The night is dark and full of restlessness.
We’ve survived a week of time shift in the United States, falling back one hour into standard time. The mornings are better. daylight starts to blink on within the 6 o’clock hour. The evenings are brutal. I come home in a darkness that feels like it should be 8pm, do the post-work routine of dinner, dog playtime, and general catch up with the spouse. Then? Then it feels like it should be bedtime based on the daylight (or lack thereof) alone. But no, there are hours which could be used for productivity, cleaning, relaxing, or being creative.
But it is hard to motivate myself. I both yearn to be making something, feeling the high that comes from creative flow, and struggle to lift a finger to do anything. Isn’t it bedtime?
I’m also at that stage of the year where all my favorite outfits are not suitable for the damp cold of Seattle winters. So I stare at my closet, longing for some sumptuous sweaters and chic pants. If only I would just finish a damn sewing project!
My mood is bored.
Ooh, that’s what I need, a physical mood board!
I’ve got a endless list of inspiring ideas, but those are hidden away in the Pinterest App. I need to be hit in the face with the patterns I want to use and the fabrics that inspire me.
So, here’s my attempt to collectively inspire us. A list accounts I follow on Instagram that are inspiring me right now.
Atelier Brunette
https://www.instagram.com/atelierbrunette/
I have seen their fabrics appear in a few sewcialist instagram posts. I don’t know if any of my local fabric stores carry their stuff, but hooray for ONLINE STORES.
They pair behind Atelier Brunette have divided their expertise between the two big sectors of fabric design – the manufacturing (in India, in this case) and the designs on the fabrics. They are getting started and have laudable goals for responsible textile production.
I am drawn to the natural abstract pattern designs and the rich colors. The fabrics seem to be limited run, as one color I was eyeing is nearly gone. So don’t get emotionally attached to fabrics you see in past instagram posts, they might not exist in 3 months when you finally allow yourself to buy the fabric you’ve been dreaming of.
I really appreciate that they also sell notions that match their fabrics, so you can buy the buttons, thread, zippers or bias tape that you need to coordinate flawlessly.
Needle Sharp
https://www.instagram.com/needlesharpny/
A subscription sewing kit is really intriguing to me. I haven’t signed up yet because I can’t get over the fear of buyer’s remorse. But then I look back at each of the past month’s pattern kits and I love at least one of them each month…so I should probably just try this right?
Mary selects patterns from some of our favorite indie pattern companies (and some that I’ve never heard of) and then chooses a range of fabrics you can use that month. The categories of the boxes are divided based on your sewing experience level AND/OR your fabric preferences (which also has $$ implications). There is also a curvy option.
I buy so many patterns that I never buy the fabric for. And also fabric which I never find the “right” pattern for. If only I could consolidate my impulse buy into one that marries fabric and pattern.
In some ways this feels like a natural next step for a sewing community that has embraced the internet tools to pursue their hobby and businesses. I think back to when Collette started Seamwork and started providing two patterns to me every month with ideas for how I could use them. I’m kinda surprised Colette hasn’t started a subscription sewing kit of their own. They already curate suggested fabrics for you in their monthly magazine. In any case, check out Needle Sharp.
PomPom Magazine
https://www.instagram.com/pompommag/
I haven’t knitted much lately, but I can’t deny the allure of a gorgeous knitted sweater. And PomPom just makes me drool. I really enjoy their themes for each issue. It is usually something so broad (but beautiful) like “terrain” or “dots” that then is threaded through a number of fiber art projects.
Like with Needle Sharp, I haven’t committed to the subscription, but every time I look at past issues I wish I had. You can pick up past issues as digital downloads or you can buy some print versions.
I started following PomPom around the time I started following Seamwork – the online crafting magazines appealed to my tastes more than the established print knitting or sewing magazines found in stores.
I’m spending the rest of this evening ripping seams from a pair of supple leather pants that are much to large for me. I’m hoping to repurpose the fabric into a skirt. I think a leather skirt will add a lot to my outfit rotation.
So what are you working on this autumn? What motivates you to create?
The Fabric Alchemist 