Me-Made-May'14: The End!

(Day 25: my favourite photo of the month. I love our nautical looks and Dolores's cheeky smile!)

Ah, it's always so sad when Me-Made-May comes to an end. The amount of wonderful inspiration and friendly support provided by the other participants is something that can't be beaten, and the rest of the year doesn't feel quite a vibrant by contrast! BUT, there's a whole year of makery ahead that will hopefully be inspired and directed by what we have learnt from this year's challenge, edging us ever closer a wardrobe full of handmade delights that express our personal style, fit with our lifestyle and flatter our physique.


Practical things I achieved during MMMay'14:

• I found time to repair my school boy trousers where holes had started to appear through excess wear. I don't think they are very flattering, but I can't deny how useful they are at the moment. 
• At the 11th hour I re-fit my mustard trousers meaning they are firmly back in regular wardrobe rotation.
• Despite my early misgivings about how much day-to-day use my nautical palazzo pants would receive, this challenge has helped me find what other garments they go with and I now wear them A LOT. 
• I didn't quite achieve my aim of reworking every piece of second hand knitwear that needs work, but I have fingered out which pieces I no longer wear and can therefore be sent for recycling or refashioning into something for Dolores.

(Day 31: My favourite outfit of the month. This t-shirt fits me well and is lots of fun and the trousers are the most comfortable I own whilst still being flattering)

Things I've learnt from MMMay'14:

• When I was creating my pledge, I thought I'd be able to use this challenge to get back to wearing clothing that reflects my personal style more than I have been recently. Very soon in to the challenge I realised that the realities of mumming a baby and the practicalities of breast feeding meant that wasn't really going to happen as I had envisaged. 
• I realised how much I'd got into rut in recent months of grabbing the same clothes that I wore the previous day if they were still clean. There's nothing inherently wrong with doing that of course, but as someone who really enjoys clothing and expressing themselves by deciding 'who I was going to be today', it kind of makes me feel pretty far from who I used to be. This challenge made me more mindful of getting dressed, albeit in a limited manner compared to previous years, and helped me shake up my outfits a bit from day to day and I think that I will continue to do so going forward. 
• I have a great selection of casual, comfortable me-made clothing. Keeping on top of laundry is a challenge in itself these days, with a baby who is being weened onto solid foods and is going through two or three outfit changes a day, plus no outside space to get clothes dried. However, I have a sufficient quantity of jersey tops and some comfortable trousers and skirts that mix and match well. My continuing obsession with navy, red, mustard-yellow, black and grey (plus strips and leopard print!) means that I don't have any clothing orphans and my separates can make a squillion outfits when put in different combinations. This is through luck not planning but I am grateful for it and I hope it continues. 
• I really enjoy making useful things for Dolores that she gets lots of use from. I have soooo many plans for making garments for her, but that's another blog post...

(Most worn garment of the month: Captain jacket! Worn nearly every day)

Things I want to work on/make before MMMay'15:

• The documentation photos of this challenge have helped me highlight a few garments that I realise don't suit me or have seen better days. I plan to refashion/remake these into garments for Dolores or send take them to the textile recycling bank. 
• A few day appropriate dresses would be really nice addition to my wardrobe selection to help me feel a bit more 'put together', but that's something I'll focus on more closely once I have stopped breast feeding during the day. 
• I'd also like to make at least one pair of shorts and maybe a stretchy skirt which I can run after a baby in!
• Lots of clothes for Dolores! By next year I hope she will be wearing something made by me everyday and join me in each documentation photo. 

Thank you all so much for checking out my personal challenge and for the lovely and supportive comments you left. If you took part, I hope it was illuminating and fun for you. Here's to #MMMay15! 

Me-Made-May'14: Days 26 - 31

The last round-up of MMMay'14 documentation photos. I can't believe the month is over! It's flown by.  Come back in a day or two for my thoughts on this year's challenge.

Day 26:

Me-mades:

Bird print jersey top (not blogged)

School Boy trousers

Undies

Second hand cardi as per my pledge

Day 27:
Me-mades:

Breton top

Nautical palazzo pants

Vest and undies

Second hand cardi as per my pledge

Captain jacket (not in shot)

Dolores wears: mum-made dribble bib

Day 28:

Me-mades:

Breastfeeding hack Coco top

School Boy trousers

Undies

Captain jacket (not in shot)

Day 29:

Me-mades:

Leopard print top

Mustard trousers (finally refitted!)

Vest and undies

Captain jacket (not in shot)

Dolores wears nothing mum-made but wanted to be in the pic (probably)

Day 30 (Stash fabric day of the Flickr group's photo challenge, so here's most of mine):

Me-mades:

Breastfeeding hack Coco top

Denim skirt

Undies

Captain jacket (not in shot)

Dolores wears: mum-made dribble bib

Day 31:

Me-mades:

Modcloth ripoff striped T-shirt remake

Mustard trousers 

Undies

Captain jacket (not in shot)

The End! 

Thanks so much for all your lovely comments throughout this year's challenge. I'll be writing my summary of the MMMay'14 experience in a couple of days. I'd love to hear how you found the challenge if you took part.

Me-Made-May'14: Days 20 - 25

Day 20:

Me-mades:

Modcloth ripoff striped T-shirt remake

Nautical palazzo pants

Undies

Day 21:

Me-mades:

Breton top

School Boy trousers

Undies

Dolores wears: mum-made dribble bib

Day 22:

Me-mades:

Magpie batwing top

Denim skirt

Vest and undies

Captain jacket (not in shot)

Day 23:

Me-mades:

Nautical palazzo pants

Vest and undies

Second hand cardi worn as top

Captain jacket (not in shot)

Dolores wears: mum-made leopard print trousers

Day 24:

Me-mades:

Black batwing top

School Boy trousers

Undies

Second hand cardi as per my pledge

Day 25:

Me-mades:

Breton top

Nautical palazzo pants

Vest and undies

Second hand cardi as per my pledge

Dolores wears: mum-made dribble bib

MMMay'14 Sewing Patterns Giveaway with Dresses & Me and Jennifer Lauren Vintage

Ah dear friends, the end of another awesome MMMay is in sight, but there's still time for one more celebratory giveaway. Hurrah! This giveaway is open to participants and non-participants alike, and you could win both a sewing pattern of your choice from Dresses & Me AND the amazing Afternoon Blouse pattern (pictured below) by Jennifer Lauren Vintage. How good is that?!

Personally, I'd choose the Madeleine skirt pattern (pictured below) from the Dresses & Me site. It'd go so nicely with the Afternoon blouse don't you think?! Head over to this post on Jen's blog to find out how to enter. Good luck! 

Me-Made-May'14: Days 14 - 19

Day 14:

Me-mades:

Black batwing top

Back leggings (too worn out to wear outside the house!)

Vest and undies

Customised cardi which I plan to blog about soon

Dolores wears: mum-made leopard print trousers

Day 15:

Me-mades:

Breton top

Nautical palazzo pants

Vest and undies

Same customised cardi as the previous day

Captain jacket (not in shot)

Day 16:

Me-mades:

Ceylon dress

Vest and undies

Captain jacket when I went out

Second hand cardi, as per my pledge 

Day 17

Me-mades:

Bird print jersey top not interesting enough to blog about 

School Boy trousers

Vest and undies

Captain jacket (not in shot)

Dolores wears: mum-made leopard print trousers

Day 18:

Me-mades:

Breton top

Denim skirt

Vest and undies

Day 19:

Me-mades:

Bustier line t-shirt

Ruby shorts

Undies

Dolores wears: mum-made dribble bib

MMMay'14 Vintage Pattern Giveaway with The Polished Button

***THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED. THANKS FOR ENTERING***

The weekly #MMMay14 celebration giveaway continue.... Like last week's giveaway, this one is open to everyone, not just participants of the challenge.

So we are half way through MMMay'14 now, have you discovered some holes in your self-stitched wardrobe that could be filled with the help of a lovely vintage sewing pattern? Even if you're not taking part in the challenge this year, which pattern would help you make something special that perhaps you'd like to show off during MMMay'15? ;-)

The Prize:

Your choice of vintage sewing pattern from the amazing inventory at The Polished Button. What's not to like about that?!

How to Enter:

Go to the Patterns section of The Polished Button's website and find a pattern you'd like to own. Leave a comment on this post including the link to the pattern you've chosen, why you've chosen it (because I'm nosey!) plus your email address if I can't find it within a couple of mouse clicks. Email addresses will only be used to contact you if you are the lucky winner of this giveaway. Leave your comment before midnight GMT on Thursday 22nd May. The following day I'll pick a winner by random number generator and contact the lucky individual who will receive their pattern completely free of charge.

Me-Made-May'14: Days 8 - 13

So we're half way through MMMay'14 now. If you're taking part, how's your challenge going? Are you finding illuminating? Surprising? Too easy? A struggle? If you are finding that your personal challenge is the latter (actually even if you're not), you should check out this awesome, thoughtful and timely post by Jen of Jennifer Lauren Vintage on how to make the most of your handmade wardrobe.

In the meantime, here's some more pics of me with no makeup, just what you've been waiting for...

Day 8:

Me-mades:

Breton top

School Boy trousers

Vest and undies

Captain jacket when I went out

Second hand cardi, as per my pledge 

Dolores wears: mum-made dribble bib

Day 9:

Me-mades:

Breton top

Skirtain

Vest and undies

Captain jacket when I went out

Second hand cardi, as per my pledge 

Dolores wears: mum-made leopard print trousers

Day 10:

Me-mades:

Ceylon dress

Vest and undies

Captain jacket when I went out

Second hand cardi, as per my pledge 

Dolores wears: mum-made dribble bib

Day 11, hanging with the legend that is Miss Demeanour:

Me-mades:

Leopard print batwing top

School Boy trousers

Vest and undies

Captain jacket (not in shot)

Day 12:

Me-mades:

Mariner T-shirt

School Boy trousers

Vest and undies

Captain jacket when I went out

Second hand cardi, as per my pledge 

Day 13:

Me-mades:

Breton top

Nautical palazzo pants

Vest and undies

Captain jacket (not in shot)

Second hand cardi, as per my pledge 

Dolores wears: mum-made dribble bib

MMMay'14 Sewing Pattern Giveaway with Indie Stitches

***THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED. THANKS FOR ENTERING***

I am very excited to announce the second weekly giveaway celebrating Me-Made-May'14! This week's giveaway is open to everyone, not just #MMMay'14 participants, and you can win a sewing pattern of your choice from Indie Stitches. The giveaway is hosted here on Jen's blog so head over there for full details.

Oh and I know you were just about to ask me, 'Zoe, what independent sewing pattern company's pattern would you choose, if you were allowed to enter?'. On a self-less tip, I'd go for the Jedediah Pants by Thread Theory to make for Mr So, Zo (AKA Pat). He's recently got into creating himself a new look and has even set himself up a Pinterest board to help him harvest ideas (!), and I think this pattern would fit the bill.

Me-Made-May'14: Days 1 - 7

And so the accountability commences...! I'm not going to make lots of comments under each outfit this year. I think it'll make more sense to summarise my findings at the end of the month. Only one week in and I've already figured out lots of things though, the main one being that this year is the hardest I've ever found this challenge. Anyway...

Day 1:

Me-mades:

Breton top

Nautical Palazzo pants

Vest and undies (you'll have to trust me)

Captain jacket when I went out

Second hand cardi, as per my pledge 

Dolores wears: mum-made dribble bib

Day 2:

Me-mades:

Magpie batwing top

School Boy trousers

Vest and undies

Captain jacket when I went out

Second hand cardi, as per my pledge 

The empty cocktail glass (which didn't remain empty for long!) is part of this year's flickr group's Friday photo themes. FYI. 

Day 3:

Me-mades:

Breton top

Denim skirt

Vest and undies

Captain jacket when I went out

Second hand cardi, as per my pledge 

Dolores wears: mum-made dribble bib

Day 4:

Me-mades:

Pussy bow blouse

Nautical Palazzo pants

Vest and undies

Captain jacket when I went out

Day 5:

Me-mades:

Bustier line t-shirt

School Boy trousers

Vest and undies

Captain jacket when it got colder

Second hand cardi, as per my pledge 

Day 6:

Me-mades:

Swallow applique sweatshirt

School Boy trousers

Vest and undies

Captain jacket when I went out

Day 7:

Me-mades:

Bird print jersey top (not interesting enough to blog about)

Nautical Palazzo pants

Vest and undies

Captain jacket when I went out

Second hand cardi, as per my pledge 

Dolores wears: mum-made leopard print trousers

Happy MMMay'14! Participants Giveaway with Sewbox.co.uk

***THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED. THANKS FOR ENTERING***

Hurrah!!! It's 1st May and therefore the start of the month-long challenge, Me-Made-May'14! Let's celebrate with a giveaway. In fact every week throughout May there will be a MMMay'14 related giveaway taking place either here or over at Jennifer Lauren Vintage's blog. But let's start with this one...

Just like last year, my lovely blog sponsor Susan at Sewbox.co.uk is offering up two awesome prizes to be won by two lucky challenge participants. And what is special about this giveaway is that YOU get to choose what YOU would like to win! Genius! Here are the two options...

Prize Option 1: YOUR CHOICE of sewing pattern from their enormous selection. Sewbox.co.uk have a really wide range of independent sewing pattern companies' products including Colette Patterns, Sewaholic, DIY Couture, By Hand London, Cake patterns, Christina Haynes patterns and MANY MORE. Personally, I'd be tempted by the Mae blouse by Bluegingerdoll (pictured above) or the Sally Dress by Serendipity Studio (pictured below).

Prize Option 2: YOUR CHOICE of 1 metre of fabric from their drool-inducing selection. They have more Liberty prints than you can shake a stick at, so if you are a Liberty-lover, then now's your chance to snaffle a metre of something delicious! (Remember, if you win you can buy extra of your chosen fabric from Sewbox so you have enough to make a more fabric-hungry garment.) Not that anyone's asked me, but I'd go for the John Kaldor Cassandra crepe de chine in Aqua (pictured below).

How to Enter: Apologies to readers of this blog who are not participating this year in Me-Made-May challenge, this giveaway competition is only for MMMay'14 participants.

So, if you are a participant of MMMay'14 and fancy a new sewing pattern or 1 metre of beautiful fabric to indulge your love of making stuff, then visit the Sewbox.co.uk site and decide which item you'd like to be in the running for. Then leave a comment on this blog post saying if you would like to win prize option 1 or 2, PLUS a link to the item you'd like to receive PLUS a way for me to contact you if you are successful (i.e. if I can't find your email address within two clicks of my mouse, leave your email address in the body of the comment). Email addresses will not be used for anything other than contacting you if you win this giveaway.

Make sure you have commented by midnight GMT on Thursday 8th May 2014 to enter. Please choose one prize option only and please only enter the giveaway once. Multiple entries will be discounted, as will any entries that do not tell me which item you'd like to win (honestly, you'd be surprised by how many people will no longer be reading this far down the post...). And just to clarify, if you win your choice of item, there will be no cost to yourself, it will be posted to you for free.

The following day (Friday 9th May) I will use a random number generator to select one winner for a sewing pattern and one winner for 1 metre of fabric and contact them to get their postal addresses to forward on to Sewbox.co.uk so they can send out the prizes. All clear? Good!

Happy MMMay'14!!!

Me-Made-May'14: Your Pledges

Oh my goodness! The pledges for #MMMay14 really are rolling in thick and fast. Plus all of you are clearly thinking carefully about the specifics of your own pledges to make them do-able but still challenging. The carefully thought-out ones are bound to be the most useful and interesting I reckon.

With less than a week to go until 1st May, I'm sure there are still some people who wish to take part in this year's challenge but are yet to sign up. As much as I'd like to highlight all the pledges so far, I'll just pick a few which may inspire those who are still mulling over what to commit to during May.


One garment a day too much?:

If you think that pledging to wear one self-stitched garment a day would be too much of a stretch, how about a different number of garments per week? Krafty Kat aims to wear five me-mades each week during May. If it's nippy, maybe she'll wear her gorgeous recently finished Corrine cardigan (pictured below).

(image source: A Krafty Kat)

Drowning in UFO's?:

If you've run out of steam mid-project and you're sick of them laying around, then why not make part of your pledge to finish them up during May? Mikhaela from Polka Dot Overload aims to use this year's challenge to do just that after having found that many of her previous makes no longer fit or have gone missing. Check out her beautifully colourful array of UFO's pictured below. I can't wait to see some of them completed and her wearing them before 1st June. 

(image source: Polka Dot Overload)

Already wear heaps of self-stitched clothes?:

Repeat-participater Maria, AKA Velosewer from How Good Is That?, has been sewing for a long time and already regularly wears her fabulous creations. However, she has cleverly thought out a pledge that will be both challenging and illuminating for herself: Maria pledges to wear me-made clothes that she hasn't worn more than once since sewn! Seeing as it's a brand new creation, I wonder if her latest black and houndstooth dress (pictured below) will do a turn during May...

(image source: How good it that?)

Want to see if you're on the right track?:

If you've already been thinking a fair bit about what garments you make and why, Me-Made-May'14 could be a great opportunity to test those theories. For example, in addition to pledging to wear at least one handmade garment and one handmade accessory every day, Becky from Sew and So is also using this challenge to test out some of the conclusions she's come to while working through the Wardrobe Architect series hosted by Colette Patterns. Thankfully she's already figured out her A-MAZING new tea dress fits the bill!


Make things for other people?:

This challenge doesn't have to be all about you (but of course it can be!). If you regularly make things for your loved ones, you could take inspiration from Maider of Masustak Eguzkitan who has not only upped her ante this year to wearing five garments per week herself, but once a week a friend or member of her family will also wear something made by her. I did something similar for my pledge for Me-Made-May'12. I found the logistics for documentary photography were challenging (which I chose to do but of course you do not have to), but the extra layer of participation was so much fun it was totally worth it.


I could go on and on... Each and every pledge that has been submitted so far is an inspiration, because it means that someone is taking an active step to improve their relationship with their wardrobe and their love of making clothes.