I had a plan. And now I have fabric to match.

I wrote up a plan for infusing some new handmade summery clothing into my winter/spring wardrobe on Thursday – then Friday afternoon I closed my computer and headed down to the garment district. I didn’t have a whole lot of time, so I made it a one stop shopping trip to Mood Fabrics – not my favorite fabric store, but if you’re looking for one stop shopping, it’s a pretty excellent bet (plus I had a gift card…)

I bypassed their silks and laces, heading straight downstairs to cottons & jerseys. I knew what I was looking for, and that always makes for easier shopping.

My list was: black substantial cotton jersey, black lightweight cotton jersey, fabric for a maxi dress, lining for the pink plaid I brought back from Stonemountain Daughter in SF, and possibly other over-shirt fabrics.

And that’s more or less what I got.

Tank Tops & Camisoles

The Fabric: 2 yards of a solid black organic cotton
The Pattern: my own self drafted go-to tank top pattern
The Plan: re-draft pattern. cut. sew. wear.

Unfortunately, the original tank top pattern that I made, developed and refined throughout the self-made wardrobe project, is in an unknown box in my storage unit. Sad panda.

I figured this might be the case, so I’m not terribly sad or surprised – just a bit annoyed. Luckily this is not a difficult or time consuming pattern to draft.

To be worn with: everything

Over-Shirts

The Fabric: 1.5 yards of a burnt-out cotton jersey & 1 yard of a black/white/lime green graphic print silk/cotton blend
The Pattern: a self-drafted/traced tee & possibly a hacked up Anna Dress
The Plan: make something… then wear it.

The plan for the burnt-out is pretty straight forward – trace my current favorite tee, draft pattern, cut, sew, wear.

The plan for the silk/cotton blend is a little more amorphous. The fabric is an amazing(!) large scale print, with a drape that is too yummy for words. So, I want a pattern that will play to those strengths – something with large expanses of uninterrupted fabric.

At the moment I’m leaning towards doing one of two things – either hacking the Anna Dress from By Hand London into a tunic, or self-drafting a draped top. Whichever I path I choose, this pieces is at the end of the queue, so I can mull a little longer.

To be worn with: all the things!!

PJ Bottoms

A change of plans: I was originally going to make a new pair of shorts (or two).

But I was looking my current ones over and the fabric is fine – the only thing shot is the elastic.

So I’m moving this project from my “to build” pile into my “to mend” pile, with a plan to replace the elastic and then enjoy.

Anna Maxi Dress

The Fabric: 3 yards of a lightweight blue & white print cotton.
The Pattern: the Anna Maxi Dress from By Hand London
The Plan: squeeze pattern out of fabric, sew & wear.

I know the pattern calls for at least 3.8 yards (3.5 meters), but I think I might be able to squeeze it out of three yards. Or I might run back to Mood and pickup a separate piece of yardage for the bodice.

I know if I try to squeeze this dress out of 3 yards I won’t be able to care too much about pattern matching – but the fact that Heather at Closet Case Files managed it, is giving me hope.

To wear with: sandals, all summer long

San Francisco Plaid Maxi Dress

The Fabric: 3.5 yards of a cotton gauze bought in SF. A TBD lining.
The Pattern: a copy of my current favorite summer dress.
The Plan: find a lining. Draft, cut, sew, wear.

My shopping list included picking up a lining for this fabric, but I was standing there and the only thought going through my head was: “What the heck do I line this plaid with?!”

I was thinking of trying to find something that would match one of the colors, a beautiful pink, or yellow, or brown, (definitely not white).

But then my internal monologue was like:
“What about lining it with another plaid and making it reversible?
“But that would not be an easy, breezy project!?
“So, just line it with a solid?
“If so, which color?!
“Pink? Yellow? Brown?
“Introduce a new color?
“Charcoal? Green? Blue? Purple?”

It was one heck of an internal monologue. And enough options to make my head spin – so I didn’t buy a lining. I figured I should at least figure out which color I wanted to look for before going back to find a lining.

As of this typing I’m leaning towards a green or blue. But yesterday I was all about the yellow. So what it will end up as is anyone’s guess.

If this were your plaid, what would you use for a lining?