Giving Yourself Goals
Hello stitching friends and non-stitching friends;
I've been busily ignoring my ever growing list of chores and to-dos and instead scrolling through fashion plates on Pinterest, drooling at all the dresses.
I am a person fond of lists. Shopping lists, to do lists, gift lists, they make me happy. I love the feeling of accomplishment I get when I not only create a list (because organised people create lists, thus I must also be the ever elusive Organised Person) and secondly, when I cross things off the list. The crowing jewel is finishing a list, when it's all crossed off and there's nothing left, hallelujah!
But there a downside, a dark side if you will, to lists: not completing them. What do you do when you can't finish a list? Sometimes it makes me not want to accomplish other tasks, or to throw out the list altogether.
It's the same with our goals. Goals are, essentially, a really big to-do list. One we work towards and try to achieve. But because they're bigger than most to-do lists usually are, they involve a bit of forethought and planning. You have to think about where you want to end up, and then how you're going to get there.
Now you may be asking yourself why I'm talking about to do lists and goals? Well, as a historical costumer, both are very important. I'm not saying this is a hobby that has set timelines, quite the opposite! But it helps to first have a chemise and a corset before you try and make that alluring, form-fitting bodice, right? After all, you have to have planned where you want to end up, your dream dress, and how to get there, making everything you will wear underneath so your dress doesn't end up two sizes too small.
Many of the historical costumers I follow have their goals, and love sharing their goals, and the subsequent journeys they take to reach these goals, with us. I know of many costumers right now who are working on recreating their Dream Worth Gown. If you don't know what that is, don't worry! I have another post in the works about Worth and the birth of haute couture.
But for those of us with normal day jobs, or who don't have professional experience, putting together a single dress is difficult, let alone a large, luxury dress! So how do we ourselves make that dress? How do we put it together? What is involved?
The first thing to do is to make yourself a goal. Find an era you want to dress in. If you have a hard time deciding which one to pick, I discuss how to start picking one in a previous post. I personally, as mentioned earlier, like to peruse fashion plates from the era I'm thinking about dressing in.
This is an 1867 Worth evening dress, currently housed at the Royal Ontario Museum. I hope to make this gown someday. But right now? I'm busy stumbling my way through an 1859 day dress, so I daren't even make an attempt at this gown! But looking at this gown allows me to see where I'm going. How stitching my current dress I'm working on today prepares and teaches me what I need to know to make this dress. Because when I do make it, I want it to be as beautiful as the original, and to do that, I need a lot more practice.
So don't be afraid to set yourself goals! It'll push you to figure out where you are now and where you want to go. I know so many people, myself included, who say they're too afraid to try something because what if it turns out wrong? So what? Who's going to see it? No one, that's who! And then you'll have learned something.
So go ahead, pick out that dream dress, or shirt, or skirt, or stays, or whatever it is that makes you drool, and get planning! And be sure to tell me all about it when you do. So go ahead and comment, share you costuming journey and goals with the rest of us and I assure you that we'll enjoy it right along with you.
Sincerely, The Victorian Alaskan
I've been busily ignoring my ever growing list of chores and to-dos and instead scrolling through fashion plates on Pinterest, drooling at all the dresses.
I am a person fond of lists. Shopping lists, to do lists, gift lists, they make me happy. I love the feeling of accomplishment I get when I not only create a list (because organised people create lists, thus I must also be the ever elusive Organised Person) and secondly, when I cross things off the list. The crowing jewel is finishing a list, when it's all crossed off and there's nothing left, hallelujah!
But there a downside, a dark side if you will, to lists: not completing them. What do you do when you can't finish a list? Sometimes it makes me not want to accomplish other tasks, or to throw out the list altogether.
It's the same with our goals. Goals are, essentially, a really big to-do list. One we work towards and try to achieve. But because they're bigger than most to-do lists usually are, they involve a bit of forethought and planning. You have to think about where you want to end up, and then how you're going to get there.
Now you may be asking yourself why I'm talking about to do lists and goals? Well, as a historical costumer, both are very important. I'm not saying this is a hobby that has set timelines, quite the opposite! But it helps to first have a chemise and a corset before you try and make that alluring, form-fitting bodice, right? After all, you have to have planned where you want to end up, your dream dress, and how to get there, making everything you will wear underneath so your dress doesn't end up two sizes too small.
Many of the historical costumers I follow have their goals, and love sharing their goals, and the subsequent journeys they take to reach these goals, with us. I know of many costumers right now who are working on recreating their Dream Worth Gown. If you don't know what that is, don't worry! I have another post in the works about Worth and the birth of haute couture.
But for those of us with normal day jobs, or who don't have professional experience, putting together a single dress is difficult, let alone a large, luxury dress! So how do we ourselves make that dress? How do we put it together? What is involved?
The first thing to do is to make yourself a goal. Find an era you want to dress in. If you have a hard time deciding which one to pick, I discuss how to start picking one in a previous post. I personally, as mentioned earlier, like to peruse fashion plates from the era I'm thinking about dressing in.
This is an 1867 Worth evening dress, currently housed at the Royal Ontario Museum. I hope to make this gown someday. But right now? I'm busy stumbling my way through an 1859 day dress, so I daren't even make an attempt at this gown! But looking at this gown allows me to see where I'm going. How stitching my current dress I'm working on today prepares and teaches me what I need to know to make this dress. Because when I do make it, I want it to be as beautiful as the original, and to do that, I need a lot more practice.
So don't be afraid to set yourself goals! It'll push you to figure out where you are now and where you want to go. I know so many people, myself included, who say they're too afraid to try something because what if it turns out wrong? So what? Who's going to see it? No one, that's who! And then you'll have learned something.
So go ahead, pick out that dream dress, or shirt, or skirt, or stays, or whatever it is that makes you drool, and get planning! And be sure to tell me all about it when you do. So go ahead and comment, share you costuming journey and goals with the rest of us and I assure you that we'll enjoy it right along with you.
Sincerely, The Victorian Alaskan
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