subtle prints (stripes, or tone on tone).
2. Although I sew a lot of dresses, I wear mostly pants and tops.
3. I tend to layer, preferring cardigans to jackets.
4. Shirts/dresses with princess seams are more flattering and get worn more than shirts/dresses with darts.
5. All the staples in my wardrobe are gray, black, and white

Given this, I decided that for my fall/winter sewing, I was going to both Shop, and Sew With a Plan...something that anyone who knows me knows I never do. I always thought, "oh, it's too restrictive, I just wan to sew what I want to sew." But where has that gotten me? 3 trashbags full of clothes for the Goodwill.

So, I am going to take a page from Carolyn and Ruthie and actually create a set of coordinates that can be interchanged (I like to think of it as Garanimals, but for Grown-Ups). Based on what was left in my closet when I was done with it, I decided that I would use the following colors:

1. Black
2. Grey
3. White
   
4. Plum
5. Lavender
6. Orchid

Using this as a guideline, I selected the following fabrics (click on the photo to enlarge):


This is a combination that I think will do well for both work, as well as the weekend. Here is a list of what I have:

1. Dark heather gray wool jersey, $10.20 per yard, from Fashion Fabrics Club
2. Wool blend flannel, $4.89 per yard, from Fashion Fabrics Club
3. Periwinkle charmeuse, $4.04 per yard, from Fashion Fabrics Club
4. Grey/black print charmeuse, $4.04 per yard, from Fashion Fabrics Club
5. Black and grey herringbone suiting, $6.37 per yard, from Fashion Fabrics Club
6. White jersey knit, $4.46 per yard, from Fashion Fabrics Club
7. Purple jersey knit with diamond pattern, $4.21 per yard, from Fashion Fabrics Club
8. Purple/ivory cotton shirting, $3.61 per yard, from Fashion Fabrics Club
9. Heather gray knit, $4.21 per yard, from Fashion Fabrics Club
10. Silk Tweed suiting, $7.98 per yard, from Fabric.com
11. Plum jersey knit, $3.98 per yard, from Fabric.com
12. Black jersey knit, $3.98 per yard, from Fabric.com
13. Black boiled wool knit, $11.98 per yard, from Fabric.com
14. Orchid stretch shirting, $1.95 per yard, from Hancock's Fabric
15. Plum and orchid striped jersey, $3.95 per yard, from Hancock's Fabric
16. Gray cashmere wool suiting, $32.50 per yard, from B Black and Sons

Ultimately, I have enough fabric for at least 16 separate garments. I am going to focus on tops and pants, but also have some fabric for at least one dress and one jacket. So here are my plans...

Tops:

For tops I have two different types of fabrics, knit and woven. For the woven tops, the fabrics are an ivory and purple striped cotton (left), that has the feel of an organdy and has a bit of a sheen. The orchid cotton (center) has a bit of lycra, and the final two (periwinkle and black/grey pattern) are both poly charmeuse.


So, what are my plans for these? The two cottons will be princess seamed blouses, using a pattern like McCalls 6124. I am considering a pussy-bow blouse, of which there are about a hundred patterns for in Burda Style, for the black and grey. The perwinkle will be a fitted blouse with pearl snaps, almost in the style of a western shirt.


The rest of the fabrics for shirts are all knits:


The knits are all rayon/lycra or cotton/lycra blends, and all have a nice drape. Given this, I would like to use the dark purple, white, or gray for one of the Hot Patterns 3 Graces tops:


The rest will be either long-sleeved tees or turtlenecks. The light purple has a diamond pattern woven into it:


So I will need to find a pattern that will work well with that. Perhaps something like Butterick 5283:



Bottoms:

For the bottoms, I have all wool or silk. For the silk tweed suiting (the one with little purple threads in it), I will make a lined pencil skirt, something like McCalls 5523:

For the remainder of the fabrics, I will make pants using my TNT pants pattern, that began its life as a pants pattern from the July, 2009 issue of Burda. Unfortunately, their website is a complete disaster, so I can't link it, but this is the line drawing:


Dresses:

I know that the last thing that I need is another dress, but I have really been wanting to make the Hot Patterns Plain and Simple Iconic Shirtdress:


I was able to get a really nice wool/lycra jersey from FFC, it is much lighter weight than a sweater knit, so will be very nice for this dress without being too heavy:


Outerwear:

Finally, I got a length of a boiled wool knit. It does not have very much stretch so I might use it for a kind of unstructured jacket:


I like the looks of the Hot Patterns Riviera Boulevard Cardigan-Jacket, but it is described as a "gentle A-line shape," which in a jacket I do not think would be very flattering on me.


Therefore, I may use it for something with more shaping, like Vogue 7975, it has princess seams so I can tailor it:


Because the knit is a boiled wool, there is very little stretch, so I might be able to get away with using it for the jacket. If I get really fancy, I can put a little braid around the edge.

So there you have it...my first attempt at Sewing With a Plan...or, Garanimals for Grown-Ups. Maybe if I get through this set this winter, I can put a little purple monkey label in all of them...and then next year, they all get a giraffe. That way, I will know what matches what.

Wish me luck! I hope I can stick to the plan!