Part 2 - Planning your Summer Sewing Collection

Ok, now that we have assessed our closet and our needs, we can start sketching out some design ideas!

Take a look at the Fashion Inspiration Pinterest Board you created. What colors are you drawn to? What textures are you drawn to? Keep those in mind when sketching our your designs.

After scrolling through my board I noticed I pinned a lot of bright colors with bold prints. I thought that was interesting, because I don't have a lot of color and bold prints in my closet currently... but I might want to consider choosing some fun prints for my summer collection. Maybe my inner subconscious is ready for some color! ;)

When I assessed my closet I noticed I need some comfortable-but-fun tops, skirts, shorts, and beach pants.

Now get to sketching! I use My Body Model to sketch out my designs because it is a croquis with my exact measurements. It really gives me an idea of how certain things will look with my body type. I love it!

So you can either sketch out your own body template, use My Body Model, or download one on the internet and start planning out your makes!

Keep in mind what clothing items you need, and sketch some out some ideas. I like to use my iPad, but colored pencils or markers work great too! You just want to go for it, come up with as many designs as it takes until you find something you like.

To make it a fun collection, you can pick colors and styles that be used together in different combinations. That way you can mix and match items and extend your closet options even further.

If you also have a sewing pattern in mind for certain items, sketch those out first. You might want to take a quick look at your pattern stash and see if any of them strike your fancy. You might as well work with what you have first before buying new patterns. The same goes for fabric... if you know there are some fabrics you want to use from your stash, make some designs with those in mind.

If you are trying to go for something similar you saw on your Pinterest Board, but don't have a pattern in mind, we will be talking about how to find patterns next week!

Sketch out your designs with different colors and textures and fabric choices in mind. This is the funnest part in my opinion, so have fun! Don't go for perfection here, just a rough sketch is good enough. This is the part where you can add in details too... maybe some fun buttons or zippers or color blocking? Play the part of fashion designer and let your creativity run wild.

Come back next week where we will talk about how to pick out patterns!