Selfless Sewing Series -Pattern First or Fabric First ?

Not much sewing has been going on around this part of the world even though I am just at the end of two weeks holiday. I have been making some slow progess on a coffee table runner but put that aside when my eldest daughter asked  that I make her a couple of tops for her travels next year. So last week my eldest and youngest DDs and myself  drove to Melbourne to hit the fabric shops. 

First up was Darn Cheap where my youngest found a couple of pieces she liked ( I didn`t know this was a part of the deal - oh well ! ) . She really liked some floral poly crepe which she wants made into a wrap around dress and found some zigzag cozy knit for a jumper . Luckily the latest Burdas here ( August and September ) have patterns for what she wants. 

Next up was The Cloth Shop in Ivanhoe where it  was commented on  that we looked like a pack of hunters. I suppose we were stealthily stalking the aisles. Here my eldest daughter fell in love with some green linen knit pictured above . She also found a small remnant -60cm - of Japanese cotton which is absolutely gorgeous . I had to use every last mm of the length to eke out a top for her . We used plain navy crepe to make up the shortfall. The pattern is based on one of her old tops in a boxy loose fitting style. I copied an idea from a German blog and made a tag out of the cute selvage. 

So this year I have been trying very hard to use what I have to make up my unused Knipmodes and Burdas. However as the year progressed I hit some hurdles. For some of the patterns I chose I just did not have the right fabric. More recently I bought some patterns I wanted to make up now but had absolutely nothing so that meant  a shopping trip for me. 

I went to ClearIt in Fitzroy and found some navy/ grey argyle double knit to make a raglan sleeve windcheater . I also picked up some beige cotton lycra to make some camisoles but simply could not leave the spotty / stripey cozy knit behind. I hope to make the patterns below .

And then I received an email from Style Arc about some stretch denim and jeans pattern and did not hesitate to push the buy button. They came with another free top pattern which I really like. 

So this year I have been choosing patterns first and fabric second. Now I have stocked up on fabric  for now I can continue with the patterns first trend but I think next year I will have to have a new approach to sewing. But for now I have a bit of selfless sewing to get through. So how do you approach sewing ? Fabric first or pattern first ?? 

The Choosing Prints Dilemma . How Do You Decide ?

Some people have a real skill at choosing prints and making them into something incredible. I dont`t have that knack of seeing the bigger picture so I almost didn`t buy this fabric . But now it is sewn up I really like it . I often favour smaller prints in more muted colours but this can translate into a bland , faded even frumpy   look from a distance even if the print itself is beautiful .
The fabric is a rayon type with birds in solids and outlines on a black background. I`m not sure if they are swallows or swifts.
I really wanted to make the Rebecca Taylor Vogue Pattern 1395 but it wasn`t available but my brain slowly ticked over and I realised I could get the look combining a couple of patterns I already owned.

I combined a Butterick See and Sew  dress pattern 5975  with the front ties from  Kwik Sew 3620 . Not exactly the same but  similar look to the Rebecca Taylor Vogue 1395 as below. I got a bit over confident and didn`t follow the pattern instructions for the dress as I was trying to do the burrito method for the yoke construction . I realised too late it would not work for the dress so I had to fudge things and add bias binding strips for the arm holes and then applied them the wrong way so they show on the outer side . I applied them neatly so it looks OK and since I sewed the dress a couple of weeks ago my mistakes already do not bother me. Apart from my own self induced errors  the construction was straight forward but I am not quite sure that the pattern is as simple as See and Sew implies.

I have included this photo as proof of the ties existence and a closer shot of the print ( BTW I just learnt today that vogel is the German word for birds - just trying to reinforce my learning ! ) The dress is very comfy with an elastic waist but the ties conceal this at the front so I won`t need to add a belt . The top is a blouson style and the skirt is gently gathered. I was worried that the dress would be huge going by the finished measurements so I cut a size 10 instead of my usual 12 .

This dress has got me rethinking my print choices and also that I should probably have a bit of a dress clean out.The dress started as a UFO from several months ago and now it is finished my sewing corner is all sorted. I can hardly believe it but my dress form is clear , my dresser top is empty and my little sewing basket has only one project in it which is a WIP purse which is being slowly made at a sporadic sewing group I attend so no hurries there. I am now considering finally making a patchwork table runner for the coffee table and perhaps even an entire patchwork quilt with garments in between. 

Does anyone have any hints on how they successfully chose prints ? 

Happy Sewing and here`s to completed UFOs and fresh starts.