Revisiting Until It's a TNT

Are you a pattern revisitor?  Or are you a once and done kinda sewist?  I'm curious.  I know that Carolyn is the queen of the TNT and Gillian can hack a TNT like nobody's business.  But, while I feel like Megan tries a lot of new patterns, I also feel like she has some TNT favorites.  These three ladies seem to be my style and inspiration go tos these days. 

Where am I in the TNT or One and done range?  Well, it depends.  If we're talking about the ESP dress or the Appleton I'm darn close to TNT.  ESP still needs a few tweaks. 

If we're talking about the perfect outfit - I'm always losing my mind over the newest shinny pattern.  I mean, I was super inspired by a guest in loose flowy wide legged pants.  She looked fabulous, comfortable and really put together.  So, what do I do?  I made one pair of McCalls 7757.  They were meant to be a wearable muslin, but they were just all around too big.  I took them in, altered my pattern, made one more pair and haven't even taken photos in that pair to see if they are closer to hitting the mark. 

Pants are from Lilly P

This weekend, I send Carolyn a message to tell me I didn't need to buy the Love Notions Summer Caye pants - because basically I HAVE IT!  And I believe Gillian has a tutorial on making pants have a flat front and elastic back.  But - have I revised my pattern yet?  Nope.  

And then I get stumped by what to wear with full legged pants like that.  Is it just a tee?  Have a played with Concord enough to just be able to pull it out and sew it up?  Why not?  There's not a single piece of fabric I own that's too special to use.  

I also want a button down shirt.  And let me tell you, I have patterns for button downs. But then I get stuck and can't decide which pattern to use.  Do I want a fitted shirt or a really loose shirt?  Long sleeves, short sleeves?  It gets to be so overwhelming for me that I make another shirt for JB!  

So talk to me - share your process from getting from a pattern to a wardrobe staple.  Clearly, I need help.  

Style

Several years I ago I did a “what style am I drawn to” exercise with my ASG girls. Almost every single thing I pulled from the fashion mags that year was solid color neutrals – navy, grey, brown, some peach green, and a tiny bit of red – for colors, but mostly all solids.

Styles: pencil skirts, sheath and shirt dresses, turtlenecks and twin sets. Very classic looks.

As I revived my blog - I found this very old draft post and it still seems appropriate today as I find my way.  I am a dress girl, but my life is no longer dress up.  It's far more casual.  So, now that we're almost 3 years into this B&B gig all of my beautiful cotton work dresses are out of my closet.  And I've said bye-bye to the wool dresses as well. But I still can't bear to part with my work shoes, although, I think they aren't long for my closet. 

These days, I'm getting inspiration from Carolyn as she builds her Chicos Chic wardrobe; Megan with her gorgeous pembroke dresses; and Gillian and her swing dresses.

Share your comfortable, casual, easy to wear and feel put together patterns with me - please.  While I don't really enjoy wearing jeans, I am so inspired by Carolyn's shirt collection and have quite a collection of shirting fabrics of my own.  I did a quick search of Coldwater Creek, Dress Barn and J. Jill for some inspiration garments - guess it's time to get sewing!