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Sunday, August 5, 2012

2 year blogoversaire!

Hurray! Two years have passed since I started my challenge to stop buying and start sewing. It was supposed to last only a year, but it has just become such a part of my life that I didn't stop after the first year. I do buy the occasional thing from a thrift store, but I still haven't bought any new clothes. The whole concept of shopping has just dissappeared completely from my system! Weird huh? Never thought that would happen.

Not much happened in the first half year because we were in Norway and my machine broke down. I did manage to make a tutorial for the mustard mini which drove people nuts until I added a video. The skirt appeared on Pinterest and got repinned like crazy (80.000 hits, can you believe it?) and then I got a serger for my birthday. I've been pretty productive since and new and exiting plans have started to form. But I'll tell you more about that when the time comes.

I liked doing a roundup last year to see what I've made, and which of those things were a succes. Here goes!













  • The matching shrugs. Not the right pattern (because I eyeballed it instead of printing the pattern) and not the right material: already gave them away!
  • Pink shirt refashion: wore it in Norway, but not back home. Gone!
  • 2nd mini skirt: still wear it! More often than the first one. This one is half an inch longer and more comfy!
  • Refashioned sweater: Practical for Norway, but just gave it away. 













  • Crazy maxi skirt. I refashioned it but haven't worn it yet. I'll finally show it to you later this week. so you can help me decide!
  • Refashioned sweater. Not sure what happened to this one or why, but I don't have it anymore. Probably because it's still not my style. I do like the technique though. 
  • Mustard with eyes skirt. Do still wear it but not very often. 
  • Norwegian sweater. Yes! Looking forward to winter so I can wear it again.













  • All serger sweater: Do still like it but it has stains that don't come off. Probably olive oil. 
  • Batwings with buttons. Wearing it right now! 
  • Cool shirt, pronounced by you. Should wear it more often!
  • Altered men's shirt. Not good enough. Gone! 













  • Smocked top. Yes!
  • Failed maxi. I've ripped it apart and dyed it. I have new plans for a circle skirt.
  • Puzzle shirt. An great basic for warm days. 
  • Escher shirt. I wear it a lot, also a great basic piece. 



  • Perfect blouse. Still my favourite piece! It recieved its first (tiny) inevitable red wine stains this weekend. 
  • Summer dress for next year: turned into a summer dress for this year!
11 succesfull pieces, 6 bad ones. Of which 4 are refashioned items. Not too bad! I guess the general trend is that the most recent pieces always get worn the most. Last year the score was 5 bad ones, 14 good ones. But of those 14, another 5 have not made it to the end of this year. Plus, I gave the Dance pants to Stef and refashioned the party frock yet another time. I didn't like the purple, so I took it out, dyed the purple piece black and set it back in. I don't hang on to pieces I don't REALLY like anymore. If I have doubts about it, it will never be my favourite, I will always choose other pieces to wear instead and so it has to go. Simple!

So now I'm off to prepare a giveaway to celebrate this event and to distract you from the fact that my blogoversaire was actually yesterday. Ahem. The fact that my dad got married on friday has something to do with that, and also the fact that my new stepfamily is Belgian and they are known for their eating and drinking festivities. I blame the red wine stains on them, too. À plus tard!

10 comments:

  1. Zo, jij mag trots op jezelf zijn!
    Wat inspirerend om te zien, ik wil wel meer voor mezelf naaien, maar hik er nog even tegen aan... spannend, moeilijk, faalangst ;)
    Tot ik mezelf overwin kom ik hier graag gluren (en daarna ook nog hoor)
    Ga zo door!

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    1. Dankjewel! Het is zeker spannend, maar je moet er juist vanuit gaan dat er dingen gaan mislukken. Dat hoort erbij, daar leer je juist van. Begin met simpele projecten, dan kom je er vanzelf!

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  2. Happy Blogoversary! I think the smocked top and final sundress are my favorites.

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  3. Felicidades por estos dos años. Yo te descubrí hace unos meses, pero me encanta lo que haces y cómo lo haces.
    Me encantó el jersey amarillo con capucha, creo que es mi favorito
    Que cumplas años muchos más

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  4. i love seeing what makes it in a sewist's closet. in a way it becomes research when it's documented, rather than a lamentation over work done but not successful (in that it makes the closet cut... of course it's all practice & learning, right?)

    happy blogbirthday!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks! It does feel like research sometimes. I've adopted the same attitude: it's all experimenting, and there's always the possibility that an experiment will fail. If it does, just figure out why and try again! Happy Birthday btw! I've been following your party preparations and it looks like it's going to be everything you wished your first prom was :)

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  5. what a terrific idea! i've did an end-of-the-year sewing round up in january, but i might need to evaluate my me-makes more often (it also might shame me into sewing instead of internet-trolling!). i like having the chance to evaluate what i wear and what i like/don't like anymore as my style evolves.

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    Replies
    1. If you do it more often, you become better at it. You have to be honest and ask yourself whether you still really like something or you're just holding on to it because you used to like it. It's actually a relief not to hold on to things!

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  6. That's an interesting compilation :)
    i admire your consequence to give away not worn things. (Google Translate is my best friend, so please excuse the mistakes :-/ )

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    Replies
    1. Thanks! I never throw clothes away unless they're really worn out. Which doesn't happen that often, I just stop wearing them because my style has changed so quickly the past two years!

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