Looking Back, Looking Forward!

A Few of my favorites from 2009

2009 is over. It was a good year for us. God blessed us in many ways and I am very thankful for His watching over us. I am excited to see what 2010 brings. Whether it be joy or sorrow I know that God has us in his hands all through the year.

Last year I wouldn't make any resolutions. As I said last year I don't like them because I never keep them. I just gave myself a list of things that I wanted to accomplish throughout the year. I thought I would reflect on last years accomplishments and add my thoughts for next year.

1. I want to purchase better quality fabric. I have a tendency to gravitate toward good deals. I need to put more quality stuff into my stash that I would actually want to wear. I also want to concentrate on coordinating fabrics and not just purchase things singly that I later have to find something else to match. I did pretty well at this this year. I purchased quite a bit of nice fabric (most of which I got for great prices). I ended up with lots of nice wicking knits, high quality fleece, some nice wools, quality cottons and nice fashion knits. I am very pleased with what was added to my collection this year. My problem now is that I do not have very much to use for muslins. I would like to continue this through 2010 (hopefully at the NY and LA garment districts).

2. I want to spend more time crafting and not just vegging out. My main time for crafting is the evening and I am often pooped. I don't want to do anything but when I don't do anything I feel like I wasted a bunch of time. I will still veg out I would just like to do it a bit less. I did better at this also. My completed garment count will verify. I completed a total of 37 garments using up 61 yards of fabric. This certainly is not as many garments as some but I am very happy with what I completed. I did veg out a bit but I did a lot of sewing too. This is a goal for 2010 also. I don't necessarily have a goal to complete more garments than last year or to use up more of my collection but I want to spend time sewing consistently.

3. I want to finish sweaters (and sewing projects for that matter) within a reasonable amount of time (not two years). I have been getting better at this and want to continue this success. Totally failed! I don't think I hardly picked up my needles all year. Maybe I will pick up my needles this year. No pressure though. Only if the knitting spirit moves me.

4. I want to sew more for myself which would then include increasing my fitting skills. I definitely worked on this this year. I made 10 garments for myself. A few turned out to be wadders but I learned from my mistakes. I definitely want to increase my fitting skills this year. There are quite a few Burda garments that I am itching to make.

5. I want to make a chart to keep track of my projects. I really like the chart Karen made and want to borrow the idea. This will really help me see my accomplishments and be a motivator. Then at the end of next year it will be easier to count up my projects and yardage. I would really like to know exactly what I made and how much fabric I used. Oh, and I would like to fill the chart by the end of the year. Completely neglected. Hopefully I will do this soon.

6. Lastly, I would like to figure out my camera and learn how to take better pictures. My pictures don't have to be museum quality just better than they are now. I really want to get some good pictures of my kids. Worked with my camera some. My goal for 2010 is to take a picture every day. I have a separate blog for these pictures. I haven't done well in the past with this challenge for myself. Hopefully this year will be more successful.

2009 Garment breakdown
Made for Me--10
dresses 2
tops 5
skirts 3
Elianna--9
dresses 3
tops 3
pants 1
skirt 1
jacket 1
Seth--8
shirts 6
pants 2
Silas--5
shirts 5
Nieces--4
kuspiks 2
dresses 1
skirt 1
Nephew--1 robe

I have quite a few garments to show you (11 to be exact plus one I am finishing as soon as I post this) over the next little while. So stay tuned.

Thanks so much for stoppin' by. Have a great day!

Until next time...