2016 Sewing Budget: August, September & October!

With all the hecticness (hecticity?) of the past few months, I forgot about this monthly round up.

You'll be unsurprised to know that I haven't stuck to my own bargain, and some fabric has sneaked in. I could say that Instagram made me do it, but let's take some ownership here. :)

For a good few years now, I've had a particular version of the Archer shirt in my head. I doubt I thought it up myself, but I can't remember where I saw it. This heron print fabric isn't it, but it's as close as I suspect I will ever get, so when I saw it on the IndieSew IG feed, I treated myself. As a general rule, I don't buy anything online from the US. Postage and customs charges are prohibitive, but this time I went for it, and the custom's gods were smiling because no charges! It's pretty summery though so I'm not sure how soon I'll be sewing this up.

The pompom trim and thread was to finish off my pyjamas. Yes, I am that far behind!

The crepe was a bit of an impulse purchase. I had a 20% discount code from the Splendid Stitch that expired at the beginning of Sept, so I thought I'd better use it! My plans are for another pair of Emerson Pants. I'm not 100% it will work, but I've already cut them out so I am committed.

Finally, I have been lusting after the Hampshire trousers for a while, and have fabric earmarked in my stash, so I took advantage of an offer she had on. I have made a muslin of these already, but they are much looser and bigger than I anticipated, so they will need some work. I have parked them briefly to concentrate on something else, but I will go back to them. The pattern has a lot of promise and I desperately need some trousers for work.

2016 Sewing Budget: July

There’s nothing like doing a monthly update, to make you realise how quickly the months are marching on! It’s August!

This month was pretty restrained. I’ve been going through my stash, and recording it with a new app (I’ll write more about this in another post). What made me decide to buy Cora in the first place, was that I had a plan for a specific length of fabric, and then realised that I had less than I thought, meaning my initial plan wouldn’t work. This has happened before, so I thought having somewhere I could record how much fabric, as well as some other info, would help me plan better. The purchase of Cora was also a “speculate to accumulate”, or rather “speculate to avoid accumulating” thing. Hopefully writing down what I already have, and having it accessible, will help reduce the amount I buy.

On the subject of the trigger fabric, if you will, I bought some more. My aim is to make short pyjamas. I have enough to make a top (I’m going to use the Eucalypt tank pattern), so I tracked the fabric down and bought a further 0.5m (for considerably less than I paid for the first lot) to allow me to make matching shorts. The pompom trim is also for the shorts.

I had no inclination to buy any patterns this month, as I have my next few makes planned out, but then True Bias released the Emersonpants pattern, which is basically the trouser shape I’ve been dreaming about all summer so far. I had had plans to hack another pattern, but I know that by the time I get round to it (and more crucially, get it right), summer will be over. With Kelli offering 20% off the pattern till the end of the month, I took advantage and bought it. I reckon I can probably make this entirely from stash, and have fabric already earmarked. 

In my last monthly post I promised (myself) that I would make 4 items from stash before buying any more fabric. I have made 2 items pairs of shorts (here and here), but one was from scraps and I'm not sure that counts. I am also working on a Eucalpyt in viscose and the above mentioned PJs. So 3 down (and we're allowing the above purchase on the grounds that it helped "free" the other length from the stash, remember?), probably Emersons next?

2016 Sewing Budget: June

Hmmm, another pricey month.

The "more chambray" and the buttons were for my recent chambray midi skirt, and have since been consumed (3 buttons left!). The pleated chiffon was a complete impulse buy, and when you will see it (below) you will realise why. I have no need for it, but it fills my heart with such joy it was worth the expense. It will become a midi skirt once I source an affordable lining fabric that is not sweaty acetate. To justify the cost of shipping from Portugal, and because the more you order from the Sweet Mercerie, the less the shipping costs (nope, I don't get it either, but I'm enjoying it for now. I'm sure that will change once we are ex-EU), I bought more of the chambray that I used for my Scout dress. My plans for it are lightweight summer trousers (not that the weather indicates they will ever be worn) and shorts for either me (see previous parenthetical statement) or Small Boy, who just turned 6 and is still wearing shorts that are aged 3-4, poor neglected skinny soul. Summer hols means more casual clothes requirements.

Pleated chiffon of joy. IRL it's a glorious emerald green.

Given that I've been freaking out recently about the amount of stuff that has accumulated in our house (SO much crap excellent work home from school last week, plus everyone apart from me has had birthdays recently), I feel it's a bit rich to be buying more fabric, so I am back on the wagon. No more fabric until I've sewn up some  a good amount of what I have. Shall we say 4 items as a completely arbitrary target? Plus, as I'm also recording what I'm spending on RTW, I know I spent over £300 on clothes last month! Totally abnormal for me and actually very embarrassing, but that does include new prescription lenses for my sunnies, trainers, a new swimsuit, a rain coat and a denim jacket (#typicalscottishsummerwear). Oh, and my car is in for a service this week. I have no money to spend on fabric because I spent it all already!

Since I've been doing this for 6 months now, I thought I'd do a quick summary of the year so far.

So my average spend is the same as my rough budget, however given that in Jan I said I wasn't going to buy as much fabric as previously, I've failed pretty spectacularly, haven't I?! Time for those press ups.

I suspect that the only way I'm ever going to spend absolutely nothing is to remove myself from all social media and email lists. It wouldn't be enough to simply unfollow the fabric shops, as the inspiration from others is as much a trigger as anything else. But that simply isn't going to happen, because I love blogs and IG and the people too much. I have some firm plans in my head of what I want to sew, so I just need to ensure that I stick to them and don't get distracted. Easier said than done, I think!

2016 Sewing Budget: May

Gosh, May is over already and what a month! Me Made May was great fun, and I will write up my thoughts on that in a separate post. It's also been super busy both socially and at work, so there hasn't been a lot of time for sewing, and what sewing there was, was mostly for the boys!

Anyway, I am off work next week so hoping to get caught up with both sewing and blogging. I have finished a dress that I plan to wear to a wedding reception tonight, but no photos yet because I am working today (writing this in my lunch break). I'll try to get a photo on IG tonight at some point.

Despite not having much time to sew, I still seem to have managed to buy quite a lot of sewing related stuff! So much for managing to spend nothing last month. That's been blown out of the water this time around!

Meant to say "May Total", obvs.

£132.93! Let me explain.

The silk organza is to make a rub off from RTW jeans, using a Craftsy course, plus a little extra to make a pressing cloth, which I have needed for some time.
The Aphrodite pattern is the dress I have made for tonight's wedding, using the lace from Stone Fabrics and the poly crepe from ebay. Well, one of the crepes. I didn't have time to order swatches, so I ordered 2 x 2m lengths in a bid to get the correct colour to go with the lace. The other length of poly crepe will go to make another dress, tbc.
I bought some of this Atelier Brunette viscose previously from elsewhere but they didn't have enough in stock. When I found the same at Backstitch, I didn't hesitate to order more. The plan for this is the Biscayne pattern, also bought this month, while on offer.
The denim tencel was an impulse when I ordered lace swatches (FOC), and it was too lovely to pass up on. It will either become an Archer shirt or a shirt dress. Actually I can think of a million other things I could make with this fabric and I kind of wish I'd bought more.
Lastly, Hobbycraft had 50% off Gutterman thread when I popped in for thread for my Aphrodite, and I took the opportunity to stock up on black and white thread too.

It's not great, but at least some of has already been used. Next week I intend to have a good sort through of my fabrics and to start putting some plans together, as well as hopefully finishing a garment that's been a WIP for weeks. On the whole, this not buying fabric thing is not going well, and although I've had a few good months. I am still buying quicker than I can sew, which isn't great. I *will* do better in June.

2016 Sewing Budget: April

This month? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. :)

I know I said this wasn't going to be a fabric buying ban, and I have spent less than my budget every month so far, but I was still a bit disappointed by the fact that I haven't really managed to stick to my original rules, so I aimed to spend zero this month and I achieved it. It wasn't easy, I will be honest. So many new patterns, so many ideas. But I managed. I used thread and even buttons from my stash. OK, my output wasn't amazing, but still.

That's the end of my initial 3 month pledge, but I do plan to continue. I know next month will bring spending with it. I need want a dress for a wedding evening reception I'm going to in early June, and I have a few other ideas which will need a pattern or some thread or something. Plus Me Made May always equals a bit of panic sewing! But I managed one month. Maybe I'll manage another later this year? :)

2016 Sewing Budget: March

Right, before we start, I need to make a disclaimer: I have partly failed this month. Failed because I bought lots of fabric, but only partly because I didn't actually spend very much money. Let me explain: I won a £50 giftcard for The Splendid Stitch. Amy has started a Customer's Gallery on her website and to launch it, she ran a draw. I uploaded a photo of my jumpsuit and happily my name was picked out the hat. I needn't have spent it immediately - there was no expiry date - but I had my heart set on a particular fabric (the Atelier Brunette) that I (correctly) suspected would sell out pretty quickly. The gift card was single use, so this happened:

In my defense, there was a great deal of consideration made over what to buy and even ordered swatches. How sensible. Every single thing I bought has a plan against it. Well, nearly.

Bottom to top:
Navy crosshatch denim (and matching thread) - another Inari dress.
Black Eva poly-viscose suiting - trousers, probably the Cali Faye Hampshire Trousers, which is a pattern I don't yet own. I know, I know, but I don't have a suitable trouser pattern for this fabric and I REALLY NEED trousers for work, so it is permitted.
Black Lydia viscose challi (out of stock, so no link) - this is to accompany the...
Atelier Brunette modal challis - this was going to be either a Biscayne blouse or a Camas, but then there wasn't enough fabric left. I really wanted the fabric though, so I bought the very last 0.75m and then chucked in metre of the black rayon challis so I can combine the two. I haven't actually decided what I'll make; possibly another Geometry top, or maybe something else. Maybe I'll just see if I can get hold of more of it, and use the black viscose for something else?

Oh yeah, and the linocutting tools? Well, I've been dabbling a bit in fabric printing. I already had all the other bits needed, so I just needed some cutting tools to get going. The results of this will hopefully be finished and blogged soon.

In theory I shouldn't really need to buy anything in April. I have the Inari dress to sew, plus that shirt dress that I am procrastinating on because I think it is going to be hard. But I really could do with trousers (Me Made May is fast approaching!). Let's see! How are you getting on?

2016 Sewing Budget: February

So, February is done and dusted. Wasn't that quick? Even with that extra day in there. Actually we moved house on the 29th Feb, 8 years ago, so I guess that makes today the second anniversary of living here?

I did well on the old spending front this month, although I did nearly crack a couple of times! It sounds ridiculous, but when you are in the habit of falling for a fabric, and just snaffling it up, it's hard to get out of that mindset. It's also been doubly challenging in that I'm in a bit of a sewing lull currently and since my ongoing project - an Archer shirt dress in viscose - is a bit more challenging than my regular sew, I'm finding it difficult to motivate myself to get back to it. Ordinarily I would perhaps sew something more simple to ease my way back in, and I have the perfect project in mind... but I don't have the perfect fabric for it. Looks like I'll need to find another inroad.

So, what did I spend?

I bought a pattern for shorts. I'm not actually a big wearer of shorts, and it's not summer, and I have no holiday plans at present. However, it's being discontinued, and I really, really like the pattern. When I do make shorts, these are the ones I want to make. And that was it. I'm pleased with that, even if it doesn't make for the most exciting post.

2016 Sewing Budget: January

I mentioned in this post that I was going to keep track of what I spent on both sewing stuff and RTW clothes. At the time I had no intention of sharing this information, but since I am so appalled at how much I spent this month (on sewing stuff) - a month when I felt I didn't really need much, I have decided I will share it. If you feel this type of post is boring, please feel free to skip it.

Spend is all relative. What I spend in one month might be a drop in the ocean for some, while it might be 6 month's budget for others. I usually have a rough budget of around £50 per month for sewing related paraphenalia, which is based on absolutely nothing, and is completely made up. However, this weekend I read this post (and the follow up), and it got me thinking. Do I actually even need to spend £50 a month? Again, it's all relative, but I have a fairly sizable stash of both fabric and patterns. I have a few zips, some elastic and quite a bit of thread. What exactly is it that I think I need to buy?

So, along with recording my spending, I have decided to set myself a few other rules. This is for the foreseeable future. It might not be all year, but I'm starting with 3 months, and then I'll see how I go.

1. Plan. I always have a million sewing plans floating around my head and I don't document them (other than occasionally on here). I like to keep things fluid because needs change, and I never manage to sew all the things I intend to, however I'd like to plan at least the next 3 garments to keep my focus.

2. Sew from the stash. It's kind of a duh one, but while I have quite a bit of fabric that's seasonally inappropriate/I've gone off/I can't decide what to make with, I also have jersey and denim, and quite a few pieces that I bought with firm ideas that still hold. Where I have fabric, do I also have co-ordinating thread? Elastic? Interfacing? Zips? Let's check those things BEFORE I nip to the shops.

3. Buy only what I need. So, for example, I could really do with more trousers for work. I have no trouser appropriate fabric, so I am permitted to buy that, but only that. No sneaking other (non-essential) things into my basket.

4. Don't compromise on quality, but keep it realistic. For example, I want to make a shirt. I have buttons that are just OK, but I'm not 100% sold on them. I don't want to spend time making an item I'm not happy with, so I'm not going to force myself to use the buttons. I will buy nicer buttons. But if the buttons are pretty decent, and I like them and they'd make a nice garment, but I've seen really nice ones in John Lewis that are £2 each, I will stick with the buttons I have. And if I do buy them, I will have to own up to you! And do 100 press ups.

That's it. I'm keen to keep it simple. To be clear, this is not a spending ban, rather a plan to use what I already have, where possible. Because, what else is it for?

Right. On to January's spend, which went something like this:


I lumped the new blog template in there, which wasn't truly sewing related, however if I didn't sew, I wouldn't have the blog, so it does kind of fit! Also, note me justifying to myself that the Camas blouse was on sale!!! :)

On the plus side, I have already sewn up the Lizzy House/ponte into pyjamas that are still to be blogged (but have been Instagrammed), and my next project is a shirt dress, based on this with the navy/white viscose. The haby was replenishing stocks.

Let's see what February brings!