about yearly reviews. I know we’re a couple week’s into the new year, but I’m still having fun reading all the recaps from 2013 – what people made, what people hated making, what people want to make more of, etc. Heather had one hell of a year with the release of her bombshell pattern and the making of The Sallie Silk Dress (I still can’t get over that fabric)! Tilly had an amazing 2013 as well. She appeared on The Great British Sewing Bee, released a couple of patterns, started teaching sewing, wrote a book, and more. My favorite recap was Sarai’s from Colette Patterns and Jen’s from Grainline Studios. Instead of writing a list of new year’s resolutions, they adopted a phrase or a word that they will keep in mind in 2014. For Sarai, her word is focus and for Jen, her catchphrase is “work hard & have fun.” I love this! One, because it allows for change. Over the course of a year, what I want to sew doesn’t stay the same, and I can’t predict now what I will want to sew in December. But if I have a word to live by, I can chose projects as my mood changes. Yes, I have have a few things that I absolutely want to accomplish this year, and that’s okay, but having a laundry list of projects will set me up for failure. I know it. There are 5 patterns I want to sew, but once I finish, who knows what I’ll want to make, and I’m not going to plan now.
After thinking about Sarai and Jen’s tone for this year, I made up my own. One is to think big, and the other is to become a better seamstress. I don’t necessary want to sew more or less, but I want to become a better at what I do. I want to get into projects – research the fabric and how to care for it, learn about the history of that particular garment, improve on the techniques involved, etc. Also, I want to worry less about the time involved. It felt so amazing to be able to wear a dress I made 2 years ago this holiday season, and I want to get back into those types of projects. Even if I only crank out those 5 garments, that’s okay. And who’s counting anyways?
What about you – did you set a list of resolutions or did you adopt an overall tone for the year? Whatever the case, I’m wishing you and I have a great year!
