Caveat: This entry turned into a rather long planning post. I think this is going to be a very useful record for me of what I’m committing to do over the next few months. 

I don’t know if beavers are also planners/ruminators, but I thought the title was too cool to pass up on when I thought of it…on Saturday night. I stayed up way too late 1) trying to improve my beaver motifs before I knit the yoke of my sweater; and 2) thinking about Lesley’s capsule post, which she inconveniently posted as I was about to shut down the computer and go to bed. It sent me down a rabbit hole with the links she posted!

I sent my mom beaver options to choose from, like a game show, but I think that 1 is the clear winner, with a slight change of tail. Yes, you can laugh all you like. I have beaver fever.

Maybe I couldn’t sleep as I went to an early show last evening and ate this:

I am a healthy eater, with a diet of lots of fruits and vegetables, fish, lean meats and legumes, but I simply cannot resist popcorn at the theater…

The benefit was that I got to see the sunset on the way back:

I saw Beatriz at Dinner, which was not quite as good as I expected, but I do like Salma Hayek and the idea was interesting. It may be that I need more time to think about it, as the ending threw me off somewhat. It was perfect for an artist date, anyhow, and I really felt (which I do usually, anyhow), that huge gulf between the feeling person who tries to stay connected to the earth and to other beings and that numb, greedy, non-reflective culture that dominates so much of how we go through our lives.  I wasn’t thinking about the film in an America-specific context only (although that’s the setting), but rather in relation to how I know the world operates more broadly.

But going back to the beginning…

I wrote a couple of weeks back that I know the trick for me for actually getting anything done is to make a small list and commit to doing those things one by one. One of my biggest problems – and I’d be curious for your take on this, or if you can relate – is that I have so many ideas that I end up with piles of stuff lying around that I pull out and leave out so that I can see the “interaction” between materials, allow ideas to spin off of one another, or allow ideas to fully germinate, etc. This becomes confusing, as the ideas start competing with one another, or get buried under new ideas, and I don’t start working on one or another. Solution: After I have pulled the ideas out and assembled them and allowed them to percolate, I need to appoint a time to select between them and then put all but one of them away. Once I choose one thing to do I am pretty much OK. It’s when the space is too open that I struggle. In fact, this is why I know that I will be OK in the knitting sphere for a little while, as after I finish the beaver I have committed to working out the Emily Carr and the iceberg. The order can flip I suppose but I think I’ve decided on the EC first. Yes, the EC first. The iceberg is perfectly suited to winter.

Emily Carr colours. The photo isn’t quite true to life, as the colours are a bit brighter than shown:

The iceberg yarns are these, and they are amazing:

They are also blues and greens, but with more of that “acid” blue that Lawren Harris used so well. Best yet, I have enough yarn to make another sweater after the iceberg. Maybe two Lawren Harris sweaters are in the cards –  some kind of a pairing, or story-telling sequence in sweater form. Hmm…I like that.

This is an embarrassing pile. See that wrinkly texture to the tissue? I traced and fitted these three patterns earlier in the summer – it must have been June – and I left them near my sewing desk. One is for a skirt, one for a sleeveless top, and the final one for linen shorts. Because I open the windows in that room for cross-ventilation, when it rained quite a bit over the last number of weeks the moisture evidently entered the room sufficiently that it looks as though I left my patterns out on the lawn for a month. Now that’s slow sewing!

Decision-making eliminates decision fatigue, which I undoubtedly suffer from in the crafting sphere.

I did, finally, start working on a dress pattern yesterday.

The choice for a final dress of summer was between these two fabrics. It’s going to be the taupe linen on the right (I think!). It’s a little bit boring, but it will show the design details of the pattern and “nocciola” (hazelnut) is a Gianni-approved summer colour. Goodness knows I have enough blue in my wardrobe already. I dropped the idea of using the linen for the Fabiani dress I was considering last year, as I think the Fabiani dress would be better (for me) in wool. What I don’t like in a summer dress is too much fabric up around the neck and this one has a funnel neck. The planned dress has a lower neckline and less fabric on the shoulders.

My sewing plans are firm. As I wrote a couple of weeks ago, I’m going to permit myself one summer item (OK, maybe two) before moving on to my unfinished grey Valentino suit (and the red version to follow). I’m getting excited about getting back to that sewing so that is a very good sign. It’s clearly a seasonal thing.

Grey version in progress:

Red wool crepe. 

Next up after the Valentino, I told myself that I would make a classic, lightweight wool coat. I am thinking about a shape like this:

This shape is also good for me, and I have this pattern (although a one-button coat is impractical):

I might consider this interesting pattern, largely as the shape is so much more practical:

I have three contenders for fabric:

The fabrics are much nicer than they seem in the photo. The blue at top is exquisite. It’s some kind of a wool-cashmere blend. It’s a lightweight coating or a jacketing material. I’m sure that when I bought it I bought it because it was on sale at my local fabric shop and I bought the end of the bolt. I can’t remember how much there is, but definitely enough for a thigh-length coat. The plum at right is also lovely. It’s very similar to the blue but a bit thicker. I probably wish it were more burgundy than plum, but plum I can also wear. It might be the wisest choice for a fall coat, as I already have so much navy blue that maybe I need a change? Last but not least, the plaid is a remnant that I bought from a man called Salvatore in Florence. He more or less gave it to me after I purchased the grey wool to make the first Valentino suit. Shopping with Gianni is always a good idea as he genuinely loves people and he and Salvatore shot the breeze about the older shops and how Florence has changed since the 1970s (when Gianni first came to Florence, as a boy). It’s always both a history lesson and a way of digging myself into a deeper understanding of Italian culture. Not to be crude, but shopping with an Italian means that I also get pretty nice discounts (sconti). This plaid wool I’m guessing is English or Scottish and it might be as old as I am. It’s in great condition, however, so not a problem. I was thinking that it could be made into a short coat with a velvet collar in a contrast colour. Thoughts?

If I include the red suit in a “capsule,” clearly only the navy blue works. Maybe I should drop the idea of a capsule! (I’m truly useless at this.)

This is really getting long – sorry – but it’s a very useful exercise. I recommend it!

After the coat, plans are less firm, but the next item is likely to be a blazer, if the coat doesn’t kill my yearning:

I have had the shape of the blazer in this old sketch in mind for a long time, but I could also see a couple of jackets, with at least one in a more casual 1970s shape, with patch pockets:

You might be noticing that I cycle through a lot of the same patterns. There might have been a time when I would have thought that that was a problem, but actually I think it’s interesting. I think it means that I’m clear about the shapes and styles that I like.

Major fabric contenders come from the grey and blue families:

My grey collection. Not all are jacket weight, and some are intended for skirts or dresses. Really I would consider the dark grey at top to be the likeliest contender. Close-up at middle, below. It’s beautiful and there is a faint check in the pattern. It was a gift from Gianni’s sister.

The cashmere on the right is absolutely exquisite and a gift from Gianni, so I need some good ideas as to what I am going to make with it. He suggested pants, but I wonder if it is too soft and drape-y for pants and if it wouldn’t make a better jacket. Thoughts? The orange wool-silk plaid is probably my favourite piece of fabric in my entire collection, for silly reasons (my inner desire to dress like a lumberjill). My problem with this fabric is that I bought it to make a shirt – workman-style, band collar, loose and winter classic with flat pockets – but I am not sure whether I should wash the material first. I washed a swatch a couple of months back and it washed up fairly well – minor shrinkage, a little bit fuzzy but not too much. I wonder though if this should be strictly dry-clean only, which is truly unfortunate for a shirt. Do you have any experience making wool shirts?

Other contenders for jackets come from the blue pile and dark green pile, although most of these are more likely to become pants or work dresses (eventually):

I adore the teal at top, even though it is likely a bit too bright for me. The colours in this photo are not as bright as the pieces are in real life (the piece at right is a beautiful periwinkle). The dark green in front bottom was a rare disappointment as it turned out to be much too dark – bordering on black – and the texture is flat and a bit bland, but I’m sure I can figure out something to do with it. It’s a rare miss from Emmaonesock (in the sense of not being exciting, although it is still a decent fabric). It just needs a pattern with a lot of design details to spice it up. I think it is a serious contender for a classic garment (e.g., a simple dress) but with major contrast beading or something like that, on a collar or around the neckline.

For a more casual jacket, I could use moleskin, which is much nicer and softer (cotton) than it looks:

The one on the right is, strangely, doublecloth moleskin, which Gianni gave to me. It’s beautiful and soft and would make a great casual blazer. The one on the left was another dark green mistake that turned out to be more of an unsaturated black. I bought it in evening light, but it was not expensive so great for a wearable toile.

That basically takes me through my entire fabric stash, with the exception of these, which I don’t think fit into the fall sewing capsule I have designed. I could see these for a SWAP next year (! :)), as they would make beautiful spring suits (right) and pants (left):

Glorious three-season wools.

My two silks in stash, also to be left for next year’s sewing. The one on right I love so much but have never been able to commit to using. There’s enough for a blouse. I have enough of the one on the left to make a dress.

Boring shirting collection, though lots of fodder for boxers for G, and (next year) summer tops for me (blue checks):

I have lots of shirting as my local fabric guy sells ends of quality men’s shirting that he gets from a manufacturer in Montreal. They’re always sold in odd sizes and usually at only about $10 a meter, which is good for the quality.  

Last but not least, this is funny. The red you’ve seen above. This is what I call my other colour stash, i.e. colours that are not my typical neutrals (blue, grey). There’s plum wool on the left. There’s brown three-season wool at the top, for a dress.

And that is it. Clearly I am not an exciting fabric purchaser (and clearly not a big patterned-fabric person), but you can also see why I will not be buying any fabric (at least in wool) for a long time. I have several years’ worth of sewing ahead of me with these fabrics. This is good. I will learn from this experience. I was very proud of myself yesterday as I was sorely tempted by a piece of glorious wool fabric that I saw (can you see a pattern?) and I did not buy. I stuck to thread and pins. You have to celebrate small victories!

I am bookmarking this post as my commitment to these plans. Can you see the major weakness in my plans? Yes, I can too. I’m going to need some easy, quick sewing between some of these more challenging items, or I will go insane…It also might be useful to include, um, some tops in the mix.

Have a lovely rest of the weekend, if you were strong enough to make it this far and receive my best wishes!