Hooked on Navy

I try not to go to fabric stores too often because inevitably I’ll see fabrics that are pretty and I may be tempted to get more. And I don’t need any more fabric; I have a sizable stash and adding to it isn’t necessary.

That’s not to say I never go. Sometimes I just want to look and see if anything speaks to me. But this time I went because I had a gift certificate (that’s right, a certificate—a paper one) to a fabric store that I intended to use. I went in thinking, “I’m going to get color. A colorful pattern or a nice red or plum.” [Pause.] That didn’t happen. I’m just drawn to navy. Like a homing beacon, I just find my way to it. That’s the color I like. That’s the color I want.

In my fabric stash I have many fabrics that aren’t navy because that’s what the store had on sale or that’s the fabric that the estate sale had. But when given a choice of any fabric in a store, my instinct is for navy. It’s a hard habit to break, and perhaps one not worth breaking. Because if it’s a fabric I love, then that’s reason enough to get it. I shouldn’t just pick a different color merely because it’s a different color; after sewing a garment, I may not love it as much because it’s not in the color I really wanted.

So I got these two fabrics that are navy-based. One is straight up navy with a very light pattern that feels more like a texture. And the other I got has some color in it—a bit of red (I do love navy and red together) and a brighter blue. I was on the fence on getting the second fabric because it has a plaid pattern and I’m a bit scared of sewing plaids (as I have avoided it completely), but I thought it could be cute.

I’ve just sort of accepted that the bulk of my wardrobe is white, black and navy. I have garments that are other colors, but I tend to favor these timeless neutrals. Maybe this will change over time; I didn’t love navy 10 years ago, in another 10 years, who knows? But for now, I love navy.