Friday 16 May 2014

A few thoughts on….UFOs

No, not the alien kind. The whole X Files thing passed me by. I’m talking UnFinished Objects or, as I prefer to call them, Works In Progress. The latter gives me some hope that they might be Finished Objects…..one day. This is the latest of my sewing WIPs. The Date Night Dress by April Rhodes. Before I tell you about that, perhaps I should go back to the beginning.

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It all started when I bought the Washi Dress pattern, last February. When I read through the pattern directions and saw the need for several rows of shirring on the bodice, I got cold feet. I also thought it might be a bit shapeless on me. I decided to look for a different style and remembered a cute dress I’d pinned a while ago. Quite by chance I got given a very similar pattern, while I was out shopping with some friends in Salisbury. You might remember me blogging about it. But then again, maybe not, it was just over a year ago now. Surely not? I bought some red polka dot cotton and cut out the pattern pieces. Then I got worried that I wasn’t up to the task of a fitted dress and decided to try something simpler first.

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Inspired by the first series of The Great British Sewing Bee, I picked this A line skirt pattern, that they used on the show. I bought the foxy fabric to make it with. But….it is so lovely and at £12 a metre I really didn’t want to mess it up. It was back to the drawing board yet again. GCSE season was almost upon us and my card making classes finally picked up momentum so sewing plans went out of the window for a while. Fast forward to January this year and I was ready to have another go, using some cheap printed cotton from Fabricland. I had issues with darts and needing a lining and suddenly it wasn’t quite as “Quick & Easy” as the pattern envelope promised! What next?

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In February I began to make a Lonsdale dress. I’d found a series of online Sew-A-Long posts which were just what I needed. I was going to use the red polka dot cotton, but I only had three metres and this needed four, to accommodate the long ties, which form the halter neck at the front and fasten in a bow at the back, as well as that lovely swishy skirt. I actually got on with it quite quickly, until we hit the holidays and that pesky exam season again. I need some bias binding to finish off the centre back seam. I can’t make a French seam here, because of the zip and I don’t want to zig zag it, when the rest of the inside is so neat.

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Which brings us back to the Date Night Dress. The best thing about it? It has no zip. In fact there are no fastenings of any kind. Yay! I foolishly thought that would mean I could get straight on with it. I had the pattern, some lovely fabric and a reel of matching thread. But no, it seems there is always something I haven’t thought of! The fabric is a knit and, although not hugely stretchy, it meant I needed something to stabilise the shoulder seams. I ordered some clear elastic, which came yesterday. Great, I thought, and then realised I needed a stretch needle for my machine. Arrgghh!!!

I am determined, once we get through the next week of exams, that I will have everything I need to finish all of these projects. Now I’ve made myself accountable to all of you, as well as the members of Jo’s Facebook group for hopeless cases like me. Do you have a pile of UFOs or are you the kind of person who likes to finish one thing before beginning another? Please tell me I’m not alone in suffering a sort of paralysis, thinking that I’m just not up to the task ahead, or having too many things I want to make and consequently not getting on with any of them.

Have a lovely weekend. It’s glorious here at the moment, with more of the same promised over the next few days. Hoping it is with you too.

16 comments:

Jo said...

Good for you for posting your intentions, you'll have your dresses finished in no time now :) x

scrappyjacky said...

Just hope that the sun doesn't draw you away from your sewing and into the garden!!
I have far too many UFOs plus paper and fabric for projects that have never even got started.

Sian said...

I definitely have moments of thinking I'm not up to the job and setting things aside until I can't bear them looking at me any more. And I'm guilty at the moment of leaving the crochet to knit baby blankets instead because they are so fast. So I'm urging you on and wishing you all the best. I really like the look of the one without the zip. that's my kind of pattern

KraftyKaren said...

Oh dear don't get me started on my UFOs - I have so many of them and then there are the NESY's or nessies (not even started yet). We were talking about this at our last crop and someone recalled a layout that I did in 2008 declaring some of my UFOs and how I was going to finish them that year. They all laughed when I 'fessed up that not a single one had been completed. Sounds like I need the help and support of Jo's group!! I hope that now that you have blogged your intentions that you will find it easier to turn them into completed projects - i will cheer you on from the sidelines!!

Alison said...

Wow - good luck with them all! I have loads of papercrafting UFOs - still with the intention of finishing them, one day ... I look forward to seeing the end results!

Sheena said...

It must be UFO season or are we just spring cleaning our craft supplies ??
I'm sure you will get your dresses made in no time xxx

Sandra said...

I was reading something similar on Sheens blog just now, and I truly believe that all creative people has lots of projects on the go at once. I also don't think there is anything wrong with that ... We'll get to them at some point :) looking forward to seeing a photo of you twirling in your dress soon.

Beverly said...

Unfortunately, I am all about moments like that. I look forward to a fashion show of your creations this summer :)

Virginia said...

Oh bless you - I too have a box full of these projects - maybe I should put it on my summer bucket list to finish!

Susanne said...

Looks like like of lovely fabrics in your crafting future. I never have much luck posting my intentions online - so I consider you to be very brave. You go girl.

alexa said...

You have made me smile, because I have just got out my pile of UFOs - summer garments that need altering or fixing in done way, and I am not even starting from scratch! The longest-standing one is thirty-one years old - that's how long I have been procrastinating!

My not so simple life said...

Always amazes me what you can make. Good luck finishing all your wips!

Anonymous said...

I like the looks of that date dress. Good luck with your UFOs this summer. My UFOs are mainly knitting related - some of them just need sewing together and some of them are so old that they'll never fit me now so I think why bother.

Pat said...

All the dress patterns are lovely and your choice of fabric. Good luck with the final piece!

Maria Ontiveros said...

One of the reasons I don't sew is because I fall in love with fabric, buy it and then don't do anything with it! LOL! It is even more addicting that patterned paper, IMHO. When I organized my studio, I organized my UFO's and have been working through them. Just finished my December Daily album from 2013.
Rinda

Deb @ PaperTurtle said...

I haven't sewn a garment in years so for the reason I don't have any UFO's of the fabric kind. I do however, have plenty of paper UFO's that I'd like to finish...someday... This is a great post, Fiona!