SWAP ’16

December 3, 2015 by sewruth 36 Comments

Honestly? Did I just type that?

I said last year that I wasn’t going to do SWAP ’15, then I relented round about January 2015 and I ended up participating anyway – I made a full-on  Alabama Chanin 11 garments’ worth of SWAP!

I did wear most of them over the (ha ha!) summer months and for sure the coat is worth its weight in gold for the number of times I’ve worn it.

When the rules were published this year I said the same – not for me… I have work commitments from Feb through to May;  I had a potentially full-time project to contend with at the same time and so I thought I’d sit this one out and watch other people sew fabulous wardrobes. Yet here I am at the planning stage for 11 items to be sewn by May 2016. Sounds a long time away doesn’t it? I can absolutely vouch that it is not! The older you get, the faster time goes; hence  E=MC2. Honestly Einstein – you only had ask a middle-aged female sewer………it’s not that difficult to figure out.

1 x 3 pack A of one or more Colour(s)  (3 garments)
1 x 3 pack B of one or more Colour(s)  (3 garments)
1 x Combo Pack of Colours used in A & B (2 garments)
1 x 3 pack of Wild Cards

So what have I come with, you may ask.  While perusing and contemplating peaceful, serene landscapes ( I need a bit of restfulness right now) I hit upon an essentially British scene – the moors. Heather that is pink/purple and green in spring-time interspersed with slate grey stone. It is a common scene that stretches all the way from the far north highlands of Scotland to the lowlands of the south coast of Ireland. What is more appropriate to consolidate my heritage with the countryside?

I am a city-girl by birth and and lifestyle; so I have to combine the reality of my life with the romanticised version of birthright. I have come up with Heather and Slate.

A collage of delicate pink/purple with olive green/mucky green and earth tones; mixed with stones that compliment the neutral greys and random rocks found upon moorlands.

I always start with colours for a SWAP – I find it both a focusing and starting point.

For set A – a combination of two colourways – the Heathers…

For set B – the stones – slate grey….

The 2 piece combination is still a work-in-progress……

But I have the fabrics, if not the patterns, for the 3 wildcard set…

And now for the ‘very important thing‘. I can’t thank you all enough for your efforts, decision making processes and comments on my previous post. If nothing else it was fascinating for me to see how you see me. In the end, despite our best efforts girls, my life continues apace. I do not believe it was in any way influenced by what I wore on the day but rather how I conducted myself, so the fault lies squarely at my door. Hey-ho. Nothing lost, nothing gained.

Thank you all so very, very much (and I hate tautology but I really, really mean it this time) – the highest count comments ever on this blog – you are such an opinionated lot and I love it!

Just in case you don’t know about SWAP – it’s Sewing With A Plan organised by Stitchers’ Guild: plan and sew an 11 garment wardrobe in 5 months. BTW, you don’t have to stick to your ‘plan’ – it’s always a work-in-progress (see above). Stitchers’ Guild is a very welcoming and inclusive community of sewers. I started a SWAP for 3 years in a row before I finally got round to completing one so please don’t feel intimidated or pressurised to do it. It’s just a pleasure to participate and learn as you do so.

A very warm welcome to all new followers and readers. Thank you, as always….we can do this journey together. Ruth