Me Made May 15 Week 1.5

I’m back!  There’s nothing like Me Made May to get back in gear blogging.  Sure, there hasn’t been much any writing going on but there has been sewing.  And if I ever have to make a decision on time, that’s the way it’s going to go.

I hemmed and hawed for quite a while trying to figure out my pledge this year.  During the warmer months I rely pretty heavily on dresses but despite spring coming early to Seattle this year I haven’t been wearing them as much.  While I have a number of tops I’ve made, a lot of them would fall under the T-shirt category.  And let’s be honest: that can get pretty boring to look at.  The main reason for this shift is that I’ve starting teaching afterschool sewing classes at local elementary schools five days a week.  That means hauling 10-13 sewing machines plus supplies back and forth, and in one instance up and down stairs.  Much easier to do in pants – so I should probably make some.  But I’ve got some RTW pants that fit pretty well so I haven’t been too inspired on that front.  Needless to say when I do make jeans I’m definitely using one of the student machines to make construction easier without having to constantly switch thread.

Ultimately, this was my pledge:

                “I, Erin of fisforflamingo.blogspot.com, sign up as a participant of Me-Made-May ’15.  I endeavor to wear at least 1 item of clothing I’ve made each day and PJs every night for the duration of May 2015.  In addition I’ll avoid any complete outfit duplicates and strive to make at least 1 pair of jeans and shorts before month end.”

Yeah, so how have I done so far?  Let’s check out the game tape… er, photos.  FYI, my hair is the same in the first several photos because I waited to take them after getting a haircut!

Day 1



·         Deer & Doe Datura.

This was my first version of this blouse and really like it.  It’s gotten a lot of wear year round with a sweater over it when it’s colder.  I like how the rayon challis drapes and is easy to wear.

Day 2



·         Jamie Christina Mission “Maxi

·         Megan Nielsen Briar

So I’ve made a couple Mission Maxis, and while one is actually a maxi I get more wear out of the minis.  This was a sort of a last minute St. Patrick’s Day make since I knew it would get more than just a once a year wearing.  The Kelly green ponte can be worn in Seattle almost year round and doesn’t ride up if worn with tights.  The burnout floral jersey was my first Briar.  Its pure coincidence that the greens in the dress and shirt match, but will allow me to wear this Briar more out in public if I’m not in a crop top mood.  Is there an age limit on how old you can be to wear one?

Day 3



·         Maria Denmark Kirsten Kimono Tee

·         McCall’s M6173 leggings

Right off the bat I just want to put it out there that I don’t believe leggings are pants nor do I wear them as such in public.  Of course in the privacy of my own home all bets are off!  I spent the day doing boring housework and some cross stitch and I like to sit cross-legged on the couch – which is way more comfortable in leggings than jeans.

 



Day 4

·         Kitschy Coo Lady Skater

This dress gets a lot of wear spring through fall.  I doubled up the lightweight burnout floral jersey and never worry about it being see thru.

 



Day 5

·         Megan Nielsen Briar

This is fabric I threw in my Girl Charlee cart late last year on a whim… and it ended up being my favorite of the bunch.  It’s a soft, cotton blend thin sweater knit type fabric with black horses printed on it.  I added black ribbing at the neckline and as sleeve bands.

 



Day 6

·         Sewaholic Alma

·         Megan Nielsen Tania

This Alma made it’s MMM debut last year and came about when my serger cut a hole in the bust of a Bleuet.  It couldn’t be fixed so I had to go out and buy more fabric which allowed me to cut this shirt out of the substantial remainder.  I’m wearing it with a navy silk noile pair of Tania culottes, with this pair being cut at the L or XL length. (I can’t quite remember.)  I plan on going into more detail on them in a future post if only to share my adventure in hemming.

 

 

 Day 7

·         Megan Nielsen Briar

This might be my favorite Briar from 2014 – it has parrots, nonprecious flowers, and bright accents of aqua and pink.  I wear this a lot in the spring/summer and let it sneak into winter too to remind me that warm weather will return at some point.

 



Day 8

·         Sewaholic Alma

My first Alma, this goes all the way back to MMM13.  Last year I wore almost this exact same outfit, subbing in capris for jeans.  I almost wore the same big, floral necklace too before I realized the jangling would drive me insane while leaning over while teaching.

 



Day 9

·         Maria Denmark Kirsten Kimono Tee

·         Megan Nielsen Tania Culottes

This kimono tee was made specifically with these culottes in mind.  I wanted something that didn’t have to be tucked in or be too long if I didn’t.  These Tanias are way up on my all-time favorite makes list.  It contains a lot of my faves: blue/green in color, polka dots and a short length.  Plus I actually graded the pattern properly in order for it to fit my waist.  These are a favorite to wear in warm weather as the rayon challis stays nice and cool and the swishyness of the legs create mini breezes as I walk.  (TMI?)

 



Day 10

·         Jamie Christina Mission Maxi Tank

·         Kwik-Sew K3892

Another laid back day at home.  This was my test version of the Mission Maxi and despite being over a year old; I still have yet to properly hem it.  The edge is simply serged, honestly at this point I seriously doubt I’ll ever go back and twin hem it.  The weather temperature inside went back and forth between chilly and warm so I was constantly putting on/taking off this sweatshirt.  I was originally drawn to the wider neckline than what is usually offered but after making it I think it’s too wide.  I really should rip the ribbing off and replace it with a wider band.  I got the polka dot ponte in the same order as the purple horses but am disappointed in it.  The ponte looks a little too polyestery for me and is pretty thin. The black sweatshirt fleece on the contrast sleeves was so much thicker and warmer that I ended up buying some in white and interlining the ponte with it.  So now it’s nice and cozy and the polka dots help take my mind off the appearance of the ponte.

 



Day 11

·         Deer & Doe Plantain

Having made a couple of Plantains now I definitely prefer when it’s made from a knit with a lot of drape.  Despite having to cut this slightly off-grain in order to keep the print straight it’s held up well and hasn’t gotten too twisty.

 

In general, MMM15 has gone well so far, but it’s still early.  I’ve worn a skirt a couple times during the week – some schools make it easier than others – and kept a good mix of shirt patterns going on.  I even mowed the lawn in my Mission Mini/Briar combo!  I was smarter last weekend and had a change of clothes (Striped Kirsten Kimono Tee included) so I didn’t get my Tanias sweaty.  Spring in Seattle is still pretty chilly in the mornings and evenings and clearly my #1 way survive is to add boots.

 

As an added bonus I’m introducing the next generation of sewers to Me Made May.  Most of my students have already caught on that I wear a lot of the clothes they see me wear and often ask questions about them.  I even had questions about how could they participate if the only clothing they’ve made is an apron.  Completely adorable!  Regardless I’m seeing a huge interest in sewing at the elementary level which can only be a good sign for the future.

Majestic Moose

Hello, after months of slight problems with technology and being busy with school, finally I have something to share!  And as a bonus it’s a twofer of sewing and knitting.

First of all I just want to say that I would never call myself a fast knitter but Andi Satterlund’s Majestic Moose vest knit up very quick!  Like I had grand delusional plans on December 14^th that I had to have one for THIS Christmas.  I know we’re talking serious crazy here considering I had plans to make a few presents and still had fabric to choose.  Actually I had bought all the various yarn colors for the moose head during Knit Picks Thanksgiving sale which many people must have taken advantage of because it took much longer than usual to ship.  Still, considering some of the great yarn deals that were offered it’s not much of a surprise.

Malls have great backgrounds this time of year!

Never having done intarsia before I decided to knit the vest in the round and then add the moose by duplicate stitch.  This ended up being a very good idea and avoided me having to curse a blue streak later on.  Plus I figured my embroidery knowledge would help make this a much speedier project and I basically had no room for delays.

 

In a couple days I had the body done and was starting in on the duplicate stitching.  I had the face done and was starting in on the left antler(?) when I realized I was getting dangerous close to the end of my knitting and still had a fair amount of duplicate stitching to do.  After a quick count and then several slower recounts I realized that a fair bit of the design was going to be cut off.  I went through all the other projects on Ravelry and nobody else had this problem but I also couldn’t find another XS.  Wanting to do it right I took all the stitching out restarted 4 rows lower.  All the while I thanked my lucky stars I didn’t decide to try my hand with intarsia on this project.

This is when I discovered my problem

The second time around the duplicate stitching went much better – I think in the very beginning on version one I was stitching a bit too tight.  I still didn’t get all the stitches on the left hand side on, I think I’m missing 3-4 but I didn’t want the moose to be too low on my chest.  And I like to think it’s only visible if you stare at the pattern and then look very closely at the vest – something you shouldn’t be doing while I’m wearing it!

Overall I’m very excited with how the vest turned out!  Even better, I finished within my slightly unreasonable timeline.  It’s warm and cozy without being too bulky and the moose head makes me smile when I see it.  I like that it’s festive and cold weather fun without being totally Christmassy.   This way I can wear it throughout winter without being the fashion equivalent of that house still decorated for Christmas in February.  And I’m really looking forward to wearing it a lot during the next couple months!

 

I’m also wearing my second pair of Megan Nielsen's Tania culottes, this time a more all season version.  I used my same graded down pattern as last time but this time used the XL length.  I used a navy silk noil which I thought would make it a bit more casual but the nubby texture would make it a bit interesting.  I slipstitched the waistband facing and totally forgot until they were hemmed about interfacing the fabric before inserting the zipper.  Not that it gave me any problems.  In fact, this fabric was extremely low maintenance.  I hung them up to allow the hem to drop but the next day when I went to even it out I realized I didn’t have to. 

The hem that didn't drop

Surprisingly the hem didn’t distort at all and was just as even as they had been while lying out on my cutting/sewing table.  Talk about a very pleasant surprise!  The fabric was too thick to use my narrow hem foot so I serged the edge and used that to help evenly press the hem.  The actual hemming went quickly and afterwards looked just as even.  To be honest over the past few weeks I’ve kinda expected the hem to go all wonky on me but it hasn’t.  So sometimes you get lucky with circular hems.

In a perfect world I would’ve worn this with a shirt I’ve made as well, but that hasn’t quite made it to the top of my To Do list yet.  I’m very happy with both of these makes separately and love how well they go together.  The vest is probably the first piece of winter clothing that I’ve actually gotten very excited about as I greatly favor my summer clothes.

Me Made May Week 4

Wow!  I can't believe the month is almost over and we’re heading into the home stretch!  I have yet to feel the stress of figuring out what to wear that’s new and somewhat exciting.  In fact I’ve still got a few new makes I’m hoping to bust out for the first time this month.  Here’s what I’ve been wearing this week.

Day 19

Deer & Doe Bleuet

My two favorite things about this dress are all the topstitching and being able to rip it off thanks to the pearl snaps.  This is also the make that introduced me to the awesomeness that is Deer & Doe.  A denim dress is a great basic and because it’s lightweight denim it can be worn year round.

Day 20

Simplicity 2863 (Built by Wendy)

Looking back this is the exact same outfit I wore last year on MMM13 Day 19!  And being completely honest I’m not sure how many (or how few) times I wore this dress in between but it was most likely exactly like this.  I firmly believe that when you can wear polka dot shoes, then you find an outfit that goes with polka dot shoes.

Day 21

Sewaholic Pendrell

Looks like Friday’s polka dot parade has started early between yesterday’s shoes and today’s Pendrell.  If only this top wasn’t polyester but at the time I made it my area seemed to be going through a natural fibers polka dot drought.  Luckily that has since ended.  Every time I wear this I wonder why I don’t war it more and then remember about the poly.  I really should get around to making another in a fabric I actually like wearing.

Day 22

Jamie Christina Mission Maxi Tank

I made this tank to test out the fit of Jamie Christina’s Mission Maxi pattern.  Feeling lazy, I didn’t hem it although I did serge the bottom edge.  Sometimes taking out that twin needle seems like so much effort.  It’s wicking fabric so I can see wearing this on runs.  Everything seemed good so during the evening I whipped up a dress version.  And yes, I did properly hem the dress.

Day 23

Megan Nielsen Tania culottes

It’s polka dot parade day!  Naturally my Tania culottes were the obvious choice although I went back and forth on what to wear with them.  The weather was iffy on temperature so I tried them with tights and discovered that I’ll be able to rock these babies into the fall!  But I decided to be optimistic and went with lilac & hot pink cowboy boots.  Like you do.  And I figured this slightly cropped t-shirt would be the perfect length for the Tanias.

Day 24

Sewaholic Renfrew

The easy way to make jeans and a t-shirt into a proper “outfit” is to add matching shoes.  This was the perfect outfit to wear while running a few errands and wondering if it was going to rain.

Day 25

Deer & Doe Datura

Clearly this is the weekend of purple.  While very similar to how I styled this Datura earlier in the month, my jeans and flats are different

As for the hope of working on pants this month… they’ve been put on the back burner.  As the days get longer I tend to wear dresses more so they’ve been at the front of my mind.  That and polka dots.  Add the fact that I feel the RTW jeans I have fit pretty well, even if some of them are getting kinda old.  I actually spent Sunday working on Named Jamie jeans but they need more work to get rid of some majorly unsightly excess fabric.  And more topstitching thread.

Me Made May ’14 Week One

Ok, so this was a super short week – just a few days – but I’m off to a good start.  It didn’t hurt that for the first two days we had some gorgeous, warm weather in Seattle.  I was very excited to break out my warm weather clothes and gleefully banish the cold to the dark recesses of my closet.  Sadly it didn’t last and I had to hold off on finishing the wardrobe rotation plan to avoid freezing.  I only hope the sun will come back soon!

 Day One

Megan Nielsen Tania Culottes

These are a recent make and I have a more in depth post coming up – I just need the rain to stop in order to get more pictures.  These are made out of rayon challis and turned out to be super comfortable on a warm day.  I can’t wait to make more!

Day Two

Sewaholic Alma Blouse

This pink seersucker blouse was made last year in anticipating of Me Made May and was a favorite throughout spring and summer.  This Friday’s special theme was Cocktail Hour which just happened to correspond to my latest project.  Alas!  I didn’t have blue thread that was a close enough match so I stalled out at the cutting out stage.

 

Oh yeah, that leopard martini glass came with a bonus cocktail recipe on the bottom.  Here it is:

 Day Three

Deer & Doe Datura Blouse

My most recent Deer & Doe make and very versatile.  It took me from class to a one year old’s birthday party.  It’s perfect for layering under little sweaters.

Technically I wore this briefly on Day Two during my trip to the DMV to renew my driver’s license and get a new photo.  However I was in and out in less than 10 minutes so there goes that idea that the DMV is the 7^th Circle of hell – it is possible to have a pleasant experience there.  I try and avoid wearing light colors in ID photos since the time my light colored shirt faded into the background and it looked like I was topless.  Not a good look so I stick to bold colors now.

 Day Four

Sewaholic Alma Blouse

This blouse is also part of an upcoming blog post and the fabric was used in a couple more garments including my delayed Thurlows.  This time around I added 2” in length and made the notched neckline for the first time.  Pardon the frizzed hair – I got caught in a couple heavy rain showers today.

 I really didn’t anticipate any problems this early into the challenge so there’s not too much more to say.  It’s always interesting to look over daily photos to determine what type of garments you actually wear the most so I’m looking forward to the end of month summary.  Last year I realized I needed more separates so I’m hoping to see more of that this year.  That and the return of warm weather!