I've been really touched by the wonderful response my first 'Sewing Real Talk' blog post had, all about sewing for mental health, a subject brought to light again recently due to Mental Health Awareness Week (May 8th - 14th). With such an overwhelming response to the post on social media, another post under the topic is well overdue. This time I'll be tell you how I deal with bouts of zero motivation. A seriously crappy experience when you have a business to run.

Having no motivation impacts everything. I run a creative business, and The Crafty Pinup is turning into my second (which is amazing). Having no motivation to sew or work means literally nothing moves forward. No new garments are made, nothing is ready to publish, customer orders build up around me and I start drowning in a work load I have essentially made for myself. Once I've reached the point when my motivation is at a complete stand still, usually when there's the most amount to do, I have created a strategy that works for me and which sooner or later gets me back into the swing of things!

Workspace

Keeping my workspace tidy and organised is fundamental to my productivity and motivation. I know people have their 'creative mess' but I'm a little OCD when it comes to organisation. If things are messy around me, my mind feels messy, I can't focus on anything but the clutter building up around me. When I find myself at a sewing stand still, I will clean my studio until my mind also feels clear again.

Each to their own of course, but having a tidy and clear work area really affects my mood and the amount of work I am able to complete. At the end of each day I will get the room back to just how I like it, ready for the next day.

Simple Sews

In regards to selfish sewing, a simple project always gets my creative mojo back on track. I'll still feel productive and creative but the project won't give me a headache or take up too much time. I turn to simple sews when my business workload is heavy and I want a little selfish sewing time. I'd recommend the Tilly and the Buttons Coco dress or the Butterick B6453 dress for stylish straight forward makes.

Inspiration

To keep me focused on what I'm doing and why I'm doing it (an essential for the self employed, especially when times get tough & the self doubt creeps in) I like to surround myself with inspiration. Whether that be in the form of physical moodboards in your office, motivational artwork or a collection of Pinterest boards. When I'm lacking motivation I'll check out my faves on Instagram and scroll through Pinterest and in no time I'll be fired up to get creating again.

Give Yourself a Break

Sometimes, it just 'aint gonna happen. I can't force myself to sew, when I hit that wall, there is no point in trying to force it. I'll start making mistakes, becoming increasingly frustrated and ending up in a far worse mood. Personally, I know when to spot these signs in myself and have learnt the hard way to just stop. Take a break. Go for a walk. Go make an awesome lunch. Just take some time out. For me, that'll usually mean getting as far away from my desk or my sewing machine as possible. And that's okay. After that break, whether it be an hour or 2 days, I know I'll be ready to go back to it and knock it out of the park!

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Losing motivation in the things you're supposed to enjoy the most can be a really frustrating emotion. I chose to create my business and to sew the projects I sew, and to feel like you don't want to go near those things is a whole bunch of crappy emotions. But at the end of it all, these emotions pass and the good thoughts outweigh the bad. Sometimes, you just have to stop and see how far you've come and to count the good things in your life. With my sewing mojo strategy, I've learned how to spot my own work slumps, how to avoid them and how to conquer them. I hope you can too.

If you have a story about your sewing mojo you'd like to share, please do in the comments below.
Thanks for reading, pinups!
xo

For more information and help concerning mental health, please visit www.mind.org.uk

Hi pinups!

Things have been super busy here over at The Crafty Pinup and I haven't been blogging as much as I previously had. You may have noticed I've shifted a portion of my content over on to YouTube. I'm really enjoying the experience so far and will be pursuing this avenue!

I've got some really exciting things coming to my YouTube channel and I've been busy plotting with lots of fabulous brands to create some awesome sewing related content. I've also invested in some studio lighting and hope to improve the quality of my videos from now on.

Thank you for sticking with me whilst I figure out my schedule and how to fit this all in to my life! I really hope you're enjoying my content so far and stick around for what's to come. Below are my videos from the past month, if you haven't already caught up! Please do leave a thumbs up and a comment and don't forget to subscribe!

>> Subscribe to The Crafty Pinup YouTube Channel! <<

>> Subscribe to The Crafty Pinup YouTube Channel! <<

Butterick Patterns by Gertie B6453 - The Ultimate Retro Summer Dress!

Here's a peek at the pattern:

Two gorgeous variations!

I chose a vintage style ditsy floral cotton fabric for my first B6453 dress (I say 'first' as my 2nd is on the way...). It's the perfect fabric for the dress and really lends itself to the vintage vibe! The pattern is very much like the popular Pinup Girl Clothing 'Jenny' dress and is a great summer staple, I know I'll be making lots more of. The fact that the dress is nice and simple too, certainly makes it a dream to sew!

Every gathered skirt deserves pockets!

This pattern is lovely and straight forward, I would certainly recommend it for beginners. The dress features flattering princess seams, a full gathered skirt, pockets and a lapped zipper. This was the first time I have sewn a lapped zipper, and I feel silly for avoiding them as it's far more straightforward than I thought. I'll be sewing them a lot more in the future that's for sure!

Finally achieved a great fit!

The only complication for this pattern, for me, was needing to do a full bust adjustment (FBA). This won't be the case for everyone but it is for me. I've never done a FBA before and certainly wasn't looking forward to doing one. I didn't need to do anything major, but after the disappointing too-tight bust on my Kim dress, I thought I should stop avoiding it and do it!


I'm hoping to film a video on my FBA and talk about my fit details and adjustments in more detail on my YouTube channel. I have mentioned a little about it my April Sew & Tell video and will update this section with my FBA video when it's live.


Sewing Summary:

Pattern: Butterick Patterns by Gertie B6453 Dress Pattern

Fabric: Small Rose Print Cotton Poplin Fabric - Turquoise Blue

Notions: 14" zip & 2 x Hoops and Sliders

Sewing time: A day with my FBA.

Modifications: Full bust adjustment.

Fit: Great! But I'll be shortening the waist and altering the straps next time.

Difficulty: Nice and simple - a great make for beginners.

Watch out for: Even waist gathers and creating a tidy lapped zipper will make a big difference to the final look!

Make Again?: Yes! I have another one lined up and look forward to tweaking it further and trying different styling.

No longer fearing the FBA!

Overall, I'm totally on board with the hype of the B6453 pattern! Its simple, sassy and quick to make, the perfect project for getting my creativity back on track. Have you tried this pattern yet? What do you think of it?

Thanks for reading, pinups!
xo

P.S. Thank you for bearing with me whilst my blogging schedule has been inconsistent. Between here and my new YouTube channel, I've been trying to balance my content better to fit in with my work schedule. I'm currently aiming for one post a week here (at the start of the week) and a new video every Thursday. Please do subscribe to my channel HERE.

Hi pinups! Just a quick one today to announce my Me Made May pledge for 2017. I started my sewing blog and dress making for myself last April, and my pledge for last year's Me Made May was pretty feeble as I only had 5 handmade items in my wardrobe. Read last year's pledge HERE. However, like last year's pledge, I'm lucky enough to still be self employed and my uniform of pjs and jumpers hasn't changed too much.

I do, however, have far more handmade items in my wardrobe including great everyday casual pieces alongside my fun vintage style dresses. Like last year's pledge, I'm also involving my birthday which is on the 17th, and will again wear a me-made dress on my birthday!

@craftypinup