Two thousand and fifteen

Here we are... Yet another 'year in review' post. These are all over the place at the moment. Yet they have an irresistible draw which has sucked me in good and proper. This is actually my second end of year post, but my first on this blog. Last year I reflected on the things I had succeeded in and the things I planned on doing during 2015. These plans have been looming over me like an essay that's due in next week (which I haven't even started the reading for). I have not completed the jacket in my to do list, or made one little shirt. But I have made shed loads of things, most of which I am very proud of. 

So this year I will take another look at what I've accomplished this year... Cue the collages!

I've attempted to put the photos in order of when they were completed, but I may have been a little less than accurate.

I finished my first jumper this year, my very first wearable knit... Which I have never worn!! I'm very proud of it, but it's just too short (sleeves too) to be warm and too thick to be a summer top. I have many times considered frogging it, but I'm a sentimental fool, and this is my very first jumper!

I also made a jersey dress which, while the waistband sits too high, this one has been worn a lot! I also added more wardrobe staples with two skirts (from a vintage pattern.. Which was as close as I got to my 3 pattern vintage pledge), and Colette's Aster blouse. I also made my first knitted lacework shawl for Mother's Day (she wore it a lot when I visited at Christmas so she seems to really like it), and moved on from that to a lacework jumper, my first colour work knit! Wow I was crushing those 'firsts in knitting.

Speaking of which.. My first socks!! Which I love! Another Aster made in Liberty cotton lawn, which I just wore the life out of, a birthday dress and an alpaca shrug which is super cosy.

I did some colour blocking with black sleeves (ok not 'proper' colour blocking, but really effective). Dad got my second ever pair of socks for Father's Day. I hand drafted a box pleated skirt using novelty (squirrel) print cotton for the first time (another first!)

What really surprised me is that I made in awesome shirt dress (McCalls 6696) and took it on holiday and love it and love it... But I never blogged it!! I just never got round to it as I moved straight on from that to making the dress and jacket I wore to my brothers wedding. I'm proud of the dress (my first fully lined dress!!) but I am so super proud of the jacket. Ok it's not the one I planned last year, but I made a jacket!!

Upon returning from the wedding I set about knitting socks for my whole family as Christmas gifts (I haven't got round to making a pair for myself yet but I totally want some). I also made my first Monetta (first time I gathered a skirt using clear elastic), which I confess has never made it out of the house, I'm just not feeling the brown colour and feel a bit dowdy in it.

I also sneaked in a skirt and blouse to wear at my works Christmas party, it was a self drafted box pleat again and I re used a pattern for the blouse, no firsts there.

So they are all of my completed works in 2015, except for the last two, I only just finished them and have no photos of the finished cardigan or shawl, but I'll show you them soon... Promise.

As far as resolutions for next year go, I would love to participate in me-made-may and hope to have a few more staples in the wardrobe for that. 

I am also going to really focus on making wearable comfortable clothes by learning more about fitting. I think I've been quite lucky so far, but I find it annoying that some things are too tight here and too loose there. But one of the huge benefits of me-mares are that their fit is proper and flattering. So there is my task.

So on that note, happy new year, I hope 2016 is full of all good things and plenty of time to make stuff

Xx