My Next Sewing Project

I have a confession to make. Remember when I said that I wasn't going to buy any more fabric until I'd used up some of my stash? I might have bought some more. But it was worth it. In my defence, I have been eyeing up this certain fabric for the past three or four months. So, when I completed my first major sewing project in a long while, I caved in and treated myself.

This fabric is truly one of a kind, and as if it were custom weaved for me. It's a lovely vintage cotton/linen blend, with a navy background (navy makes up a huge part of my wardrobe) beneath a pattern of blooms and birds. Yep people, this fabric features florals AND birds, all in one. *Swoon*.

It actually came to me in the form of a pair of curtains. I salute whoever they used to own to - they had mighty fine taste in curtains.

*Tweet Tweet*

 Although I absolutely adore this fabric, this was almost a purchase that didn't happen. Only because I had no idea what I would use this fabric for. My sure fire solution is to normally make a dress, but for some reason, it didn't feel like this fabric would work as a dress. I was worried that the print would get lost in translation, as it's a fairly large print. Besides, this fabric did not want to be a dress. I could feel it. This fabric is so fabulous it wanted to be made into a truly one of a kind piece of clothing, as unique as the fabric itself.

And so, this fabric remained in the shop for months, but always demanding my attention when I walked in through the doors. And then the lightbulb moment happened. One morning last week, I woke up knowing what I would do with this fabric. Maybe it came to me in a dream? Who knows. But this fabric is destined to be a kimono. I don't know why it hadn't occurred to me before - after all, this fabric does have a rather oriental vibe to it (which is probably the reason why I love it so much).

I haven't found a kimono pattern as yet, but I am gathering inspiration on Pinterest right as this very moment. So far as I can tell, kimonos are fairly easy-looking to sew, consisting only of different sized rectangles. As ever, I'll keep you posted with my progress, and if I decide to make my own design, there may be a tutorial in the pipeline. At the moment however, I am quite happy to just get this fabric out at 2am, and stroke it whilst whispering 'my precious...'

Do you have any recommendations for this fabric? Any tips/patterns for sewing a kimono you know of?