elli & nels *in stitches*: 52 Week Sewing Challenge: Week 1

Monday, January 8, 2018

52 Week Sewing Challenge: Week 1

2018 is starting off with a bang! I've been sewing every day (amazing), and actually finishing projects (double amazing). I've joined a couple of IG challenges; Sew Altered Style and Curvy Sewing Collective have bimonthly themes, so I've made up my 2018 #makenine list to try to fit in as many of those as I can. This year my wardrobe will get a serious overhaul if I get as much done as I'd like! Not to mention I've committed to #rtwfast2018 with Goodbye Valentino - no buying clothes, just making them! (For myself, anyway. But I'm trying with my kids' stuff, too!)

I also joined the 52 Week Sewing Challenge group on Facebook. The idea is to sew one item a week, and each week has a theme that participants can follow if they see fit. There are sponsors for giveaways, and if you post in the official thread a photo of your finished project (either "Challenge Accepted" or "Challenge Rejected" if you sewed something not fitting the theme), you're entered to win. I also have an album for my creations, that aside from the challenge item I'm posting everything else I make in 2018, to have a visual record.

Week 1 is over - the theme was "warm and soft". Easy for me in cold Wyoming! We had a week of negative temps; now it's been in the 40s, but you still need a coat. (The wind..!)

I pulled a pattern from my stash that I've intended to make myself for a few years now - the Midnight Slippers from Stitch Upon A Time. They're not on the site, but if you join their FB group there is a file with the free pattern download.

Back in December I was shopping thrift stores for an ugly sweater party, and I found a lambswool beauty from Old Navy. It wasn't the right size to wear, but I knew I had to take it home and felt it for another project! Turns out it was perfect for the slippers, and I even have enough left for some mittens or a hat! I bought the end of a bolt of Sherpa fleece at Joann a few weeks back, and used that for the lining, opting out of a "pad" layer since the two fabrics are so thick. Now that I've been wearing them a while, I wouldn't mind having another layer, but they do the job. I sew in the basement, and the tile-over-concrete floor can get COLD - not to mention the drafts.

From this...

to these!

Other First-Week-of-January sews:

Astronaut Mittens (Puperita) in anti pill fleece from Joann Fabrics and French terry from Koshtex

Little Lamb Zippy Pouch (Stubbornly Crafty) - turned cat; face is Siser vinyl and was designed by my 6 year old. Quilting cotton from Walmart; lining is a woven Lecien print, manufactured in Japan.

Summit Peak Hoodie (New Horizons Design) in Starfluffle Fabric Alphabet Tree custom French terry and red and green cotton spandex from Purple Seamstress.

*Alphabet Tree print is no longer available; this was purchased in the last reprint round, September of 2017. Check the Starfluffle BST Facebook page.

Green Tee (Greenstyle) in mulberry rayon spandex from Pretty Posh Prints.

*Pretty Posh is in the process of relaunching their website; the Green Tee is free with a code in the Greenstyle Patterns Facebook group.