Me Made May 2013 - Week Five, and Some Final Thoughts...

'Tis done, 'tis finished, 'tis finished, 'tis done! My first Me Made May is complete, and I've loved it. First things first; here's the week's round up:

Day 25:

Winter Trails Beanie.
Everything else: RTW.
This felt like a bit of a cop out, but it is an item and it is made by me. So it does fit my pledge :) Plus, I was trying to wear some as yet unworn makes this week. And my head was roasty toasty warm all day...


Day 26:

Cold. Out comes the Beatnik!
Everything else: RTW.
I think I just adhered to the mid-way no-repeat outfits pledge here, but it's pretty much Day 20's outfit. In real life the mauve top brought out the purplish tones of the wool, but the photo doesn't really show that. Think I prefer a white top underneath, in any case.

Day 27:

Colette Ginger skirt

Everything else: RTW.

Very happy day, this! Spent it fabric shopping with a dear friend in Melbourne. New projects in the pipeline...

Day 28:

Refashioned jacket, made from thrifted A-line skirt.

Everything else: RTW.

Another as-yet-unworn item :)  I really want to love this, but it doesn't quite do it for me. There's nothing really wrong with it, I think I'm just not friendly enough with pink. Mind you, the necklace, which I'd forgotten I had, was a perfect colour match - brought out the tweedy tones nicely.  Burda 7494 was the starting point.

Day 29:

Dress: Very much modified version of Burda 7494. Also not previously worn :)

Everything else: RTW.

This is really a summer dress, but the broderie anglais is fairly heavy, and it's lined. (It can actually be a bit too warm for an Australian summer.) So with a few layers it transitions to winter wear pretty well. Wouldn't have discovered that without MMM!

It probably wasn't an ideal outfit to wear to the pool however...

Day 30:

Colette Ginger skirt. Same as Day 13.
Everything else: RTW.
It's been interesting to see how the daily photos pick up different colours/tones in clothes. This fabric is a navy, scarlet, yellow and white stripe. The scarf is the exact red of the fabric, but because the yellow and red stripes blend together, the coral top is a better match with the skirt. Funny how you can see what you expect to see sometimes, rather than what's actually there...


Day 31:

Style Arc ponte leggings. Love, love, love!
Shirt: secondhand.
Everything else: RTW.
I really thought the scarf was a better match than that. Hopefully it's just the camera!

So there we are! 31 days of me made goodness, and no outfit repeats - pretty happy with that. And I did complete four queued projects, just not the ones I was planning. I just realised I still have a top, skirt and a dress that didn't get worn too (should have taken advantage of the pseudo-summer weather early on in the month!).

And what have we learned from MMM?

1. I definitely need to make more comfy, casual stuff. The weekends were actually the hardest days to pull off. Judging by how often the Beatnik jumper was pulled on (many, many evenings!) I must knit a few things before MMM14.

2.  Making sewing plans during May, I noticed I was starting to think more about how a garment would fit into my existing wardrobe, rather than just sewing up a pattern or fabric I loved. There's nothing wrong with doing that of course, but I just think I need to be a lot more considered about how I use my sewing time.

3.  I think I've finally gotten over outfit self-consciousness! (Giant leap forward in personal growth) It was really satisfying wearing my own makes, and going back over the photos, I'm happy with how they all look. I think I've lost that "vulnerable" feeling I used to have when I wore something I made myself - and that feels great!

4.  The online sewing community is wonderful! I knew this before, but there was something so uplifting about knowing there were were hundreds of women (were there any men??) all in this challenge together, cheering one another on. And the creative talent out there is astounding.

5. MMM has got me thinking about "enough"; specifically, how big does my wardrobe need to be? I started this year of no RTW for lots of reasons, but a significant one was to slow down my consumption, and my frenetic, unconsidered buying of stuff. I do love clothes and the whole process of making them, but I don't want to just swap one type of consumption for another. There's always another pattern, or bolt of fabric, or blog post to inspire, and that's wonderful, but I guess I'm just wondering, when is enough enough - and how can you tell?

I don't have the answers; these are just questions that MMM has raised for me. Is anyone else wrestling with this? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Thanks for a wonderful MMM13!

Danielle oxo

Me Made May 2013 - Week Four

Hello again! Time for another round up. It's been a week of repeats, but I've noticed haven't actually repeated an outfit so far this month, so I'm quite pleased with myself about that. I think, as a kind of mid-way pledge, I'll see if I can carry that through to the end. We'll see!

Day 18:

Avian Ginger skirt.
Everything else: RTW.
I'm becoming better friends with this skirt every time I wear it. And I've had some lovely Flickr comments on it - funny how sometimes you just need your own opinion bolstered up a bit!


Day 19:

Style Arc ponte leggings #2.
Everything else: RTW.
Another day I almost forgot to take the photo. I'm not overly happy with this, even though the scarf is actually a much better match in real life. (promise!) There's nothing really dire about it; I think I often feel like this when I wear a lot of black. Plus, I really, really just wanted to be wearing jeans and a comfy top today, neither of which I've made....

Day 20:

This is more like it! My Beatnik jumper.
Everything else: RTW.
I may make an exception to the mid-way pledge for this outfit. Love it. As far as I'm concerned, MMM would have been worth it just to discover this combination! I would live in this if I could.

Day 21:

Refashioned shirt dress.
Everything else: RTW.
Once again, trying to winterfy warm weather clothes. Thank goodness for cardis, tights and boots! I'd forgotten I had this belt, too. Bonus :)


Day 22:

 Refashioned dress.
Cardi: secondhand.
Everything else: RTW.
I hadn't ever put these together before, but I quite like the combination. The boots I could take or leave. Or maybe it's the boots and cardi together I don't love. In future I'll probably go with one or the other.


Day 23:

Style Arc ponte leggings.
Everything else: RTW:
I'm not sure what I would have done without these! I've pulled them on almost every night after work. I realise it's not a spectacular outfit, but since it was a rare day to myself, with a trip to the pool and then snugging up by the fire in the afternoon, I had no intention of wearing anything fancy. I must, must, MUST make some trackies. Or perhaps Sewaholic's new lounge pants??


 Day 24:

Refashioned shirt, same as Days 5 & 11. (I think...) Here worn tucked in and with bow. Wore a similar outfit two weeks ago (Day 11 in evening) but looking at the photo here it's less successful. I look a bit swamped by the long cardi. Something to bear in mind next time, I guess.

You know what's funny? You know the old saying that most of us wear 20% of our wardrobes 80% of the time? Looking back over my MMM photos I've realised I've started to do this with my own makes. I just went through my wardrobe and  found three more items I haven't worn at all yet (and three is a significant percentage at this stage of my sewing-for-me journey...). Maybe instead of the no repeat outfits pledge, I'll plan to wear these during the last week.

I also pledged to finish four queued projects this month. Three of those are complete (above shirt, 2 x ponte leggings.); actually four if you count the pair of trousers I made early on. These are still officially classified as a fail, but I'm not without hope of a possible salvage. (Especially since I have some fabric I LOVE for a second pair ready and waiting.) Another goal for this week, maybe!

Have a wonderful week :)

Danielle oxo

Me Made May 2013 - Week Three

Well, it's the end of another Me Made week, and it's been a little more challenging this time. We seem to have bypassed autumn completely in this corner of the world, as you'll see from the round up here. So it's been a case of trying to make summery clothes work for winter - some more successfully than others!

Here 'tis:

Day 11:

Refashioned shirt. Same as Day 5. but worn open necked and without bow. This may be the most versatile thing I've made/refashioned! During the day it was great for visiting playgrounds and the waterfront with the boys, and for the evening (seeing the last performance of The King & I) I buttoned it up, used the bow and wore it tucked into a black skirt with tights, heels and cardi. Oh, how I love multitaskers!
Everything else: RTW.
Today was the last of the summer weather...


Day 12:

More Style Arc ponte pants! I loved the last pair so much I couldn't help making one more. The colour's not great in the photo, but these are a dark pinkish burgundy. Who knew it was possible to have a garment as comfy as PJs that you can wear in public?!
Cardigan: secondhand.
Everything else: RTW


Day 13:

My third Ginger skirt. (not yet blogged). Hard to tell here (very late afternoon photo), but the fabric's a navy, red and yellow stripe. Worn with jacket and scarf most of the day.
Everything else: RTW.


Day 14:

The first pair of ponte pants making a reappearance. It simply doesn't get any more "cake" than this!
Everything else: RTW.
Nearly forgot photo today...


Day 15:

A bit experimental this, and I wasn't entirely sure about it - my sari dress, with many additional layers! I think I can just get away with this because the colour's quite autumnal. Being such a light silk though, it tends to catch every hint of breeze, and so I spent most of the day guarding against sudden gusts of wind. Not so fun.
Everything else: RTW.
(Oh, and if you look closely you can just see the kangaroo that was grazing out the back - right hand side, about the level of my elbow.)


Day 16: (and a wet, cold, miserable one at that)

My first Ginger skirt. I think this is a more successful outfit. It didn't need constant adjusting throughout the day, anyhow!
Everything else: RTW


Day 17:

Style Arc (yes, again!) Leah trousers.
Everything else: RTW.
Nearly forgot photo again...


Just past the halfway point of MMM, and I think scarves and long boots are my saving graces at the moment! Really need to make some cold weather clothing. Plus, I think I need to rearrange my queue of projects. And I'm really feeling the lack of comfy at-home wear. I must make friends with knits immediately.

How goes it for you? Has MMM changed your sewing plans at all?

Have a wonderful week,

Danielle oxo

Me Made May 2013 - Week Two

Hello again! Time for another MMM round up. We're still in the early stages so it hasn't been too hard to find things to wear yet. Plus the weather has been very kind this week given that most of me Me Mades are summery. And only one panic sew so far! Not too shabby :) Here 'tis:


Day 4:

My much-loved Beatnik! It was slightly too warm a day, but it's about the only comfy, around-the-house item I've made so far. Obviously this needs to be addressed....
Everything else: RTW.


Day 5:

Refashioned blouse. (This was the panic sew the night before.) I'll blog this soon, but will say here that this is a new favourite! I needed something that would go from church to wandering through the waterfront markets  (I took flats with me...) to an art exhibition/fundraiser. That was a tricky call even for my regular wardrobe! Warranted the panic sew, I felt... And, it's the first of the four queued projects I pledged to do during MMM, hurrah!
Everything else: RTW.


Day 6:

 My refashioned Go-To Dress, worn here as a shirt.
Belt: secondhand
Everything else: RTW. I haven't tried this outfit before, but I like it actually. I don't wear the skirt (stretchy knit fabric) much, because it's a bit clingier around the rear than I really like, but having extra fabric tucked in underneath seemed to help. It's an outfit discovery I wouldn't have made without MMM prompting!


Day 7:

Ponte leggings (not yet blogged) - the second of the four MMM projects. Not very exciting in photographic terms, but I LOVE THEM! Cakiest of cake garments :) They're Style Arc's Wallis pattern.
Shirt: secondhand.
Everything else: RTW.  Nearly forgot to take a photo today - hence the sunset sky in the background!


Day 8:

First repeat: refashioned blouse. Happily, the weather's having one last attempt to pretend it's summer.
Everything else: RTW.

Day 9:

Refashioned Sari Dress. Yup, very summery today! It's actually really hard to photograph this dress outside, because it's so light it catches every hint of breeze. (There were some very odd looking photos in this lot ;) )


Day 10:

I made this short jacket a few years ago, after I saw and loved a similar one in a shop, but didn't have a spare $179 (!). I found the same fabric, a Missoni knit, in the very upmarket and frankly intimidating local shop that I rarely go into, and I modified an old pattern of my mum's. I found out later it was the pattern she used for her honeymoon going away outfit, which I just love.

I'm happy with this week overall. A couple of new projects completed, a new outfit discovered, and a great deal of satisfaction in wearing my own makes. The most pressing need (apart from rain to make outfit green up again) is definitely for comfortable home wear, which I need to address soon. Otherwise you're going to be seeing an awful lot of my Beatnik jumper on the weekends and non-work days!

How is your MMM travelling? Any new outfit combinations discovered? Or panic sewing??

Have a wonderful week :)

Danielle oxo

Me Made May '13 - Week One

Well, how much fun is Me Made May?! I'm giving myself full licence to be enthusiastic now, because I imagine by about the midway point I'm going to be feeling just a touch desperate! Unless of course I get through what I strongly suspect is an overly optimistic to-sew pile of projects...

I've had a look at some other people's round ups and I think I'll go with a similar format for weekly round ups. So here 'tis!

Day 1:

Skirt: Avian Ginger
Cardigan: Thrifted (Cashmere! Woo hoo!)
Everything Else: RTW.
This looks like a pose, but it was actually distraction - making sure the boys were still getting ready for school! (too many other more appealing options...)


Day 2: (and about 10 degrees warmer! It's not just Melbourne that gets four seasons in a day...)

Blouse: Refashioned summery blouse.
Everything else: RTW (that cardi's been a friend for thirteen years now)


Day 3:

Dress: Refashioned, not blogged.
Everything else: RTW.

This dress is a favourite, in fact it's what got me into refashioning in the first place, about two years ago. It's a printed linen, very "folky", and it's the print I loved on sight. See?

(Mmmm.....folky....)The style however was a disaster on me: straight, shapeless bodice, high waist, and gathered skirt, with a tulle petticoat underneath. On some people this looks lovely: me, it just seems to strip of any shape. It's the 12 year old boy syndrome, and not in a supermodel-lack-of-curves-kind-of-way. Just in a.....12 year old boy kind of way.

So I separated the top from the skirt, and sewed darts in the front and back to give it some shaping. I got rid of the petticoat and ironed out the gathers. Then I made pleats in the front and back, matching them up with the bodice darts, and sewed it all back together. The 'sleeves' are cap, but as as extension of the bodice rather than separate pieces, and didn't need any adjusting.

It's been a really versatile wardrobe addition. It's short enough to wear over jeans (as here) or leggings, tunic-style, but not so short that it can't be worn as a dress with sandals in summer. (After my legs have seen a bit of sun, that is.). Gotta love the wardrobe multi-taskers!

So there we are. I'm quite enjoying the challenge of making my largely summery own-makes more Autumn-suitable. And I've discovered that cardigans and long boots are going to be my best friends in doing so! Just out of curiousity, does anyone else find the photo-taking the most intimidating part of the whole challenge?? I'm so much more comfortable behind the camera than in front. Tricky to be a sewing blogger without having pics of yourself, though... I guess it's just a case of telling myself to "suck it up, princess", as necessary!

I was a bit late in signing up to the Flickr group (ie: only remembered an hour ago), but will upload photos as soon as I'm able. My only experience of Flickr so far was with the Sew For Victory sewalong, and even then I only joined a day or two before the end. I'm planning to be a bit more "community minded" this time around, now that I've realised that's what it's actually about.

Now, off to find something me-made that works for a slobbing around the house kind of day. I think I've discovered a "wardrobe hole" right there! Must add some tracky dacks into the project pile...

How goes Me Made May for you so far? Have you discovered any new ways to wear your own makes yet?

Have a wonderful week :)

Danielle oxo

Refashion: Girl's Summer Top

Hello all! I'm feeling pretty cheerful today, because this morning I sewed on the very last press stud (popper? snap?) on the last of my allotted The King and I costumes. I've absolutely loved making them, but it's always nice to tick a major project off the list, plus Me Made May seems to be just galloping towards us all. At least I can say I haven't done any panic sewing! (Mind you, there are a couple more days...) I'll post photos of the King in his regalia after the show opens on Friday - since it's not my own personal project I don't feel quite right doing show-and-tell before then.

Since that's been taking up all available free time, I thought I'd post one of my favourite refashions so far. I did this one late last year, about a month or before I starting blogging. It started out life as this skirt:

Very cute and summery, yes; lovely print, absolutely. But, in case you can't tell on the dress form, it's very short. And frankly, I have neither the insouciance, the youth or the legs to carry it off successfully! So with a bit of reworking it became a summery top for my daughter:

It was an eight panel, lined skirt, with elastic at the waist and shirring from waist to hip. The nice thing about this style is that there's plenty of fabric. Even better, it had a drawstring at the waist, ergo the straps for the top were already done!

I started by taking out the black cotton lining, and then cut down the sides to make two four panel pieces. I kept the waist band elastic and the shirring in one of these, and unpicked it all from the other. From the unpicked piece I also separated one of the panels. The four panel elasticated half formed the back of the top. (see below)

I used one of Beth's singlet tops to make a bodice pattern and cut this out of the single panel. Even though this was cut on the cross grain, given the fabric overall has a chevron pattern it didn't look out of place. (This may not have worked with a very directional pattern, I'm not sure.). I used the original lining to line it, and used the drawstring, as said, for straps. Those little buckles and rings that make straps adjustable were really hard to come by; I ended up taking them off another top I had waiting in the to-be-refashioned pile. T

The bodice piece was sewn to the unpicked three panel section, which I gathered lightly to fit. A length of black crochet lace gave a nice finish to the seam, then I sewed the front to the back.

I'm not sure if it's a bit cheeky, but I was able to position the skirt's original embroidered logo in the lower left corner of the top too...

This was actually a really painless refashion, and my girl loves it! It got a lot of wear during our ridiculously hot summer. One advantage of making it for a pre-teen is that there's no need to worry about covering up the back of a bra. It's not a low back by any means, but the empire line at the front continues around to the back at the same height, so if you were making this in an adult size, the single panel may have to accommodate both front and back bodice pieces. Unless going braless is your thing, of course. Just a thought. :)

As I said, I haven't done any MMM panic sewing yet - no time - so instead, I've done a little panic buying. (I guess the whole aspect of MMM helping to evaluate the holes in your handmade wardrobe is already taking effect!)  These are from Style Arc, one of my favourite indie pattern companies:

I'm going to need pants - sorry, trousers. (I forget that means something different for lots of you!) I had a pretty near perfect experience fit-wise with my last pair of Style Arc pa...uh, trousers, so I'm looking forward to these, which are a cigarette or slimline style. I very much like that they can be worn with heels or flats (let's hear it for versatility!) and am hoping they'll fill the void left by forsaking the skinny jeans for much of the month.  I also really like the look of this tee / dress, which if successful, will mean I can haul the skinnies back into rotation a bit more.

Also, and very much in the cake category (or possibly even more basic - "bread", perhaps??) I got this ponte pants (sorry) or leggings pattern. It won't make a spectacular outfit component - unless I can track down the ski-style print I have in my head - but it will be extremely useful. Besides, I like bread... AND I got a free pattern - this blouse. I have a few ideas for this...

I think these are doable. Part of my MMM pledge was to make four queued projects, so even though technically these weren't in the queue at the time, I'll think I'll bump them up to the front. It's the making four new garments that was the main point, anyhow.

It's been so fun reading about other people's preparations. It's a great challenge, isn't it? And it's lovely to know there are so many others taking part in it with you. How are your preparations going?

On a final note, look what I saw when I opened my bedroom curtains this morning! (it's a bit fuzzy, because I had to zoom in a fair bit.) We've been living in the country - well, the outskirts of the country - for nearly two years now, but I still have enough of the suburbanite in my soul to get excited by unexpected wildlife. :)

Happy (panic) sewing, and have a wonderful week :)

Danielle  oxo

An Avian Ginger and Me-Made May '13

Hello again! I've been playing around with my Ginger skirt pattern lately, in the very little spare time that I haven't spent on costuming, that is. (All outfits are coming along nicely; I'll post photos once the show opens in a few weeks. Don't think I'll be doing any beading for some time once I'm done with this lot!)

Can I make a small confession? I'm actually a tiny bit nervous about posting this - have you ever had a skirt/dress/any item of clothing that you weren't quite sure whether you actually loved or hated it? Well, this is mine! I'm still not sure about it. I found this fabric at a vintage fabric shop and something about it caught my attention. (I'm not sure how vintage it is; maybe 80's if that.) It feels a bit like rayon, but I'm no expert. I liked the colours and the slightly painterly feel, but I don't wear a lot of prints, and those I do tend to be fairly conservative - stripes and florals, and fairly quiet ones at that. So it's not a very "me" piece at all. Plus (and I'll whisper this so I don't hurt their feelings) the birds (herons? cranes?) are actually pretty ugly.

But for me a big part of sewing my own clothes is an attempt to have more confidence in my own taste and judgement. And you can't become confident in anything without practising it. So, when I thought about the worst case scenario - i.e., someone else might not like my skirt: hardly the end of the world! - I decided it was worth having a try. And here 'tis:

I really love my first Ginger skirt, but I was interested to see how the pattern would work in a softer, drapey-ier fabric. Plus I wanted to see if it was possible to make the front in one piece. This was a little trickier, because the centre seam isn't straight, but instead curves inwards at the top where it meets the waistband. This meant there was about 4-5cm of extra fabric to fit in. I took in a little bit at the sides, but taking too much out would have spoiled the line of the side seams. So I tried the same technique I learned with my peplum top; pinning for dear life and using steam from the iron to shrink it to fit.

It still puckered a bit - see below - but it could have been worse. And I probably won't wear it with a tucked in top anyhow - this is for just for the purposes of unvarnished documentation!  

My only regret is that I didn't have enough fabric for pockets, but I was scraping to get all pieces cut out as it was. But I guess I can live with that ;)

So there you have it. I'm still not entirely sure about it, but I'll wear it a few times and see if it grows on me. We'll see!

In other news:

"I, Danielle of One Small Stitch, sign up as a participant of Me-Made-May '13. I endeavour to wear one handmade or refashioned garment each day for the duration of May 2013. I also pledge to finish four of my queued projects."

Yup, it's official! I'm in - and I'm really looking forward to it. Like I said last time, it's not a huge selection to pick from, but I like the idea of finding new ways to wear the things I have - I tend to play it fairly safe most of the time. And hopefully I'll finish costuming this week, so I can make a few more things before 1st of May...

Have a wonderful week :)

Danielle oxo