Wednesday 9 May 2012

Comments and new Members

Firstly I have to welcome all of you who have recently subscribed to follow my blog.  I always find it exciting to see new followers, so thank you.  I am very flattered that all of you follow the trials and tribulations of my crafting activities be it sewing, knitting, cooking etc., and even find the time to post a comment too.  Thank you thank you thank you - all comments are welcome.

I know that I find so much inspiration from the blogs that I follow, and I hope that I provide the same for you too.

I have had a lot of comments on my Chanel jackets, my Burda dress and Mike's shirt, so once again, many thanks to all of you that commented.  Some people have said how inspired that they are after reading my posts, and that they too want to go and make something, be it a Chanel jacket etc.  That is brilliant, do it, don't delay.

I have sewn for many years, but under the guidance of my mother.  Sadly she died around 14 years ago, so I lost my go-to person to ask how to deal with my sewing conundrums but have found the internet and many sewing blogs, sewing sites and new found friends, from following these sites,  a wonderful resource.

Sometimes people have left a comment saying "oh I am not ready to do that" or "I don't feel confident to make something like that".  Well the first thing I have to say is the old saying "practice makes perfect" is absolutely true.

I resurrected my sewing nearly two years ago when I couldn't find the perfect "mother of the groom" outfit.  Originally my D Mike said that he would purchase my wedding outfit - I couldn't find what I was looking for, so my daughter said; "why don't you get someone to make it?"  I then came up with a brilliant idea - I said, "tell you what don't buy me the outfit, buy me the sewing machine and material and I will make my outfit".  He did just that and having bought the hat first, I then took it into the fabric shop to match the hat to the fabric I wanted.  The rest as they say is history.

My Son Lewis and I just before he got married - Sorrento 2009
I think like everyone, I am self critical of my sewing.  I get annoyed if there are gathers where there shouldn't be, or the curve or the point isn't perfect etc etc., but the honest truth is that some of the RTW garments we buy and wear are often far from perfect.  We should strive for perfection, but realise that occasionally we just need to accept that maybe sometimes its not 100% perfect. We learn from our mistakes and unless its a complete right-off, we can still wear it and I doubt that anyone would ever know.

The more you do, the more you learn and I am on a continuous learning curve. There are lots of things I have never made that I want to make.  A bra and jeans are next on the list, but then I will look on PR and see something amazing and think "I want to have a go at that".

So why is she rattling on about all this.  Just give it a go.  If it doesn't turn out perfect the first time then try again - you will get there in the end, however I suspect most of you are much better than you think.

Catch you later...................

6 comments:

  1. you are very inspirational to me ,my friend and you look stunning on that dress. xx

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  2. great advice....and I love the Mother of the Groom dress!

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  3. Good advice...it is difficult to avoid analysis paralysis sometimes.

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  4. Oh Pauline, I do so agree with you on all this. The more you sew the more you learn and the better you get. I too love knowing that I have followers from many places and think they are so kind to leave comments.
    Your Mother of the groom outfit is beautiful and you looked spectacular in it!

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  5. Pauline,
    What a wonderful post! It's a great reminder that we all are our own worst enemy when it come to criticism and should just learn from it and move on. I, too, relied so heavily on my mom's tutelage for so many years before she passed away. I still ask her for help...lol Take good care...dorcas

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  6. Have recently (after 46 years of sewing) become kinder to myself about perceived sewing mistakes. After the first rip and re-sew, I ask, "Can I live with this? Is this even noticeable to anyone else? If I put this garment away for a month, will I notice -- or remember -- what bothers me now? " Most usually, I CAN live with the problem, and move along to the next step. Sometimes, I simply cannot let the mistake exist; and I sigh heavily, and pick up the seam ripper again.

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