Day 4 on Project No 1!

Oh yes! This is brilliant: I made more progress sewing my first project of the year, a muslin of Burda 6230.  This is consecutively the fourth day that I've been sewing and even on the same project - I am making real progress.

I am so pleased about that. Perseverance has never exactly been a strength of mine.

I will update this post with a photo because it looks like I'm making a dress rather than a big blouse!  I am posting this without photo for now because I want to 'document' the date, just for my own satisfaction.  I can't quite believe I am keeping going on this.

Here are the photos:

Massive, isn't it?

Shows the seam and cuff details well

The back is also pieced together like the front

Not a huge lot each day, but enough.  I must say I've been almost anxious about the amount of sewing I have to do on this blouse, which is weird, right?  I mean if it gets too much then I'll just stop automatically, won't I?  It's not like the stitching is going to bite me for being a lot.

There are a few seams and I also have to do them twice: I am using welt seams (yay, first time!) on the piecing together seams, and French seams for the silhouette seams (don't know if they're called that: I mean the top seam from shoulder into top of the sleeve, and also the side seams).  The seams at button bands and collar get caught up so they are the normal thing.

I did overlock the bottom edge because it is a huge curve that won't come out right with either bias binding or double-folding over.  Bias binding would make it way too stiff, and a double folder over curved hem only becomes a mess of puckering.  And also being too stiff.  I'm back to my old favourite: baby hems.  Overlock, fold over once, edge stitch, done.

The black overlocking thread will be visible but this is only a muslin - I want to use white on the real thing.

I guess the amount of sewing felt a bit overwhelming.  Like I didn't really have a good idea of the big picture in terms of how far I got and was feeling adrift instead.  That does have the advantage that you feel like you got quite far all of a sudden, but it's a bit stressful when you're treading water, so to speak.

My anxiety also came from the fear that it wouldn't go well, that I would start messing up and then not be able to regroup enough to get back to a half way acceptable sewing standard.  I wouldn't mind on a toile but a) I want to practice becoming a more accurate sewer, and b) sewing very much stops being fun when it goes messy and wrong and doesn't seem to get back on an even keel.  That would just make me feel even more anxious. A point c) would be that this would reinforce old fears that I really want to get away from: I can improve a skill and I don't have to stick with make-do and oh-well-better-luck-next-time.  I am just so fed up with that.

Which means that I really appreciate and enjoy my progress. A few things could have gone a touch better (I'll know for the actual project: the sleeve pieces apparently not being quite long enough because they wouldn't meet everywhere exactly) but in a blouse this big the corrections of trimming won't be obvious at all.

I mean look at the dimensions: this is not a big blouse but a huge dress. It'll probably end somewhere below my knees!  I'll be able to chop off quite a lot for the sort of blouse that will look okay on me.  I also don't want to sit on the too long back and then have trouble getting back onto my feet.  I mean, come on.

Progress!  Job satisfaction!  Learning is being done!