2023 Sewing Goals And Plans

Happy New Year! It’s hard to believe that a new year is upon us. It seems like 2022 flew by. Every year I like to set some goals for myself, so here are my 2023 sewing goals and plans. As always, things can change so I always leave room for some flexibility.

The Sewing Room

I would like to rearrange or reorganize my sewing room. As you may know, I sew in my basement, so there are some things in my sewing room that don’t have another place to go in the house. But I’m thinking that if I can at least reorganize, I could freshen up the space and maybe make it work better. I always like an organized room because it just helps me think better.

Stash Busting

This year (more than previous years) I want to intentionally and purposefully use my fabric AND pattern stash. There have been times when I didn’t want to take the time to go into the fabric bins to find a perfectly good and suitable piece of fabric for a project. That is something I definitely need to change this year. Not only is there a lot of fabric, but I have some really nice pieces that I want to use and have plans for.

As far as the pattern stash is concerned, I have some terrific patterns that I have never used. Most of the patterns I buy are more classic styles, so they don’t really go out of style so easily. Once you determine your own style, trends become less important anyway.

Currently Working On

I always like to start the new year off with an easy project. This year I am making myself a pajama set. I’m combining two different patterns for this. For the pants I’m using the Lexington loungewear set from Sewing And The City patterns.

I’ve made the short pj set from this pattern before. And as you can see, I’m using donut fabric. I bought this at JoAnn Fabrics a few years ago. This is a woven fabric. I have a piece of solid blue knit fabric that I’ll use for the top. I haven’t quite made a final decision on what pattern I’ll use for that.

Clean Machines

Here’s a reminder for you sewists out there. If you haven’t cleaned your sewing machines and sergers recently, now is a good time to do it. I started the year by cleaning and oiling my serger and sewing machine. I also changed the needles in both. No one wants to stop sewing or damage their sewing machine because of a broken needle or accumulated lint.

Conclusion

Any ideas that you might have for what you’d like to see in video or on the blog, please let me know in the comments. I have some ideas, but I’d like to hear from you as well.

So those are my 2023 sewing goals and plans at least for now. I would like to get back into lingerie sewing as well this year. I have quite a supply of materials for that as well. And there are some new patterns I have that I’d like to try.

8 Ways To Inflation Proof Your Sewing

I decided to write this because it’s been something that’s been on my mind for quite some time. I’m always looking for ways to save some money. But I also want to be able to continue to do what I love. So in this article, I’m going to give you 8 ways to inflation proof your sewing. In this article I’m expanding on my video in which I give you 5 ways to inflation proof your sewing (the video will be uploaded over the weekend).

Tip #1

Sew your wardrobe essentials.

In this way, you can see what you already have and fill in those wardrobe gaps you might have. Whatever those essentials are is up to you. After all, it’s your wardrobe.

Tip #2

Use what you’ve got.

By using what you already have, nothing should go to waste.

plan projects based on the fabric you have
use those notions you have, which we sometimes forget about (zippers, buttons, elastic, etc)

Tip #3

What can you make with the patterns you have?

I have bought a few patterns lately, but not many. I have been more determined to use the vast collection of sewing patterns I currently own. And as we all know, many older patterns aren’t out of style. In fact, so many patterns have been repackaged and renumbered lately!

Tip #4

Sew wardrobe-builder pieces

It’s possible to focus your sewing on those pieces that you can get the most use out of. That can be things like:

T shirts/tops
Jeans/dress pants
Dresses/skirts
Jackets/blazers

I don’t think you can have too many basics because those are the pieces that can go from day to night or casual to dressy.

Tip #5

Think outside the box

Think of what you want to wear and create a unique wardrobe for yourself. Since you are already creative, use that to cultivate your own style. Remember, you don’t have to be like anyone else. Just be you!

Tip #6

Thrift stores

While a lot of people think of thrift stores for sewing patterns, I have shopped them a little differently. These are great places to get large sheets that can be used as fabric for making a muslin or mock-up. I have also bought men’s shirts for a few dollars that I used strictly for the buttons.

Tip #7

Organize

One of the ways many of us waste money is that we are buying things we already have because we can’t find something. If you can organize your supplies, that can save you from repurchasing those notions, etc that you need for a project.

Hanging jewelry organizer

And the last tip in my list of 8 ways to inflation proof your sewing is…

Tip #8

Make a list

Personally, I use a whiteboard on the wall of my sewing room to jot down things like thread colors (by manufacturer and color number) I’m running out of. Or if you don’t have that, a simple piece of paper will do just as well. It’s also a good idea to keep that list on your phone as well. If you find ourself at the store and want to get those list items, having it on your phone is a great idea.

Small white board

So those are my ways to save some money while still doing the thing I love to do. Many of these tips will also work for other types of crafting, or just life in general. Let me know in the comments if you have other ways of saving.

*This post contains affiliate links

New Projects For The New Year!

First, let me start by saying Happy New Year to all of you! I took some time to enjoy the holidays and relax a bit, and now I’m ready to get back to sewing, blogging, and vlogging. I have some new projects for the new year that I want to share. And I have thought about my goals for what I want to achieve this year.

Review

In 2021 I made 45 garments! That is a LOT for me. I have never had a year where I made more than about 20. The majority of these things were tops (19). The next largest group was pants (8). My goal is not to hit a specific number, but to sew more and improve my skills. That is always a goal of mine.

Goals

As far as new projects for the new year, one of the things I want to focus on is making the “guts” of the garments (the inside) look almost as good as the outside. It won’t happen every time, but I do want to be more aware.

Because I always want to challenge myself, I believe the best way to achieve that is to just keep sewing.

There may be some more artistic challenges as well. For example, fabric dyeing is on my list, but I don’t have the supplies to do that yet.

And because I’m sewing more, I will do more wardrobe building/planning. It’s important to wear what I make.

Quick Projects

I always like to start the year off with some quick projects. I have completed two “Minerva makes” projects. The first are these cargo pants using New Look 6055 made from a polyester twill fabric. You can read that post here.

Next is the soft and comfy striped knit turtleneck that I made using Wardrobe By Me Trudy Turtleneck pattern. That post is on the Minerva site as well. The black pants are from a Simplicity pattern I made a while ago.

Very Quick Project

This past weekend, I made these satin pillowcases. I have made these in a variety of colors and have even given them as gifts on occasion. Using a walking foot makes these come together very easily.

That’s it for now. Happy New Year and I’ll be back soon with more projects!