Plans for the New Year

While other bloggers are spending today summing up their year's activities, I'm trying to plan what I will be doing for the next few months when we move to South Carolina for the rest of the winter. This is a yearly trek, part of the benefits of being retired, but becomes a problem for a hobbyist like myself who needs lots of raw "provisions" to work with---fabric, yarn and books!   We live in a much smaller space down there and though I do have a dedicated sewing room, it is much smaller than the full basement I spread out in in the warmer months while in PA.

The other problem with my hobby supplies is that they must fit in 2 cars, along with our clothes and 2 cats. My poor husband is used to not having much room for his stuff!   SO, I am thinking over what I really want to do and make for the next months.


SEWING--I want to keep working through the "Pattern Magic for Stretch Fabrics" book that I am enjoying so much  

The stretch fabrics for that don't take up a lot of room IF I plan to make the items just for my half-scale model. Though she is half as long in the body, the fabric needed is only 1/8th as much and usually just scraps suffice.  However I wonder if I am missing something by not enlarging the pattern and making it for myself as I've done in the past???

Here's an experiment with my last creation from the book making it for the model only.    It is called "Peas in a Pod B" and like the A version is made from 2 identical pattern pieces, but with one twice as large as the other.      In this case the pattern was 2 T shapes put on the fold.

Here are my pattern pieces and how it looks put together.  The bigger piece is gathered up to fit the smaller one, different straight portions become the arms, bodice and neckline, and looks like this.

And here is my model's verion----It was really amazing how it all fit together!

I was going to ask my readers if they had seen enough of the pattern on the model without seeing a version on me!   BUT, I think by writing this I have answered my own question.    I am too curious to see how this amazing pattern works to not make a version for me and am heading down to the sewing room in the basement now to make one!  So stay tuned for more.

So, you can see how my allowed space in the cars fills up fast!  This means I better take lots of knit fabrics when I head south, enough to make each outfit for us both.   The picture at the top is only a small portion of my colorful knit collection, so I will have to select carefully.

I realize that I haven't even begun to talk about my knitting and reading plans for the winter, so will continue more about that soon.  

  I will add pics of a new Origami book I got for Christmas that i hope to work from.     I've always loved the folding process and consider the activity much like sewing up unusual patterns to see how they will come out.     Plus, the materials won't take up much room!

These are some of the more complicated designs towards the end of the book.  Mine will be much simpler, while I figure out if it gives me the same satisfaction as sewing complicated patterns.

Wishing you all a Happy New Year and lots of creative activity in 2013.