[Lightning McStitch]

Well I managed to double dip and get Sarvi’s size 5 project covered as well with my monochrome swingset.
I’ve always thought a lovely sewing community idea would be a “skill swap”. In the way that quilters swap quilt blocks, or people swap handmade gifts. In my swap idea (which I’m not volunteering to organise cause I think it could get really complicated), each participant would nominate something they’re awesome at, and something they’ve not yet tried, or are nervous about. Then skills would get shared via little paired email exchanges and mini tutes.
What I quite like is that each person would have to nominate something they’re good at. I think we’re often too humble and while we think “I’m no good at bust adjustments” we forget to add “but I’m freakin’ awesome at hemming knits”. Just for example.
Anyway. The monochrome challenge was a blast. I overindulged as I’m prone to doing – if only it had overlapped with Kid’s Clothes Week.
We’ve got a spot on the busy blog booked and I’ll share everyone’s creations there.
Thanks everyone!

[juliamom2009]

@cybele727 – I love the ugly fabric challenge idea!

[Tamara]

I have a question, how do we define the criteria that would determine a fabric to be ugly?

And I like what nzsewist suggested regarding the possibility of a plaid/ check challenge.

[cybele727]

I like a plaid / check / stripe challenge. I just made a glen plaid jumprope but I wouldn’t mind another go!

Ugly fabric challenge is fun but fraught with insult. What if I make something in a ugly fabric that everyone else thinks is fabulous? Am I insulting your tastes? 😉

But I do like an ugly fabric one too. It is just picking the right fabric.

[Tamara]

Do you think we could call it an “ugly to me” challenge? After all beauty is very definitely in the eye of the beholder and what if like you say, you think its rotten but everyone else says it fabulous – or – (shock horror) it’s the opposite😱😱?

What about a “colour I wouldn’t choose normally” challenge? For me it would be something like green or orange (or mission brown – yuk!) it would be especially good for those who “hate” pink😜

Or (and I maybe complicating things here) we could do a fabric swap challenge – nominate say a yard and it has to be incorporated in the project? Just an idea

• This reply was modified 9 years ago by Tamara.

[Reeni]

i have missed the reveal date because last week i was so so sick last week on my one day off! I have been doing a lot of black sewing though for dance (ballet and tap) since dd is in the advanced group they have to wear black leotards. But of course they can still have fun and individual details…:D

[cybele727]

Oh Reeni!

Just post to Flickr with #oliverandsmonochrome.

We’d love to see it no matter the date!

[cybele727]

Color I would never sew in is a great challenge! I’m always eyeing my palette for repetition and freshening.

[Tamara]

So Reeni, have you popped a photo up yet? Can’t wait to see. I have a pair of puppet show shorts that didn’t quite make the deadline but they will be in the pile someday (soon I hope).

@cybele727 (just pretend this is a dancing emoticon)😃 That means I can get all the yellow fabric out of my stash. I don’t know why I have so much but its there and I don’t generally sew with that colour (the fabric is really pretty though and that’s probably why).

I have an applepicking dress I had intended for a challenge at the state agricultural show one year that is in “harvest” colours that was about the extent of the yellow sewing (save for a bit of yellow city weekend on a hat for school). Hence the summer time is not generally my favourite season because of the drab dry dusty browns we see in the landscape.

But I digress!

Or what about the “easy peasy pattern” project? Pick the pattern you find the absolute easiest and then we could follow it up with a challenge yourself with this pattern challenge.

I have other fabrics like Dr suess character fabric in the stash that I thought I would use for something great but haven’t (yet) we could also do a challenge surrounding this. Maybe a “it sat in my stash forever” challenge and try and use a piece in the stash that you’ve had (forever). Just another idea.

Does anyone else have any ideas or been brainstorming at all? Please share.

• This reply was modified 9 years ago by Tamara.

[nzsewist]

I am biased towards a plaid/check/gingham challenge since I suggested it. 😉 Especially since I love seeing how sewists can take these very traditional fabrics and put a modern spin on them.

[with love Heidi]

I finally got my Art Museum Vest sewn up. All I need now is the buttons.

[Tamara]

@nzsewist oh yes I think it would be a perfect holiday project to do! I was just brainstorming ideas of what other projects/ challenges we could do in future😀.

[nzsewist]

Oh yes I think we should definitely brainstorm lots of ideas @justsewit.

I love it when geometric (especially stripes) and floral prints are paired together. Maybe an unexpected pairs challenge? Kind of tricky to define ‘unexpected’ though.

[Tamara]

Well that could be a real “out of the box” type thing. It could be colours, the kind of fabric and print of fabric and also the pairing of fabric and sewing pattern. It could be a really surprising project to undertake (and take a look at). I guess it could have the potential of what it would be like to make something in the kitchen without so much as a measurement or recipe? Anything could happen😀 But in this case we will definitely know the measurements and definitely have a pattern to work by.

It’s a good one😀.

[nzsewist]

Another discussion thread has just got me thinking that a pattern hack challenge could be fun. It could be as simple as adding pickets right through to merging designs together and drafting entirely new pattern pieces.

I’m a rule and instruction follower by nature so that kind of challenge would definitely stretch me in a good way! 🙂