I missed an internet highlights post last week because I’ve been off work, hanging out at home. And believe it or not, I’ve been spending more time getting some sewing done than I have been looking at sewing or making that I could be doing. Shocking? Yes. But bound to happen some day. I’ll be back in the next couple days with pictures and info about some of the other projects I’ve been working on. I think I’m just about done with my Natalie…finally. I still need to write up the Sutton blouse I finished weeks ago. I’ve almost finished a Julia cardigan and gotten started on a wearable muslin of a popover version of Archer. And I’ll have a whole post and review of the Felicity dress pattern. Whew!! That’s a lot of sewing progress!

But for now, here are the newer things I’m thinking about. I was poking around on instagram and came across Dropcloth Samplers and had to immediately snatch up one of the Original Samplers off of Etsy. Look at this thing, it’s beautiful!

The Original Sampler from Dropcloth Sampler

So that’s on it’s way. Hopefully I’ll have a chance to grab some embroidery thread and a hoop before it arrives because I really want to start on this. There are so many things about sewing that I absolutely love but one thing that has really bugged me about making the switch over from knitting to sewing is that I can’t bring my sewing machine everywhere. (I know I could just keep up some knitting projects so I have something portable. I can’t seem to keep both going at the same time though.) For some reason I’ve felt entirely disinterested in embroidery until very recently, even though it’s something I’ve done previously.

When I first learned to sew, back when I was a kid and spent a lot of time with my grandmother, embroidery was generally my sewing project of choice. My grandmother spent her time between high school and when she got married going to trade school and working in downtown Boston as a seamstress, working on wedding dresses. She continued after she got married making some of her own clothes, doing alterations for the family, quilting, embroidering, etc. She taught me, very early, with that crazy plastic grid canvas. At some point she moved me over from that lovely combo of acrylic yarn/plastic darning needle/plastic canvas to real embroidery. I’m not sure that I finished very many projects but I definitely started lots of things (and man did I love collecting ALL THE EMBROIDERY FLOSS!!)

This hobby fell by the wayside but I’m super excited to be giving it another try.

The other thing I’ve got floating around is an interest in pattern drafting. I know, I know. When I started this blog I said I wasn’t interested in making my own patterns. And now I’ve only been at this blog thingy for six weeks and I’ve already changed my mind. I’m not preparing to throw my patterns away and say I’m only making self-drafted things from now on. No way. But I came across this class over on Creativebug and I’ve started watching. I’m pretty excited about at least creating some basic forms and using them to help me alter the patterns I’ve already purchased, if only to work on really fitting them well. I’m not going to suggest that there’s no way I couldn’t come up with some new pattern shapes to offer the world but right now I’m feeling like indie sewing pattern world is serving me very well. I’m mostly interested in learning how patterns come together so that I can alter the patterns I’ve got in a more professional, and effective, way.

So those are my new ways to pass the time. I’ve got a couple more spring projects to finish up. Maybe spring is refusing to arrive in Boston because I haven’t finished my Ginger jeans. Guess I should get on that. I’ve already started planning my summer sewing list, I’ll let you know those details soon!!

-Hannah