Sew Over It Kate Dress from My Capsule Wardrobe Work to Weekend eBook

Do you ever work so hard to complete a project properly that you don't feel like wearing it? That's what's happened with this dress for me. It's weird because I was so desperate to make this, having fallen in love at first sight when the Sew Over It eBook was released, but it hasn't had the wear that it deserves (certainly to justify the effort I made!).

Most worn - fabric from shows or sales?

Before I get to the actual blog content you should know that you can win a pair of tickets to the Knitting and Stitching Show at Alexandra Palace in October - skip to the bottom for details and to enter.  

Yes, I do have free tickets to give away to you lovely people, and a code that you can use for a discount. The Knitting and Stitching Show asked if I'd like to offer these and I'm all up for sharing the love - and bargains!. But it got me thinking.... how much do I actually use or wear what I buy at the shows? I go to the autumn and spring shows every year, always coming back with a bag full of buys but this year you know I'm all about paying attention to what I use most and doing more of that. Mainly I've been thinking about patterns, but now I'm wondering about my buying habits too. I hardly ever buy from shops - my stash is almost entirely from online stores and the shows. I also make most of my online purchases when there's some kind of sale on so right now, the question is, do I make most use of what I buy from shows or sales?
(FYI - This isn't an advert. I'm not asked to write this. It's just my thoughts)

Shell Cottage Socks from The Handmade Sock Society Season 2

These socks had a long gap between casting on and getting finished, mainly because I wasn't sure about them at first. However, once I got going with them again I soon changed my mind and I love them now. They were the first pattern released by Helen Steward for The Handmade Sock Society Season 2, which is a club you pay for up front (£18) and then receive 6 patterns over the course of the year. Luckily for me there's no pressure to keep up and be done for each new release! Considering that most of the patterns I have liked so far have been by this designer, I took the leap of faith and signed up from the start. I'm pleased to say that I like all the ones that have been released so far so there will be more coming, but I am not a fast producer!

Tilly and the Buttons Stella Hoodie

 One of my aims this year has been to make clothes that I will wear all the time. I love making dresses more than anything, but I don't have much opportunity to wear them and making every day casual wear is something I've been looking towards to make the most of my hobby. I'm a bit behind everyone else in the sewing community because I only just purchased the Tilly and the Buttons Stretch book, despite it being out for some time and this is the first item I've made from it. It's also the first time I've refashioned a previous make and I'm really glad that this is going to get a lot more wear than the first garment this fabric was made into.

Find Your Fade Shawl

I've loved the idea of this shawl ever since I came across it - the Find Your Fade Shawl has had quite a high profile in the knitting community so it's hard to resist. After my Boho Blush Shawl I liked the idea of a large wrap for when evenings took a chill and this looked like it would fit the bill. However, who knew that finding a fade was such a time consuming past time? Luckily, knitting the shawl was a much more enjoyable experience!

Kwik Sew K4111 - for the office this time

I feel like I never have anything to wear to work, and what what I do have is never quite warm enough or cool enough so I've always got my eye out for fabrics that I can use to fill this gap. At the Spring Knitting and Stitching Show I came across just that fabric, then had to wait for a while until inspiration hit, in the form of a previously used pattern that just needed a bit of tweaking. As it happens this dress also survived a major overlocker disaster too!