Well, I've made it just in time! Didn't think I'd be able to take photos in time but I've just managed it. I also want to point out that an outdoor photo session (due to camera lens constraints- zoom is broken!), when the temps are hovering around 38c with 70% humidity and rising due to imminent summer storms are not great conditions for modelling anything with long sleeves, long legs or indeed any extra layers, including WOOL COATS! I need to get my AintoG and photograph as I go... At least then they'd be seasonally appropriate.

Copied from my little plod-along-thread from a week or so ago, here are the groups as they stand:

Group 1
- MADE - Style Arc Fay Skirt in black croc print scuba.
- MADE - Style Arc Terry Tie Cardigan in double face merino.
- MADE - Cashmerette Dartmouth. B&W printed poly knit. Sadly too small and wants to ride up, should have sized up for the fabric, but I'll keep it in for the purpose of this plan.



Group 2
- MADE - Style Arc Fay Skirt in black and white geometric textured knit.
- MADE - Style Arc Diana Top in a pepper grey space-dyed, heathered spandex black ITY knit.
Style Arc Demi Drape Top- outside layer only (see camisole above).
- SUBSTITUTED - Style Arc Abby Cardigan in a black, sheer, textured knit fabric.



Group 3
- MADE - Style Arc Linda pants in black ponte knit. Fail! I apparently didn't pre-wash the fabric and they shrank in the length! They're awaiting being lopped off into house shorts. Therefore...
- SUBSTITUTED - Style Arc Barb in a "ponte like" fabric. Thick and spongy like ponte, with a fine rib. This fabric DIDN'T shrink, thank goodness.
- MADE - Style Arc Samantha Raglan Top in B&W and W&B striped cotton spandex.
- MADE - A loose fit, dropped shoulder t-shirt with a godet back I took a rub-off from, in a B&W border print knit.



Wild Card
- MADE - Simplicity 8141, View D- Twist front tunic in a grey, drapey, loose weave knit.
Which goes well with the Croc Print Fay Skirt from group one, the Black ITY Diana Cami in group two and the ponte-like Barb Pants in Group 3. Yay!



And here they all are lined up together on the curtain rod in my sewing room! Achievement unlocked! Woot!



I'd do things a little differently next time to make it easier (like prewashing things), but I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge and appreciate being able to look back and feel a bit proud of the number of things I've made this year.

Very stylish, I love your taste in clothes and I am very into print clashing, although timid about going too far and stick to monochrome like you've done, so I love this.
I'm also one to make the mirror image of what I wanted. Almost all my crossover tops cross the wrong way  .

Count me in on this one. I have a few things on the cutting table that would work as part of the groups, but need to fill the gaps as time goes on so this might keep me focused. I desperately need basics and it's winter my end of the globe so sticking with blacks, greys and black and white prints. If it was summer the colour palette would be much more vibrant. Sticking hard to the "kind of" part of the plan, here's my list so far.

Group 1: Work clothes
2 overs and 1 under.

• Style Arc Fay Skirt in black croc print scuba, cut but not sewn.
• Style Arc Terry Tie Cardigan in double face merino, cut but not sewn.
• ?? A patterned top of some sort for underneath. The Cashmerette Dartmouth, maybe? I have a couple of B&W printed poly knits to use in my stash.

Group 2: Work clothes (TGIF- heading in to date night)
2 overs and 1 under.

• Style Arc Fay Skirt (it's a TNT for me) in black and white geometric textured knit, cut but not sewn.
• ?? Style Arc Diana Top in a pepper grey space-dyed, heathered spandex. I will need to grade down a couple of sizes due to the stretch of the supplex to get the fit I want. Fabric acquired, not much else.
• ?? Style Arc Demi Drape Top- outside layer only (see camisole above). Need to find a suitable textured/sweater fabric, ideally in white.

Group 3: Weekend
2 overs and 1 under - they must coordinate with either group 1 OR 2.

• Style Arc Linda pants in black ponte knit.
• Style Arc Samantha Raglan Top in B&W and W&B striped cotton spandex. The plan is to have the black with white stripes be the front and back body sections and the white with black stripes as the sleeves.
• ?? A RTW zip up sleeveless vest. This is the only item I feel like I'm chickening out on, so this one may change to something else as time goes on. I have a loose fit, dropped shoulder t-shirt with a godet back I'd like to take a rub-off from, and a border print knit that would suit it, so this might be the time to do it. Let's see how motivated I feel by the end, as it's more of a summer weight item.

Wild Card:
Either an over or an under that coordinates with group 1 AND 2.

• Out of my comfort zone but I'm keen to try Simplicity 1841, View D- Twist front tunic in a grey, drapey, loose weave knit. Pattern pieces cut, fabric acquired, and currently getting up the nerve to cut out something that slippery!

I might end up making two pairs of the black ponte Linda pants because I need comfortable winter weight basics and the pattern is a TNT for me. If I don't make the pants, I might make the Cashmerette Rivermont dress instead. With the leftover B&W stripe spandex I should be able to get out two more Diana tops, one in each colourway. And- I will definitely have enough leftover croc print scuba and black and white geometric texture knit to colour block another skirt, but I haven't got a pattern in mind just yet. I am comitting to none in this paragraph, just making a note of what's in my head in case they come in useful if/when I change my mind about the original plan.

Lara @ Thornberry. Prolific sewer. Mum of two girls and a dapper husband. Great mix.
Bonnie @ Sew Plus. Another power sewer. Seems like she makes a few things every week.
Carolyn @ Diary of a Sewing Fanatic. Not my style, but I love her writing and think she'd be fun to sew alongside.
Melissa @ Fehrtrade. Again, not my style, but very thoughtful posts and useful as a resource.
Sigrid @ Sigrid's Sewing Projects. I started following Sigrid when she wrote about bra-making. Her jackets are beautifully finished.
Andie @ Sew pretty in pink. As a plus-gal myself, I appreciate seeing different body types rocking their own look through sewing.
Elaine @ The Demented Fairy. Nuff said- another prolific power sewist!

Edit to add- I follow all of 'em through bloglovin (phone and PC), I don't think I'd remember to check in with all those blogs without it!

New mum brain- this might be a daft question... When you raise the presser foot aka take-up lever, the upper tension discs release and the thread passes through without trouble. All good so far. The question I have is- does any part of that process work on the bobbin thread?? I am currently using an Bernina 850 Industrie. The bobbin is a Oscillating Hook type, the bobbin case tension is fine when using the drop-jiggle test, however the thread gets really tight upon inserting- a bit like what it feels like when you pull on the top thread with the tension discs closed...

It's only becoming a bother when I raise the foot to cut the thread. I think the stitch formation seems alright (still fine tuning), but the difference in drag when pulling both threads out is noticeable enough to ask the question regarding whether tension is released at the bobbin when raising the take up lever? Anyone? Any thoughts? My newer computerized Janome doesn't suffer from tight bobbin thread, but it's a newer drop-in type bobbin.

If you've bought the full set of Prym jersey snaps with the foldy-over setting tool you hit with a hammer, you just pop out those dies and chuck 'em in the Vario pliers. And if you want to try their Colour Snaps dies (sold separately, as linked by StitchinTime), they work with any KAM snaps that are 12mm (aka T5 and/or Size 20).

As for a piercing tools, I love my screw hole punch. The piecing tool from Prym worked ok, but I can get through multiple layers with the screw punch on a cutting mat, whereas the Prym version struggled.

I've just replenished my original stash of Prym jersey fasteners with these ones. They have Prym branded on the inside ring and have behaved as well as the initial lot that came with the setting tool. I used 10 of them today on an overalls project for my Little Ted and not one misfire. Yay!

For Australian readers:

SewSquirrel are a reseller for some of Beverly's patterns and kits. They also have the Simplicity lingerie patterns and Jalie's lingerie and swimwear patterns as well.
Boobytraps is a long running lingerie component supplier. They sell their own patterns and offer all you need to make a bra under the Haberdashery heading. They have one of the best range of fold over elastics in Australia and their lace selection is quite good, too.
TheRemnantWarehouse sell designer end-rolls and you can occasionally find wonderful quality lingerie fabrics from them. Check back often, sometimes you'll find what you need, other times you're out of luck.