My long-awaited return (and some Fall goals)

Hmmm, maybe it's only been long-awaited by me. :-/ Sorry for the unintended hiatus. I don't really have a good excuse, either - there's just been a general lack of motivation (mostly lacking the motivation to take decent pictures, but more generally as well). I'm always on the fence about whether I should be kind to myself and not try to force things that I'm really not feeling, or whether forcing myself through things will be better for me in the end. Do you ever struggle with that problem? How do you approach it?

Despite said lack of motivation, I do have a backlog of projects to blog, and some WIPs I'm hoping to finish sometime soon. I'm also currently in the midst of planning (slash over-planning...slash achieving?) my fall sewing list (more on that below), but before it gets too late in the year, I wanted to share one last summer make.

This dress was definitely a labor of love. I picked up that great skirt fabric in Puerto Rico last year (my only sewing souvenir!), but only got 1.5 yards. At first I was intending to make a simple circle skirt to really show off the print, but then started thinking about the fact that dresses are so much easier to wear in some ways (hello, instant outfit!), so I went for the whole shebang. 

For the bodice, I used the same lace I used for this dress (which I sadly have only worn once. I feel like the proportions are off on me? And I definitely need to fix the back.) I carefully basted the lining to each piece of lace, determined not to repeat some of the mistakes I made with the last lace dress. I used some random ribbon for the straps, since the lace+underlining would've made straps a bit difficult to turn. It's hard to tell in this picture, but I used double-fold bias binding around the top edge. 

You can see some wrinkling in the back, which is a common problem I have when working with lace. The bodice is my tried and true Simplicity 4070, which fits me well in general. I guess I'll just have to keep working at it. 

Sadly, I've also only worn this dress once. In part because I finished it just before the cold weather hit, but part of it is also that I'm terrified of spilling something on it. But clothes are meant to be worn, right? I'm sure I'll be itching to pull it back out next spring. 

In other news, I have to thank one of the lovely ladies in the Facebook stashbusting group who told me about this Fall Finish-Along. I hope that having some of these lovely prizes to motivate me will help me get through my rapidly growing Fall sewing(/knitting/cross stitch) list.

Sewing plans:
1. Christmas dress. This fabric immediately caught my eye in the store, but I started second-guessing myself. However, the friend I was shopping with quickly talked me into it, and now I can't get the idea of a beautiful vintage-inspired emerald dress for our fancy work Christmas party out of my head. I think I'll use the bodice of B5748 with a sleeker skirt, though this is subject to change.

[This is a much deeper emerald in real life.]

2. Self-drafted fall cape along these lines: 

The cape and lining have been cut out - now to finish it properly!

3. Sierra bra #1. I plan to try this first in some jersey fabric in the stash, to see if it'll even work for my size (it's intended for sizes smaller than mine, so we'll see). 

4. Sierra bra #2 in pretty lace (assuming the first one works out). 

5. Self-drafted white pleated skirt (this one's been cut out and basted already, yay!):

 6. Wrap top (note: this one's been made, but doesn't work for me. I'll have to figure out how to fix it to complete this item):

7. Denim A-line skirt. I'm thinking something like this, though may use a simpler self-drafted skirt. 

8. Self-drafted knit skater skirt using one of these Girl Charlee fabrics:

9. Another skater skirt, assuming the first goes well.

9. Sparkly A-line skirt:

  10. Cocoon cardigan:

11. Wrap top from men's button-down:

12. Tulle skirt:

13. Coat with emerald green wool (to be honest, this'll probably have to be rolled into next year, but a girl can dream!)

Some of these makes look pretty summery, but I'm all about the layering and can see myself getting a lot of winter use out of them.  

14. Game of Thrones quilt (like my Walking Dead one, but...with GoT). All of the fabrics are bought, and many of the designs are done. You can see them on my Instagram.

Knitting(/crochet): 

1. Cocoon cardigan (I figure I'll either sew OR knit one - probably can't do both!) If I make this one, it'll be in a chunky purple yarn.

2. Leg warmers (pattern subject to change, but something like this:)

 
3. Boot toppers

4. Katniss cowl

5. Fix Fezziwig sweater. I knit it last winter, re-doing the button band twice. However, it's still not right, so I'm going to rip out the band again and try to complete it for real.

6. Lace shawl (again, kind of summery, but I want it, dangit!)

7. Slippers

Other:

1. Pretty Little Chicago cross stitch (this one's about half done at this point):

2. Pretty Little Barcelona cross stitch:

Phew! That's a lot! I'm sure I won't finish everything, but I like lists, and I like goals, and I like prizes, so...let's see how far I get! Are you participating?