Hi there! You may have noticed that I’ve decided to revive my blog after a very long hiatus! I’ve had lots of life changes – new job, new city, new everything pretty much. I’m loving my life living in downtown Cincinnati. I live right next to a big city park in a neighborhood where there’s always something to do!

I took a really long break from sewing clothes. I have a very small apartment, and only recently got my sewing space set up (and it’s still in my kitchen, but I’m making it work!) And then Covid happened, so I pretty much only sewed masks. With things opening back up again in Ohio I realized that I had basically two pairs of pants and only three dresses in my wardrobe.

I got online and started reconnecting with the online sewing community. Wow – it’s changed so much while I was away! When I was last sewing there were only a few Indies, and now they are everywhere! There are also more independent shops to buy fabric from, which is great because my local selection isn’t amazing. I’m so inspired by the community on social media (you can find me on Instagram as Stitchywitchcreates) and blogs.

So here I am – ready to sew my way to a new wardrobe again! I’m going to use this space to document my plans and my sewing discoveries as I go along. I’d also like to make a quilt perhaps and knit some cardigans. Mostly I’d like to be engaged in the act of creating. My job is creative, but in my downtime I really need to create something tangible. It’s been way too long since I’ve felt engaged in the art of making something for its own sake.

So to start? A pair of culottes.

I bought some tencel twill from an Etsy shop in a deep navy. The price was good, but the edges of the fabric look like it was cut off the bolt with hedgeclippers – I would definitely not recommend. The fabric is nice though, with a great drape. I cut up a rtw top from my closet for pocket fabric, as I didn’t have enough of the main if I wanted to make view B (the medium length above.) I’ve never been one for making a ton of separates, but they are greatly needed in my wardrobe – here’s hoping they fit well!

I cut the waistband in between the size 14 and 16, then graded down to a 12 for the hips. I know the pattern says to just choose off waist size, but I was really worried about them being huge everywhere else. The fabric has a few strange marks on it, so I’m going to consider this a (hopefully!) wearable muslin.