Thursday 17 April 2014

Me-Made-May'14: My Pledge


It hopefully hasn't escaped your attention that Me-Made-May'14 is firmly on the horizon. If you wish to participate in the challenge this year but have yet to sign up, fear not, you have until 30th April to throw your metaphorical hat into the ring.

I've been thinking for a while about the specifics of my own challenge pledge this year. Even though I've been wearing almost exclusively me-mades for a few years now, I haven't had to think too hard about how to amp up my challenge, life has done that for me. I was pregnant during MMM'13, which meant that my altering shape kept me on my toes. The range of garments that fit me at the beginning of the month slowly dwindled towards the end of the month, and I had to make new items to keep me in sufficient clothing options as I got larger.

(I should have realised that the waist of these trousers had stretched when I wore them well into the 2nd trimester of my pregnancy!) 

This year my wardrobe needs are different still. At the moment I only wear clothes that are comfortable and quick to combine, as the time I have each morning to consider my appearance is very limited. I am also currently breast feeding my 6 month old daughter, so 'access' is very much an issue. But I am looking forward to MMMay'14 to giving me a push towards dressing in a way that makes me feel more 'me' again. Whoever 'me' is these days! So....

 'I, Zoe of 'So, Zo...' blog, sign up as a participant of Me-Made-May '14. I endeavour to wear only me-made clothing (excluding bras and knitwear) each day for the duration of May 2014'


In addition to the above, I intend to...

  • Dress Dolores in something made by me as many days as possible (laundry permitting). I'm not pledging to do this daily as she has been given so many hand-me-downs recently that she currently has sufficient clothing. Plus, it would be a waste of sewing time and fabric to make a whole load of things for the sake of the challenge, when anything I make her would only fit her for a couple of months. 
  • Wear every item of knitwear that I own at least once throughout the month. All my knitwear items are secondhand but wardrobe space is at a premium so if any aren't getting used I need to figure out if they need to be reworked, made in to baby wear or donated back to a charity shop. 
  • Highlight any me-mades that need to be reworked (like my mustard trousers, pictured above, that have stretched out at the waist) or mended (like my school boy trousers, pictured below, that have a few holes appearing at the seams). 
  • Take inspiration from the Big Spring Contest WINNER Miriam (!!!!!) and generally be mindful about using what I own. I read somewhere once that women tend to wear 20% of their clothes 80% of the time, and 80% of their clothes 20% of the time and I'd say that's about right! I'm not about to chuck out everything that hasn't been worn since the last MMM'13, but I would like to push my ratio of regularly worn clothes towards 50% of what I own. 

(Ah! The red door! That was three addresses ago now)

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Remember that yearning to 'dress like me' again so well. I seem to remember everything just fitting 'differently', so I think you just have to experiment -good luck! Will enjoy seeing how you dress your daughter too :-)

Stevie said...

Good challenge Zoe! Mine is a little tricky with my current job. I'm still mulling over what would be the best challenge to give myself. My current job requires me to wear the worst and most comfy clothes I own on long shifts so I never know what i'm working from one week to the next. Perhaps 3 days a week or something. D'lo is beautiful btw! Can't wait to see her outfits. x

Anonymous said...

'I, Margaret of 'Senjiva Studio.com' blog, sign up as a participant of Me-Made-May '14. I endeavour to wear at least two Me-Made items or outfits per week duration of May 2014, and to make at least one new item and restyle a thrift store garment. '

Ronja said...

I'm hoping that my "me-may-des" will grow a bit! I would love to add a cardigan, a dress, and a BUNCH of underpants! Hopefully me-made will inspire me to spend some more time sewing. The goal for sewing this year is to do practical things. T-shirts, jeans, summer skirts, tanks, knit cardigans. The really hard part, for me, is not spending a ton of money and using a lot of second hand materials. I love vintage and second-hand items.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/RonjasVintageRoses?ref=si_shop

Miriam said...

dressing for feeding - yep I remember those days, maybe that's why i live in dresses now, just because I can! I'm signing up too :o) x

Sarah Liz said...

I'm looking forward to seeing your daily outfits. I'm still making up my mind about this - but maybe I'll be able to do a couple of days. I'll let you know.

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