For now 4 years, I invite you every year to take up the sewing resolutions challenge ... so, it's time for the 2022 year-end review before moving on to the 2023 resolutions... you have to learn from your own mistakes 😂. At the same time, this year 2022 has literally been crazy!

So many changes in my life! Of course, there is sewing my passionate profession but also the opening of the physical store, the search for new suppliers, the opening of the courses... what madness! 

A little reminder for those who do not necessarily know the beginning of the story:

• April 2019: I create the sewing advice blog (yes yes the famous blog tab with its 243 articles) to share my passion for sewing because my work in the hospital environment does not "fulfill" me. I need to work with my hands and share the creative aspects of my life.
• March 2020: it's all hands on deck, covid arrives... we have no masks but I know how to sew, more and more are asking me... my municipality calls for citizen initiatives to supply residents... we launch the C'est du Joly site so people can easily place orders without moving. 
• August 2020: I order Japanese fabric (4 rolls of 6m) because Japan is also one of my passions and their finely woven poplins are perfect for masks and they are so beautiful. 
• November 2020: We order more Japanese fabrics and the haberdashery arrives to complete the offer
• April 2021: I resign to devote myself solely to C'est du Joly and its development
• May 2022: We open the physical shop and we start the courses! 

2022 was more than busy; so, let's review together the balance of this extraordinary year by going over the resolutions I had pointed out. Did I succeed in the challenge?

First resolution 2022: continue the development of C'est du Joly! -> I think it's succeeded 😊!

It's C'est du Joly, it's a bit my baby, a teenage dream coming true day after day... and this year we can say the goal was achieved! What a development in 2022! 

We have:

• opened the physical shop at 357 avenue de la Couronne in Ixelles (Brussels - Belgium)
• created our new logo
• expanded our fabric offer with jerseys, sweatshirts, wools, jeans...
• expanded our haberdashery offer: straps, suspenders, buttons, lingerie elastic...
• opened a product space for embroidery (classic and sashiko), crochet (amigurumi, nova vita cotton) and knitting (wool and needles) with DMC and Katia notably
• started the courses in sewing in May, embroidery in September and crochet in November
• started a collaboration with the Kinamania workshop to offer you leather workshops
• distributed the patterns from 6 new partners: l'atelier des premières, bonjour Gisèle, les Beaux Gosses, Ikatee, Coralie Bijasson and Iam patterns
• offered reference books in the physical shop to support the courses and your knowledge
• found new fabric and haberdashery suppliers to continue offering you a sharp selection of supplies with a good quality/price ratio
• wrote one article per week on the blog about sewing but also embroidery
• ...

So all this didn't happen in the snap of a finger... it was a huge amount of work for me, a lot of stress (mostly positive), a lot of thinking and discussions... We agree that the life of a beginner self-employed person is a huge number of working hours (I'm at about 70h/week) but I do not regret my life choice at all!  

I think I can be proud of myself... I managed to keep up the pace of one article per week on the blog throughout the year; so you were able to read 52 articles this year to learn more about sewing and a bit about embroidery. 

But none of this would have been possible if I wasn't so well surrounded... First of all by my boyfriend: accountant, webmaster, parcel tracking manager, printer, photographer, model, construction worker, supplier... in short, he has been involved in every way this year!

Then, by Céline whom you meet on Saturdays at the shop to make your purchases on site (while I give sewing and embroidery courses) but also our expert crocheter. And yes, it's Céline who leads the crochet courses! 

Finally, there is Dylan our course tester but also chief decorator 😊 because he is the one who comes to give me a hand to make the shop decorations when I am in a rush. 

And then, of course, there are all the friends who support my activity and my morale when I am a bit tired 😂 through visits, little messages... but also you who read me every week, give me a "little like" on Facebook or Instagram to boost my page but above all my desire to continue on this path. 

Second resolution 2022: I tidy my workshop and keep it tidy all year -> not bad but could do better 😂

I had already chosen this resolution in 2020, 2021 and now 2022... and I think it will come back in 2023. I share my workshop with the students, I no longer have a completely private sewing space so I manage with the students' projects and mine in our sewing space of about 40m2. 

When we designed the workshop, we did not yet know well the volume and spaces that storage would take and as a kitchen furniture salesman would say "you never have enough storage space" and they are right 😂! 

I had to add small cabinets to fill the lack of storage space and since then it has been better! 

At the end of this year, since there were fewer courses, I copied the Japanese tradition with the Oosoji: the big cleaning done before moving into the new year. I tidied the workshop and my mom gave me a helping hand one afternoon. I think we achieved a good result; the hardest part will be to maintain it. 

The shop area underwent the same fate with, as a bonus, the reorganization of the zippers to make more room for Japanese fabrics. 

Third resolution 2022: I no longer buy clothes that I know how to sew myself (for me and my darling) -> really proud of myself 😊

It has now been several years that I set this resolution for myself and this year it was not easy to find the time to sew useful pieces for me and my darling. I am quite proud of the result because I managed to sew in 2022:

• 4 jeans for my darling
• 1 shirt for my darling
  
• 1 sweatshirt Le Décontracté from Les Beaux Gosses
• a blouse in Japanese cotton lawn and a denim dress Jolène from Ready to sew
• a blouse Jeanne from Republic du Chiffon in blue Japanese fabric with small flowers
• two Marion t-shirts from Atelier des premières in ribbed jersey and pointelle
• a t-shirt and a Briac sweatshirt 
• a Monceau cardigan from Cozy little world 
• a Hathor cardigan/body warmer from Iam patterns (upcycling)
• a Caroline skirt from Atelier des premières in corduroy velvet
  
• panties in poplin 
• a t-shirt and a Wanted dress from Vanessa Pouzet
  
• 3 Ségur tops from Cozy little world 
• 2 Gaia tops from Iam patterns 
• a Flo dress from La Maison Victor in Japanese cotton lawn
• 1 Gladys top from fibremood
  
• 1 Philippine jeans from Coralie Bijasson
• the Cléo dress from fibremood in red corduroy velvet
• the shop's noren and the entrance bunting with Dylan and Céline
• a leather bag with Kristina from the Kinamania workshop
  
• an embroidered fanny pack and a satchel
  
• laces for my sneakers
• the covers of the ironing boards and all the projects of the courses 😊 with Dylan
  
• and 7 finished embroideries and one in progress

I still wonder how I had time to sew all that! It just goes to show that when you want, you can 😂. So, I didn't manage to sew classic pants for my boyfriend in 2022... so it will be rather for 2023, however, he received some very nice jeans so I tell myself that compensates. 

As for my wardrobe, I haven't really fulfilled my desire to sew more pants and warm dresses... I still let myself be tempted by lighter tops and dresses, however, I have the patterns for next year 😊 now I just have to do it!  

Fourth resolution 2022: I continue to learn and train -> mission accomplished and still ongoing

I am one of those who believe that you don't live well long on your achievements and that when you don't move forward... you are moving backward! I am naturally curious and demanding with myself, so it is the same in deepening my passions. 

I had set myself a set of learning objectives hoping to achieve them during 2022:

• Continuing to discover and exploit the full potential of my sewing machine -> validated especially for the new sewing machines in the workshop
• Exploiting the potential of my coverstitch machine -> 50% succeeded
• Learning new sewing techniques (on woven and knit fabrics) -> succeeded and to continue 😊
• Learning to sew new materials (leather, sequins, ...) -> succeeded with the leather bag from kinamania
• Learning to sew more technical lingerie -> in progress
• Learning free-motion quilting -> postponed to next year
• Continuing to learn embroidery and clothing customization techniques (flex, ...) -> succeeded and I embroidered quite a bit this year including two sewing projects
• Reading technical books -> succeeded and to continue always. I received the embroidery encyclopedia by Martine Biessy and I am enjoying it! 
• Redoing courses with professionals, especially in pattern making, I would really like to learn draping techniques -> not possible this year with the shop opening but I really want to for 2023 or 2024. 

Here is a summary of my review of this crazy year! It feels good to pause and take stock of a year... it gives a boost of self-confidence and allows you to say that you are moving forward, that you are progressing, and it makes you proud of yourself. It also allows me to project myself into the future and see what I need to correct to take care of myself and continue to have great energy in 2023!

So, are you ready to take on the 2023 challenge with me? 

Have you already selected one resolution or another for this new year? On my side, it's progressing!

I would be delighted to read yours in the comments

I already wish you an excellent creative year and above all good health

To your needles,

See you soon,

 Eugénie