Feeling Chatty...

Friday, March 11, 2016








I was going to post the second of my Afternoon Tutorials, but today, I just felt like writing to you all instead and saying hello.

Hello!

Autumn is apparently officially here in my neck o' the woods. We've literally just had the power turned back on. It's been down since yesterday evening - we've had gale force winds here which have knocked down powerlines, um, hello autumn or winter!? Thank goodness for our little wood burner and stove top kettle, oh how we take power for granted...

Autumn is technically my favourite season, but, I just want a bit more summer warmth. We've not had a great summer this year, so I'm feeling a little cheated and not quite ready to give up my long light days in exchange for dark mornings and cold nights.

No, not yet. I think we can wring a few more warm, flowery days out before the cold settles in and the garden goes to sleep though... I live in hope.

Anyway, what I actually wanted to talk about today... you know how sometimes you're in the mood to share, and other times you'd rather use that sharing time to just get more sewing done? Yeah, I've definitely been in that mood lately. I'd rather make stuff than share it at the moment, so, that back log of stuff-to-share most certainly isn't getting smaller. BUT we did take some time on Wednesday to take photos of a few of the things I've been making.

Photo sessions have to happen quickly and in bulk these days, between naps and on a sunny day, in the afternoon when the sun is streaming into my sewing room, when David is home. It definitely needs planning...

Which brings me to the topic of blogging regularly as a seamstress. It quite rightly pops up fairly often, because the reality is that if we want to blog our makes regularly, we have to actually make regularly. But most of the time, that need-to-make leads to less-than-wearable/usable makes, wasted time and an aversion to actually getting any sewing done, doesn't it?

I know that when I feel like I should be blogging but have nothing to share, I end up not doing any sewing because I start to feel resentful at the need to sew just because I feel like I should be blogging, and not sewing because I actually want to. It's a cycle. And not a terribly productive one at that.

So my advice? Ignore all those helpful 'blog 10 times a week for a super dazzlingly successful blog'. They might be trying to be helpful, but they really aren't actually all that helpful for your productivity. Blog when you have something you're really excited to share, I'm sure your readers won't mind. I doubt they realise that you've made a rule to post every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 10am exactly.

Do you sew to blog? Or do you blog when you've got some sewing to share?

xx
J

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20 comments on "Feeling Chatty..."
  1. I hear ya! In the beginning I tried to blog a couple times a week just to get my presence out there and myself in the habit. Then my life got insane. Now I make and don't blog... I miss it but I'm not guilting myself about it. It is my blog and when I have something great to share I will. If it's not great, then I probably don't need to be sharing it. :) Unless it is a spectacular fail!

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    1. I think I did that as well initially, now, I only have very small windows to blog/sew, so I'm definitely all about the quality as opposed to the quantity. That's what I appreciate in the blogs I read anyway :) and I'd much rather have a well made wardrobe than one that looks nice in photos but that I never wear afterwards!!

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  2. completely agree with you. I sew for me and my writing in the blog is more like a talk with myself. So I share only when I have like it.
    I realized that when I do so in this way I enjoy more my blog.
    I sew but I don't write about sewing, I like to write more about what happens in my head as a woman who loves making clothes.
    P.S
    I am a new reader fromyour blog, I just love it!

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    1. Yes! Talking to yourself, it really is isn't it? It's almost like a debrief, where you get to nut out all the things you changed/you wish you had changed/what you'll do differently next time etc. Awww, I'm so glad you like my blog too, that makes me blush :)

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  3. So true! The minute I feel I need to create some content, I lose all desire to sew! Quality is always better than quantity, anyway...
    X

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    1. Yes - it was something I did when I first started to blog about sewing, now, I just want a well made wardrobe that i'll actually wear. It's much more satisfying isn't it?

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  4. Interesting post. I am a sewist who blogs. I occasionally do think I ought to blog more, but I don't beat myself up about it. Now that I'm on Instagram, I feel less "guilt" as at least I am still engaging with people! Although, then there is the pressure to find interesting things to Instagram... 😊

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    1. Instagram is a great medium for showing those in between things, when you don't quite have enough to say for a full post but you have a small tidbit to share. But, yes, then there are those helpful instagram posts that tell you to post 2-3times a day, ummmm, yeah right!! Hehe.

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    2. Oh gosh, posting to Instagram 2-3 times every day is too much! I think there is such a thing as over posting. I end up glossing over things when they pop up too much. I don't have all day to spend scanning Instagram!

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  5. What beautiful photographs. I love the contrast piping on your skirt pocket and those beautiful daisies. I grow the same kind in my garden and they self-seed everywhere.
    If I sewed just to blog I would manage about one post a year..... Oh, wait. :)
    There are so many sewing blogs out there that seem to post something new every other day. It makes me wonder about where they get the time and where they keep all their garments. Also, it makes me feel a little inadequate and less inclined to sew. I do blog about what I make which is why my little corner of the web can get a bit neglected. You are definitely preaching to the choir about the not-sewing cycle. I feel really guilty for not posting more often. Time to sew is a precious commodity. Xx

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    1. Thank you!! Haha, me too, there'd be crickets :) Time to sew is definitely a precious commodity, as is the desire to sew when you have the time. Hence why I'm riding the productivity wave as opposed to sharing, I'm sure my desire will wane soon, and then at least I'll have a bunch of stuff to share in the mean time, hehe. Xx.

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  6. I feel that same pressure with blogging sometimes, not just about sewing, but about my creativity in general. Sometimes there are weeks where I just don't have anything to post about, but in the end something comes up that I can share after all.

    Cheers!

    Brigid
    the Middle Sister and Singer

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    1. And pressure is a real creativity buster isn't it? I think people prefer quality over quantity, so if there's a week you don't have anything to share, I think it's perfectly acceptable to take a week, or a month, or however long, to just sit and make and hang out with your creativity.

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  7. Hi Jennifer!
    Love this post. I don't blog but the same sort of thing goes on when I feel pressured to make something. If it's an I just want to make this then it's super easy but if it's I need to make this because I need to produce something and I'm just not feeling it then I feel resentful of the project as well and it drags itself out. Love that skirt by the way. And all of the photos are beautiful. Bet Oscar is loving those beans! XXX

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    1. Hey Lori! Thank you for your lovely comments :) I totally know what you mean, that's when the WIP pile grows and grows. I think taking the pressure off and just creating when you feel like it is so much more productive, I think this is why I've been able to get so much done - I've stopped worrying about blogging so much and just started spending that energy making things. It's been wonderful. I'm sure I'll stop wanting to sew again soon enough, but as I mentioned above, at least I'll have lots to show once it does drop off :)

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  8. Great photos and interesting post. I agree I don't think I could see for my blog, think it has to be the other way around! What I find interesting with blogging are that some of my makes that I LOVE get hardly any hits and yet other makes that I don't feel as much love for are really popular! That intrigues me!

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    1. Louise, it's funny isn't it? I feel like the things I make that are practical for my lifestyle and get lots of wear, are possibly the things that don't get as many comments. But, those are the things I like to make, sewing time is so precious these days that if I made lots of things that I'd never wear, I'm sure my sewing desire would take a tumble. I say, make what makes you happy, don't worry about what others think, as long as you're happy, that's all that matters :)

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  9. When I started blogging I easily wrote two or three blogs a week. Nowaydays I have gaps of weeks even months between my blogposts. I like to spend my spare time on sewing over blogging. So sometimes, it will be a bit more quiet at my blog. But that's ok for me. I like to blog when I feel like to and don't want to force myself into it.

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  10. I started my blog really to document all the things I was making and to make notes on how I liked patterns. I find those so useful when other people write them up. But I don't always feel like blogging so if I can get to it once every week or two, then awesome. Sometimes that means I post a bunch of stuff at once.

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  11. I totally agree! I think it is better to blog less with posts that interest people then post every day with random crap. I think this is evident by some of my favourite blogs like Ada Spragg and Sallie Oh. They don't post a lot but when they do it is quality stuff. My issue at the moment is I want to post about stuff that isn't just sewing. My life now and my interests involve so much more than sewing and I'd love to share those things as well. I think changing genre though can be difficult as it can alienate your current readers. Might have to write a blog post about it and see how I go!

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