Me made Summer 2012

Remember my summer pledge to wear two me made outfits a week.  Well I've been on the ball about what I wear.  Here's my progress so far.

Week 1 Day 1

Green Drawstring wide leg pants

Altered surf Tee

Week 1 Day 2

We went strawberry picking

Denim Cut Offs

Altered Cowboy tank

Week 2 Day 1

Anita Jeans

Altered Polo Shirt

Week 2 Day 2

I know its a repeat, but I love this outfit!

Purple Dress Shorts

Altered Gray Tee

Week 3 Day 3

Cuffed Denim Shorts

Altered Oz Tank

 Week 3 Day 2

Cuffed Denim Shorts

Purple Dolman Top

Me Made Wardrobe: Summer Edition

I loved Me Made May '12 so much I didn't want it to end, but as soon as I said that statement I realized that wearing my me made wardrobe didn't stop because May was over.  I do wear my hand made items the rest of the year mixed and matched with my ready made items.  The whole point of this processes for me is to slowly have more handmade items in my closet and less ready made clothes.  That means planing a head a bit and looking at what I really love and want to sew.

Me Made May '12 Day 1

A few things happened this weekend.  First off my closet got another overhaul when I pulled out all my ready made clothes from the suitcase I had stored them in.  Anything that didn't fit, that I don't wear, or just isn't really my style will be donated.  This second cull wasn't as large as my first, but I got rid of a good chunk of clothes.  There are still a lot of clothes in the closet, and I have the feeling that I will be able to let go of even more as the summer moves on.  

Me Made May '12 Day 15

The second thing that happened is that I decided on how I am going to keep the Me Made May spirit alive this summer.  I am going to wear a outfit put together totally from my handmade items twice a week.  On top of that I am also going to wear a dress twice a week (handmade or ready made).  This way my dresses will get more action this summer and I won't feel guilty about making more (or about the three cotton jersey ones I bought).  Like Me Made May '12 I will photo document all of my me made outfits for the summer here on the blog and on my facebook page.  This will officially start today and go through to labor day.  It might go on longer than that, we'll just have to wait and see.   

Me Made May '12 Day 16

Thirdly I worked my tail off this weekendand am super sleepy.  I sewed new project bags for Alchemy Hour, went to the farmers market, cooked lots of food (roasted radishes are delicious, who knew), had an unexpected but awesome house guest on Friday, baby sat late on Saturday, started knitting a sample for my good knitter friend Nicole over on NoTwoSnowflakes  (I can't say much about the project other than it's green and black and 100% silk), and finally finished off the the weekend with a softball game at 9pm.  I am going to pour myself some more java and plant my self on the couch with my knitting until it's time to go to work.    

New project bags for Alchemy Hour.  These bags are reversible.

Me Made May '12: Day 29 - Day 31 & Wrap Up

The last few days of Me Made May were exciting and a bit sad.  I am excited to pull my ready made clothes out of there storage space, and I'm excited to wear my favorite t-shirt.  I'm a bit sad as I really enjoyed this month me made May.  It was great to wear something I had made and when someone asked about it say "I made it".  It felt good to show off my handmade items.  My plan for the rest of the summer is to figure out a way to keep the me made momentum going.  I'm thinking about pledging to wear my me made wardrobe on the weekends this summer or to pick a few days a week and plan my wardrobe from my me made items.  I'm not sure what the summer pledge will be, but I will have it figured out by the end of the weekend.  So here are my last three outfits for Me Made May '12:

Day 29

Set Sail hand knit top

Cuffed Denim Shorts

Day 30

Teal and Brown Batik Dress

Day 31

Favorite black tank

Cuffed denim shorts

I learned a lot about my style and my wardrobe this month, and I learned more this year than I did last year. A lot of that had to do with the fact that this year I could only wear me made items while last year I had to wear one me made item a day.  The nature of this years pledge really made me look at what I loved wearing and what I avoided wearing.  Here's what I found:

1. I do not wear skirts.
I own about 5 skirts that I have sewn over the past two years.  I wore one of those skirts durring the month of may.  Now a few of the skirts I own I will admit are not really my style, while two of them I absolutly love and I have worn them in the past and plan on wearing them sometime in the future.  This however is not enough for me to justify making any more skirts.  So good by skirts sewning.  (I actually feel really good saying that.)

2. I LOVE dresses.
I only wore a dress 4 days out of 31 for Me Made May, but I love dresses and if I had to choose between dresses and skirts, dresses will always win.  This is because with a dress I don't really have to think too much about it.  There's no deciding which top to wear, you just put the dress on and pick some cute shoes.  It's almost as good as jeans and t-shirts, which brings me to my next point.

3. My go to outfit is jeans or shorts and a tee or tank.
I'll admit it.  As much as I want to be fab and wear dresses everyday If I am in a hurry, have to work, or just can't make a decision I will go with my old stand by.  Jeans and top.  This is fine with me, although I think I am going to attempt to wear dresses two to three times a week.  Lord knows I have like 15 dresses.  This sounds like an exageration, but between my ready made dresses and my hand made dresses I probably have close to 15. (Yup 15 I just counted in my head and that is how many I have, and I'm planing on making 3 more this month.  Maybe I should do a month where all I wear is skirts and dresses....hmmmm.)

4. I really enjoyed sewing my own jeans.
This goes along with #3.  It was such a great learning experience making my own jeans.  I will definatly be making another pair, maybe 2 pairs closer to the fall.  I've never had jeans fit me as well as the ones I made.  They are relitivly easy once you figure out your stitch tension, and find good directions on sewing a flat front fly.

5.  I like a very ecclectic mix of styles.
I love vintage 40's, 50's, and 60's although you may see more 70's influences in my wardrobe (this is including my ready made items).  Ultimatly my favorite thing is beach style with a dash of fab vintage.  I want to incorporate this more into my wardrobe.  I am going to be more thoughtful about the items I purchase and the items I make.  I feel that in the past I am making things with out a clear idea of what my style truly is.  Lately I have been finding myself envying certain fashion bloggers, not because I want their style, but because their style is so well defined.  I have an idea in my head of what I like, it is now time to make that happen.

So now that I know all of these great things about my wardrobe and my style what am I going to do with it?
-Stop making skirts.
-Wear my dresses more often, and make a few more.
-Never buy jeans again, OK maybe never ever, but my me made jeans fit me better than any ready made jeans ever have.
-Figure out a way to keep the Me Made Momentum going this summer.  I will figure this out over the weekend and will give an update sometime next week.
-Spend the summer really figuring out what my style is.
-Start thinking about fall in terms of what I have, what I need, what I want and what am I going to make.

Summer Sewing Plans
-Make red rodeo dress (I love quirky prints, It's time to embrace that)
-Make gold shirt dress
-Sew "girlie" dress
-Sew another pair of jeans
(That should keep me busy till about August)

Me Made May '12: Day 24-Day 28

The weekend has been filled with sun, surf, camp fires, canoes, thunder storms, Malaysian food, and lots of Me Made outfits.  

Day 24

Purple Anda Dress

Silver Polk-a-dot Obi Belt

It was a dress kind of day. 

 Day 25

Purple Tank

Cuffed Denim Shorts

Simon and I both had Friday off, so we thought it was a good day to go to the shore and have our first surf of the season. 

 Day 26

Altered Surf Tee

Denim Cut offs

First night camping on the Delaware.  I am relatively clean and ready for some s'more making.  (There is another person in this photo can you find them?)

 Day 27

Cow boy tank

Denim cut offs

Blue Flannel Jakob

Second day camping, wearing my new button up flannel by the fire.  

 Day 28.1

Altered Australia Tank

Denim cut offs

We made it!  Back to civilization.  

 Day 28.2

Black Tank

Purple dress shorts

Once I got home, and had a shower, Simon and I met our friends for dinner up in China Town.  

Me Made May '12: Day 21 - Day 23

 Here's the latest Me Made May Update.  The weather at the beginning of the week was cool and damp, but as we get closer to the weekend it's been getting warmer and warmer.

Day 21

Teal Tank Top

Anita Jeans

Black and Whit stripped sweater

Day 22

Gray Sparkle Elodea

Anita Jeans

 Day 23

Purple Dolman Top

Cuffed Denim Shorts

Today the sun is shining and the birds are chirping and I feel like I need to wear a dress or a skirt, we'll just have to wait and see what my plans are for the day.  Time to get out of my gym clothes and enjoy a beautiful day. 

Me Made May '12: Day 16 - Day 20

Time for a very large Me Made May '12 update.  this week has had some great outfits, my personal faves are day 16, and day 19, but why don't you check them out and pick your own favorites.  

Day 16

Gray altered tee

Purple dress shorts

This is the half way point of Me Made May, and one of my favorite outfits. 

The best part is the back of the shirt.  I think I am going to make a few more pieces like this.

Day 17

Altered Teal Polo

Anita Jeans

Day 18

Green stripped dolman top

Cuffed denim shorts

Day 19.1

Altered Surf Tee

Denim Cut Offs

I was really feeling the surfing vibe.

Day 19.2

Floral Shirt Dress

Our friends Mike and Jo had a prohibition party on Saturday and we were encouraged to dress up, so of course I made a dress.  It was tons of fun and I don't think we go to theme parties enough.  This dress was cobbled together from three different patterns and I must say that I might make it again in a more modern fabric. 

Day 20

Stripped Kimono Top

Cuffed Denim Shorts

Have I ever mentioned that stripes rock, that Sundays are for going to the Farmers Market and playing softball.  This is what I wore to go pick out asparagus and Swiss chard at the Sunday market, before we went to our softball game and won. 

Me Made May '12: Day 14 & Day 15

I was very uninspired at the beginning of this week, but I think you will agree that thinks started looking up right around day 15. 

Day 14

Refashioned Oz Tank

Cuffed Denim Shorts

I had a work call at a theatre in the City today, so I needed to wear something that was easy to move in and wouldn't be the end of the world if it got a bit dirty.  

Day 15

Floral Sorbetto
Anita Jeans (That's right jeans, I finally finished my jeans!)

Day 15 was much more inspired than the past two days.  I was excited to finally be able to wear my new jeans.  My sorbetto worked perfectly with my new straight legged jeans.  Today is the half way point of Me Made May and I feel like I should celebrate by wearing something fun. 

Me Made May '12: Day 10 - Day 13

I am almost to the half way point of May and I think I may have broken through my wall.  Here's what I've been wearing. 

Day 10

Blue Dolman Top

Denim cut offs

Yellow tights (not me made)

It was cool and cloudy on this day and I couldn't decided what I was going to wear.  I finally decided on this, perfect for working with kids and for keeping the chill away.  My outfit choices got better after day 10. 

Day 11

White altered tee

Blue and read Poppy gathered skirt

Warm and breezy, a perfect day for a skirt, and a day off. 

Day 12

Navy floral print tank dress

The weather has had a complete turn around, oh and my class was canceled.  I was sad and excited all at once.  

Day 13

Teal Tank

Denim cut offs

The perfect Sunday outfit for going to the farmers market and baking ruebarb pie. 

Me Made May '12: Day 7- Day 9

It's been just over a week in May and I am starting to hit a wall, but more on that in a bit.  First off here are days 7-9.

Day 7

Cuffed Denim Shorts

Hand Knit Nautical Stripped Top

 Day 8

Lavender Anda Dress

Taupe and Mauve Hand Knit Cropped Cardi

 Day 9

Cuffed Denim Shorts

Refashioned Linen Button up

Noro Stripped Hand Knit Scarf

So now to the wall.  Today has been the hardest day to pick out what to wear.  I have days like this all the time and I usually solve it buy throwing on a pair of jeans and one of my favorite t-shirts.  To get me out of this funk I may start planing my outfits the day before so I don't have to really think about it.  There are still tons of great me made items in my closet so there is no excuse for being lazy and wishing for my jeans and tees.  

Me Made May '12: Day 2 - Day 6

Blogger and I have mended our friendship for now so in celebration here is my first official Me Made May '12 outfit post.  By the way May has so far been chilly and cloudy.  I am so glad that I made that infuriating sweater.

Day 2

 Denim cut offs

Teal striped polo refashion

Black and white sweater

Blue shiny tights (not me made)

I said I was going to rock it out like Blossom. 

Day 3

Saucy Librarian Top

Wide Leg Trouser Jeans

Day 4

Denim Cut Offs 

Purple dolman top

Sherbet Striped scarf 

I slouched around the house most of the day, knitting, sewing, trying to play nice with blogger. 

Day 4.5

I learned a new way to put my ridiculously long hair up in a type of bun.  It actually stayed up all day with only 1 hair band and three bobbie pins.  

Day 5 (Best day of the week)

Green Stripe Dolman Top

Purple Shorts

Simon snapped this pic of me right after seeing my favorite band of all time, Eve 6, for free!  It really was the best day ever.  I really wished they had played longer.  

Day 6

Green Wide Leg Drawstring pants

Black and White striped sweater

Purple tank top (You can't see it, but I had it on)

Noro hand knit striped scarf 

I mostly did errands on Sunday.  It was the First day of the Head House Farmers Market, which is now my favorite place to buy things.  I made friends with a sheep farmer, a produce farmer, and a baker.  I can't wait till next Sunday when I get to go again.

Me Made May '12: Day 1

I know I know it's only been one day, but i'm going to share my first outfit for Me Made May anyway and then it's off to work.  An early start for me.

Slate colored Tunic
black carol leggings
sherbet stripped lace scarf..

It was suppose to rain yesterday so I figured leggings and a tunic to stay warm and comfy, but by 1pm it was sunny and super warm out.  The rain decided to wait a day and now it is cold and damp out today and I am left with no leggings or skinny jeans to tuck into my wellies.  I guess it's time to pull out the colored stockings and shorts and go all Blossom up in here.  (Yeah, that's right, I use to watch Blossom.  She was the original tights and shorts girl.)

And yes that is a lobster on my living room wall.

The Eve of Me Made May '12

Here is my closet for Me Made May '12.  Everything you see excluding the hubs suit and the bottom shelf (which is workout cloths and pj's) is all hand made.  I put all of my ready made clothing away in my suitcase in the closet.  This way I had lots of room to really lay out my hand made wardrobe and see what I have to wear.

As I was packing up my ready made cloths and reorganizing my hand made items I realized I have a lot of options when it comes to Me Made May.  I am super excited and can't wait till tomorrow to start putting different outfits together.

Wish me luck!

Sewing My Me Made Wardrobe: Week 4

Remember this boring too big sweater? 

Now it's not boring or too big!  

I must confess that out of all of my MMM '12 sewing projects this was the biggest pain in the rear to sew.  All I had to do was turn the damn thing into a 3/4 length sleeved, v-neck cardi.  That can't be hard right? Well, I was wrong.  

It wasn't so much hard as infuriating.  First off some of this is on me (probably all of it).   The biggest thing being the fact that this sweater is striped and I insisted that the stripes match up at the button band and that when I shorten the sleeves everything lined up.  Lesson learned; knitting stripes is relative easy, sewing things with stripes is not. 

My second gripe was the button holes.  Again this is my own damn fault.  Lets use the smallest shank buttons ever and place one every inch.  While we're at it lets do this all on a knit that gets caught in the feed dogs of your machine.  Lesson learned; when sewing button holes in a knit that is fuzzy, face the back of the button band in something smooth that won't catch.  

Finally, damn was this sweater stretchy!  I figured it would be, you know being knit from wool and all.  But this sweater was stretched out to begin with and then add the pull of the machine and well it resulted in a lot of seam ripping.  This was especially true when it came to taking in the sleeves.  Lesson learned; zig zag is a life saver. 

All in all I am pleased  with how the sweater came out in the end, but you won't see me altering many more sweaters.  I'll stick to knitting them.  

Once that project was done I had one more thing on my sewing list, a dress sewn with some lovely batik fabric that I found at a hidden away fabric store in center city.  Here's the fabric:

And here's a close up of one of the motifs:

Teal and brown are one of my favorite color combinations.  I originally was going to make another Anda, but after spending time with this fabric I realized that it wanted to be made into a dress that had more structure.  Instead of the Anda I made this:

It was so much fun to play with the pattern placement on the print to come up with an interesting use of the motifs.  The dress is a simple gathered skirt attached to the bodice of the Danielle from Burda Style.  The Danielle has a great neckline that shows of your collar bones and a little bit of the girls with out being over the top.  I think I want to make 6 more versions of this dress so I have one for every day of the week.  

And with this I have completed my sewing for Me Made May '12.  Wow, I'm finished and still have a few days left.  Maybe I could squeeze in one more project.