I Have A Stash Problem

Yes, yes, I know.  I should sew fabric instead of buying it.  But silly Fabric Mart sucked me in with more awesome sales.  And I need to stop looking at the New Arrivals section.  Seriously.  The fact that Jo-Ann Fabrics strategically had a 50% off Red Tag at the same time as a major pattern sale didn't help much either.  I also found some cool things while traveling.  And then the $2.50/lb pricing at the Loft always does me in.  Granted, this is several months of fabric accusation at work here.  And, well, if I am being totally honest with myself, my fabric intake always seems to be pretty proportional to my stress level.  Clearly, I have been quite stressed.  (Well, still am, really.)  A post about said stress may be forthcoming, but I am simultaneously young enough and old enough to realize the folly of posting rambling rants on the internet in this day and age.  On the other hand, this blog was always intended as a way for me to keep track of my sewing journey, and I feel it would be disingenuous to leave off certain recent developments.  So I will allow for some time and distance before waving about my dirty laundry, but I am pretty certain that a rather introspective and slightly emo post will find its way to this blog sooner rather than later.  You have been warned.

In any case, in the interest of full sewing disclosure, here are my most "recent" fabric buys:

From Fabric Mart:

Lots of knits!  Ponte and glitter slinky on the left.  ITYs on the right.

A bunch more ITYs - lots of prints, and one blue solid.

They had some great sales on ponte!
I am excited to try color blocking with the leopard print.

And some wovens.  Cotton sateen on the left and some twill blends on the right. 

Dark blue rayon challis, and some cotton prints.

Water-proof green cotton and faux leather on the left.
Purple and green stretch denim on the right.

From Fashion Fabric Club:

Dark blue and grey denims, and metallic brocade.
LOVE the stretch/texture of the dark blue denim.
The brocade looked way cooler in the photograph than it is in real life.

From Spandex House:

Blue pleather on the left and ITY prints on the right.

From Jo-Ann Fabrics and Fabric.com:

Tricot lining from fabric.com and snake-print stretch denim from Jo-Ann.

Cotton velveteen/denim (back), rayon jersey (left), cotton knit (center), and ITY knit (right).

Marble brocade (from the 50% off Red Tag section!).

From Hancock Fabrics:

Poly print for lining (left), black taffeta (back), glitter slinky (right), and teal poly/cotton twill.

Stretch denim print (left) and fun poly chiffon print (right).

From LA Garment District and Other:

Black ponte (80% rayon, 20% spandex - it is LOVELY) and teal ITY (back).
Texture poly knits (front) from assorted LA stores.

Textured ponte-weight knits.  The red is from Angel's and the rest are from the Loft.

Ponte and sweater knits from the Loft.

T-shirt sequin knits (left) and ponte and jersey prints (right) from the Loft.

Textured knit fabrics from the Loft.

Knit linings (left) and pants-weight stretch suiting (right) from Michael Levine.

Metallic and slinky knits from the Loft.

ITY knit prints from the Loft.

Leopard print slinky and jersey prints (from $1 piles and the Loft).

Jersey stripes (from Michael Levine and the Loft).

Navy stretch satin, white ribbed knit, and ITY prints (from the Loft).

Olive green cotton (from M&L Fabrics in Orange County).

And, the piece de resistance, a lovely metallic guipure lace from Fancy Fabrics:

It was a bit difficult to capture in photographs...

This lace has a teal metallic coating - fantastic!  So pretty in person...

I also found some amazing sewing books at A Book Barn in Clovis, CA:

Used sewing books, aw, yeah!  (The title on the third book down - All About Sleeves.
A whole book dedicated to sleeves!  Crazy, no?)

Shortcut books from Betzina and Shaeffer.  Yes please!
And, no, I didn't buy all the books they had.
Just the ones that weren't already in my library.

Why did a used book store have a pleating device?
I don't know, but I bought it to try anyway...

Yeah, that is... a lot of fabric.  And a lot of books.  My stash is starting to hit that point where it is becoming more than just a little bit overwhelming.  Storage space is becoming problematic.  And, despite the fact that I feel like I have been sewing quite a bit lately, I don't seem to actually be reducing my stash at all.  Or, at least, not much.  But I have only a few weeks until the end of the skating season.  Which means only a few more weeks of sequins, rhinestones, and spandex.  I still have a lot to get done, but the end is in sight.  And until I get there I am just going to have to occasionally glance at all my pretty stash fabrics and perhaps pet my lovely black ponte on an occasion to calm my nerves.  For some reason I find soft fabric to be rather soothing.

Newsflash: August Burda Early Preview Posted

Burda Style Germany has posted the first look at the August Burda.  Even more photos can be seen over at P-an-da blog.  Looking just at the photos from Burda... I wasn't too impressed.  There were maybe a few designs I liked, but there are also a lot of oddly boxy designs.  Looking at the more extensive collection of images on P-an-da, well, I am a bit more excited for this issue.  Unfortunately, there are a lot of photographs that don't do a fantastic job of showing off the garment, so I am going to wait until I can see all of the line drawings before I declare this issue a win or a bust, but as of right now I am cautiously optimistic.  It definitely looks much better than July, though, really, accomplishing that really wouldn't have taken much.

In any case, here are the images from the official Burda announcement:

Pretty!  This dress I like a lot.

Ok, so I think the fabric choices are rather unfortunate,
but the color blocking seams are kinda interesting...

...Though the non-color-blocked version (from p-an-da)
looks like a definite win.

Awesome dress?  Or just and awesome photo?

I'm sort of digging the cut out on this one...
Modest enough for undergarments, but large enough to be interesting.
(Actually, I think I just got some fabric that would be perfect for this...)

This party look... Good?  Bad?  Unfortunate fabrications?
I'm waiting for line drawings.

I'm assuming this is just a sack dress?  Not overly excited.

It's August, so we need at least one cape!

This top has oddly boxy proportions.
Also dude in the background has a way more
interesting outfit than she does - check out those shoes!

Very square sack dress...

Is the top really that boxy?  Or is it just her awkwardly stiff pose?

Possibly interesting jacket and skirt?
Need to see the line drawings on these too.

The skirt is ok.
The photo makes me feel slightly awkward though.

Coat is kinda dull.
What's with all the birds?

Bomber jacket for the Burda Plus ladies.  Nice!

Not sure how I feel about this dress.  It looks a bit heavy for August.
Perhaps I am just not a fan of the chosen fabrics.

Sort of liking this blouse/pants combo though.

A few more pictures of note I picked out from the p-an-da blog:

Pretty sure they are showing the cape,
but I'm hoping we might also get the leggings.

This top is so pretty!  Love love love the draping.  Want.

So, what do you all think?  See anything that gets you excited for August?  Or is this going to join July in the unused Burda pile?  Anyone else holding out for the line drawings before deciding how they really feel about this issue?  Feel free to discuss in the comments!

Newsflash: New McCall's Patterns Announced!

McCall's has joined Simplicity in announcing the first of their fall patterns.  Despite the fact that about half of this collection seems geared towards kids, there are a surprising number of potentially interesting patterns this time around.  I am especially excited by the skirt from "The Archive Collection."  In any case, let's take a look:

M6995 - A jacket from The Archive Collection.

I always love looking at the seaming details on the vintage and vintage inspired patterns.

M6993 - Another piece from The Archive Collection.
This skirt!  I wants it.  Totally makes me think of Elsa -
from Indiana Jones, not Frozen.

Love the waist detail on view A.  Pretty.

M6986 - A Palmer/Pletsch dress pattern.  Not sure how much I like it with the long sleeves,
but the short sleeved version looks pretty cute.

M6989 - A Melissa Watson for Palmer/Pletsch pattern.
I actually think the dress is sort of cute, but I don't know if it is something I would wear.

M6988 - A color blocked dress with hem options.
Fine, but very similar to existing patterns.

M6987 - Sack dress/tunic.  Meh.

M6996 - A nice cardigan pattern with hem length options.
Reminds me a lot of the popular peplum pattern from last year, except less peplum-y.
Oh, and this one doesn't appear to require interfacing,
so I might consider giving this pattern a try to see how it compares to last year's pattern.

M6990 - A Laura Ashley peplum top pattern.
Actually, even though I have been feeling a bit sick of the peplum trend,
I do rather like the options for this top.  Might consider adding it to the list.

I like a lot of these options, though view D (photographed) is my favorite.

M6991 - Not sure how I feel about this super blousey top.
The draping is interesting but it sort of looks a bit too voluminous.

M6992 - A raglan sweater pattern.  Very similar to the Simplicity pattern
from last week.  Might get one, but definitely don't need both.

M6994 - Basic skirt pattern.  Nice, but not terribly exciting.

M7005 - We have costumes for wine bottles now?

M7005 - That is the most complicated apron I have ever seen!

M7003 - At least the guys got a good costume pattern.
I actually really like this.  Looks very dapper.

M7004 - Don't have a need or interest in dressing up dogs, but the puppy pictures are so cute!
Had to include them all...

Steam-pup.

The goggles!  And that tongue!

Yeah, that tongue gets me every time.

M7006 - I also really like the doll's clothes in this pattern - that red jacket is cute!

So, what do you all think?  See anything that catches your fancy?  Or does everything look like a repeat of popular patterns from last year?  Are we sick of peplums and color blocking?  Or are the details in these patterns enough to keep your interest?  Feel free to discuss in the comments!