No lie, by the end of this year I completely forgot that MakeNine goals existed, let alone that I had made a MakeNine goal for 2020. I started out strong, but then fell off the wagon a few months in. That sounds like a description for 2020 in general. Looking back at these goals made me realize just how much has changed in a year, and just how long ago January feels. 

Let's see where all my forgotten goals have ended up by the end of this crazy year.

For some reason, when I think of sewing clothing, socks never come to mind. Socks have always seemed firmly on the knitting side of the craft world, but it's not true! I've recently starting sewing up a few pairs of socks for myself, and it is so incredibly easy! 

I don't remember how, but I recently stumbled upon the Gubbins No-Show Socks pattern by My Golden Thimble. It's simple, uses a small amount of fabric (apparently Gubbins actually means "scraps") and best of all, is free! 

*** This post is sponsored by EverSewn***

Fall is hands down my favorite. My favorite time of year, with my favorite holiday, my favorite weather, and my favorite sewing. So I was super pumped when EverSewn reached out to collaborate for their #sweaterweather campaign. An excuse to whip up a new batch of Halloween decorations and accessories? Ummm, YES PLEASE! 

The very next day I found a fabulous care package on my porch and dove right in. Getting Halloween fabrics delivered right to my door is basically the grown up version of trick-or-treating. Only you don't crash from all the sugar. Here's what I got:
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I'm happy to announce that Eddie has just graduated from his PhD program and is starting a new job! His new job is located just north of Chicago, IL so we will be relocating! 

While super exciting, it is also a big transition for our family and for my business. So, I will be temporarily shutting down the physical product side of my business. Just for a few weeks: until I get everything set up in our new state. And until the movers give me back all my sewing stuff. I expect to be back up and running by Aug 17th.

In the meantime, the digital product side of my business will still be fully open, and I'll be doing my best to still answer any emails or messages that come my way.

With fashion revolution week upon us, I want to draw attention to something that everyone can do to help with this cause: mending. The number one thing we can do to help stop the fast fashion cycle is to actually love the things we already own. Or as FashionRevolution.org says: #lovedclotheslast
This means cleaning them in a way that preserves the garments and this means mending! And although mending usually brings to mind sewing, that's not always the case. I want to share with you 9 ideas for fixing a variety of wardrobe issues. Even if you have never sewn in your life.

Fashion Revolution Week is an annual remembrance of the Rana Plaza collapse on April 24th 2013, which killed 1,138 workers. All year round, and especially this week, FashionRevolution.org campaigns for a clean, safe, fair, transparent and accountable fashion industry. 

I love fashion, and I love sewing. But I don’t want our clothes or our fabric to exploit people or destroy our planet.

This week is a time for each of us to stop, reflect and ask #whomademyclothes? and #whatsinmyclothes? We can take this opportunity to think about how we (as individuals and as a whole) produce, consume, and dispose of clothes. 

I love my Huxley bag pattern as is, but I also love how versatile it can be. After lusting after a few roll top bags on instagram, I realized that my Huxley pattern could easily be converted to create one of my own! So, I decided one of my #MakeNine projects was going to be a hacked Huxley, with a roll top, using waterproof material. And because I can't go simple, I added in quite a few other hacks too. Here is a breakdown:

One of my Make Nine goals for 2020 was to try out the My Body Model app, which is a way to create a customized croqui for creating fashion illustrations and flats that are specific to your own body.

​I absolutely love the idea behind this business. Going through an apparel design program in college means that I was taught to use a traditional croqui, which, as some of you may know, is very unrealistic. The traditional croquis are intentionally altered to be more of a stylized representation of the female body, with extra height, and extra long legs. The formula for drawing a croqui involves using nine heads as a base for getting the proportions correct. Take a look at this photo to see what I mean.

Let me preface this post by saying that this is a classic example of how I work on my projects. And it gives you a little insight as to why I take so long to get anything done.
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If you've been following me for any length of time, you know that every January my ASDP chapter rents out a cabin and has a sewing retreat. And this year was no exception! We each bring a machine, and a few (or a bunch) of our sewing projects to work on, and we all share some of the bigger sewing tools, like irons and cutting mats. Then, we each take a the responsibility for one of the meals for the weekend, so that you only have to stop to make food once the entire time. The only "rule" is that you can't sew for any clients! (since most of us are professional sewists)
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