Celebrate 2017

***This post contains affiliate links. I have also featured a number of pdf patterns from Designer Stitch Patterns. Tomorrow, Jan 1, 2018, is the final day of a HUGE sale they are having. The whole Designer Stitch store is 30% off. Have a look around and add some of your favourites to your cart. Then head over to their Facebook group and join in. There you will find a coupon code for an EXTRA 20% off your order. The sale officially ends on Jan 2, 2018 but that is Australia time which is 17 hours ahead of us in North America, so don’t take any chances…grab your favourites today! And thank you for all of your support through your affiliate purchases throughout this past year. They don’t cost you the buyer any extra but the small percentage when you click and buy that I receive are truly appreciated!***

Today is the last day of the Celebrate the Holidays blog tour that was put together by Sewing with Ti. You will find a list of links to all of the other bloggers that participated at the end of this post. Be sure to check them out!

I have had a lot of fun getting dressed this year and since Ti invited us to get creative with this blog tour about “Celebrating”, I decided I would celebrate the whole year of some of my favourite garments I sewed up.

Since getting back into sewing over 2 years ago, I have made a huge dent in my me-made wardrobe. I would say that there was not a day that went by that I did not wear at least one item that was not something I have sewn, even if it was just undies or pj’s!

I thought it would be a great time to reflect on some of the items that I made and give my thoughts after having worn(or not worn) them.

The Bridget Long Sleeve top was one of the first things I made this year. I really love the style and vibe of this pattern from Designer Stitch. And while I love the fabric, too, I didn’t realize that it would wrinkle as easily as it does and I am not a huge fan of ironing and the wild nature of the colours makes this something that doesn’t quite work with many bottoms I have.

This was one of the shirts I made for the hubby earlier this year. I am adding this one because he wore this a TON. This is the Bram’s Mens T-shirt from Wardrobe by Me. The faux leather shoulder detail was something I created myself and not part of the pattern, but it was fairly simple to do.

This was a patten I never blogged about but I want to include it here. This is the Kingston Denim Jacket from Rebecca Page Patterns. This was a challenging project because of all of the flat felled seams. But one thing I discovered last year after making myself two coats was that I really love these types of challenges. I haven’t worn this a whole lot because I find that it is too short in the torso for me. But I am going to make another one because I really like the style!

So that brings me to a jacket that I did wear a lot! This is the Blixen Blazer from Wardrobe by Me. You can see more details on my blog post here but between the comfort of a knit blazer and the colours of this faux snake-skin knit fabric, this project was a HUGE win!The Kiera Skirt from Designer Stitch was another make that got a lot of wear. This pictures shows it with the internal ribbons tied up in places to give it a cool boho look, but most of the time I left it untied. I love the higher waist-yoke on it as it gives support in the tummy area and it is a great daily wear as it is gives a lot of range of motion and the length means I don’t have to worry about flashing anyone, hahaha! I have a full post about this skirt here.

The Anza Jumpsuit from Itch to Stitch that I made in the spring was a great style that I loved wearing this year. I wore jumpsuits a lot when I was in my late teens/early twenties so this style was not new to me. My next one will be in less of a flashy print as I think the paisley all over is a bit much in hindsight but that hasn’t kept me from wearing it one bit!

When another jumpsuit came up for testing. I had to say YES! This is the Studio Jumpsuit from Canada’s Sew Straight and Gather Patterns. The palazzo style pant legs are perfect and I wore both of these a lot during the hot summer we experienced here. The pants are surprisingly cooling, which I am guessing because of their loose, flowy nature.

Another pattern from Wardrobe by Me has made my list of wins. This is the Aurora Top/Dress pattern. The only bad thing I can say about this dress is that I wish it had been released earlier in the year. It got cold soon after I tested for this pattern. I have layered it with one of my Trudy Turtlenecks, also from WBM, but the fabric is pretty light so just doesn’t give me the warmth I need but it will be one of the first things I will pull out come spring!

This was another pattern that came too late in the year for me, as you can tell from the snow in my pictures. These are the Tanner Culottes from Designer Stitch. I am head over heels with this pattern but the fabric I chose for my final pair was a fail. I love the colour but the fabric doesn’t have enough weight for this pattern. I have worn them around the house because they are so comfortable but my next pair will be a more suitable bottom weight and if I get around to making them before spring they will be a pants length, too. I did my muslin in a full length just for kicks and giggles and they were great. I needed to size up, though, so my muslin isn’t wearable, which is so sad all around.

This is another pattern that is a total win but the fabric missed the mark. This is the Wanda Dress from Wardrobe by Me. The dress features an ingenious wrap top design but has a skirt that is gored and is not a wrap style and hence does not come with the drawbacks of a typical wrap style dress. The print of this fabric is fabulous and it is a really soft ITY knit. The problem comes with the static cling that it seams to want to generate. It is fine for short periods of time. I tried a cotton slip but that didn’t seam to help much. If you have any suggestions, throw them at me in the comments because everything else about this dress is fantastic. I would be ever so grateful to come up with a solution!

This last outfit is a double win! This top is actually one I made in 2016 and it still gets worn a lot! This is the Only Tee from Koerbs Brothers Stitch Designs and was one of the first patterns I ever tested for myself.

The second half of this double header is the newly released Santi Skirt from Designer Stitch. The top stitching detail and patch pockets are great features and the belt is the icing on the cake for this pattern! I like how I can pair this with another item I made last year, the Gazelle Leggings from The Wolf and the Tree. They aren’t very visible in the pictures, but I assure you they are there and were very much appreciated during this rather chilly photoshoot! I guess this actually makes this outfit a triple treat!

I hope you enjoyed seeing some of the garments that I made this year that gave me a reason to celebrate the fact that I am feeling more and more competent that I can create a wardrobe that fits my needs and wants to a “T”.

Don’t forget to check out the celebration posts from my fellow bloggers on this tour!

December 1st Sewing By Ti (intro), Octaves of Color

Sunday December 3rd, Me Made

4th: Sew Sophie Lynn

5th: Hazelnut Handmade

6th: Tales from a Southern Mom

Monday December 11th, Tenille’s Thread

12th: MNW Sews

13th: Mahlica Designs

14th: Very Blissful

15th: Stitched by Jennie

Monday December 18th, Kate Will Knit

19th: Sewing by Ti

20th: Vicky Myers Creations

21st: Margarita on the Ross

22nd: Auschick Sews

23rd: Shalini’s Blog

Tuesday December 26th: Seams Sew Low

27th: EYMM

28th: Sew Like a Sloth

29th: Sewing By Ti

30th: Kathys Kwilts and More

31st: Embrace Everyday