Welcome, back friends! This week on the blog I am sharing my 2025 sewing plans as they stand right now. These plans are being held pretty loosely because, as you will see in the photo collage below, I don’t yet have fabrics for all the patterns I am considering sewing. I have seen the term “Make Nine” used around the inter webs for some folks garment crafting plans, and I think it is most commonly used on Instagram (which I no longer use myself). It just so happens that I have nine vintage sewing patterns in my queue, so I guess you could call this my 2025 Make Nine!
As I mentioned in my first post back on the blog this year, I want to make my personal wardrobe more sustainable and more in line with my current sense of style. My goal is eventually to wear entirely me-made and thrifted clothes, no fast fashion purchased directly from retailers at all. (I don’t know if that will ever apply to undergarments, but it does for pretty much everything else!) This also means that at this point I am collecting vintage sewing patterns that fit with my tastes in fashion right now.
In winter, I am all about layering hand-knit sweaters and shawls over blouses, long-sleeved shirts, and turtlenecks. And I do have some knitting updates to share, but this week it is all about the sewn garments. Since I almost exclusively wear skirts and dresses in the warmer months, I have a lot of sewing I would like to get done before late spring!
Let’s take a look at the patterns in my queue so far:
McCalls 5612 is a pattern I hope to get a lot of repeat use out of. It is a multi-garment pattern including variations of a couple different loose-fitting, flowy dresses, skirts and tops. I am a big fan of the peasant-style blouses, and the first project I have in mind with this pattern is a white top made from a thrifted cotton curtain in a rather loose weave. I think it will be just lovely for summer. You can see that I have 5612 in the grid twice, and the second project I have planned for this pattern is a skirt in a sage green and white lattice pattern. (I actually intended to make this skirt last summer and have everything I need to get started, just ran out of time.)
McCalls 4480 is a very special pattern for me. My grandmother made my aunt a prom dress using this pattern, and I had my senior pictures taken in that same dress. When I came across the same pattern on eBay not long ago, I snapped it up right away. For Christmas I made a long, sleeveless version as a pinafore dress (again using some thrifted curtain fabric), and also sewed a matching pinafore dress from a 70’s children’s pattern for my daughter. For the summer, I plan to use this blue daisy print fabric for a shorter sleeveless sundress as in view C.
Simplicity 7383 is another sentimental pattern find that I have firm plans to make this year. Amongst my grandmother’s things, my parents found a brown calico floral print dress that she had made. We are uncertain whether she made it for herself or my aunt, but it got passed on to me. It fits me perfectly! I don’t know if the 7383 is the exact pattern she followed, but it is very, very close if not the same one. She didn’t use bias binding as the pattern calls for, but that may have just been to save time and fiddling around. I found this delicately patterned, lightweight pale blue, white, and coral fabric on clearance at Hobby Lobby last year, and I think it would make a lovely version of this dress. I will probably need to line it, though, because the fabric is rather see-through in addition to being very drapey.
The other 5 patterns in the grid above don’t have fabrics to match them yet, and I don’t have set plans for them yet. But they are all things I definitely want to make and add to my wardrobe soon! I will do my best to update you as I complete these garments and add fabrics to go with the patterns.
Now it’s your turn! What are you planning to make this year? I would love to hear about it in the comments! Until next time…
Kiel
I love this goal, Kiel!