Me-Made-May 2016: The summary

The first week of June is already gone. I also can’t wait to show you all the new me-mades, but I kind of want to do this right, and figure out what I take away from a month of only wearing clothes made by my own two hands…

I wore 19 me-made garments during the 27 days I managed to keep up with the challenge:

• 7 dresses;
• 3 skirts;
• 3 trousers;
• 6 tops;
• and 3 bags (1, 2, 3).

I decided to take a look at what I enjoyed wearing, as well as to look at the thoughts I had after last year’s Me-Made-May.

Dresses

In 2015 I wrote: “I think I have enough dresses at the moment, although I tend to wear them a lot, so I will allow myself to make more if I feel like it. I might also give that jumpsuit idea a go this year.”

Since 2015: I have made a total of 5 new dresses since this time last year, no jumpsuits still. Unfortunately none of those 5 dresses are really suitable for everyday wear, which is why they haven’t really made an appearance during MMMay.

Now I need: Everyday, comfortable dresses that I can wear in all (London) weather conditions.

Skirts

In 2015 I wrote: “I think I wouldn’t mind having a few pencil skirts that allow me to cycle in them, but to be honest I am not in urgent need of any new skirts.”

Since 2015: I made one new skirt that I don’t particularly like, but I’m cool with that since I didn’t think I needed any more anyway…

Now I need: I really enjoyed wearing the lime green A-line skirt this year, and I would like to make a few similar ones of lighter materials for summer.

Trousers

In 2015 I needed: “More of the comfy summery kind. It’s a shame that I am so scared of making trousers, as they are the best option for summer cycling and not that hard to make at all.”

Since 2015: I have not made any new trousers. I have also decided to get rid of the ill-fitting black one that I made using an experimental, self-drafted pattern.

Now I need: More trousers!!! I am taking a pattern cutting course at Morley College again, now learning about the trousers block, so hopefully I will be able to improve on this soon.

Tops

In 2015 I needed: “More tops, obviously. Sleeveless ones for summer, a few more crop tops, another shirt, the perfect white T, and maybe some woven basic tops. I just need more tops. Simple and wearable ones!”

Since 2015: I have made two camisoles that I quite like in theory, but they aren’t the obvious choice to wear in most occasions. I have also just finished a shirt which I am very pleased with.

Now I need: More tops! I probably need to go back to the Wardrobe Architect project and finish it, before I start making things that don’t work with the rest of the wardrobe. I have a few ideas already though, and after the trials and tribulations of making my second shirt, I think I enjoyed the process just as much as I enjoy wearing it, so I’m up for making more!

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Last year the aim was to not only wear one me-made item/day, but to wear them head-to-toe, and I am pretty happy about managing to do it. The plan now, is to do a deep clean in my wardrobe, ideally by the end of summer, and get rid of all the clothes that I don’t look forward to wearing for some reason.

If I manage to do that and streamline my collection of clothes so that I only have comfortable, good looking and versatile garments that I enjoy wearing, then I will definitely wear only me-mades in May next year again… 😉

Me-Made-May 2016: Week 3

Week 3 has been and gone. It was one busy week! On Monday (Day 16) I went to work straight from the train station, so I was wearing pretty much what I wore to Paris. By this time I obviously couldn’t wait to get the stuff off me, otherwise those pants are made for long days! Unlike Saturday’s (Day 21) black, experimental silky pair…I am so getting rid of those. For getting snacks from the shop next door it’s just alright, but I am in constant fear of ripping them, they pull at places  and there is that weird flap on the front. It’s everything I don’t want my clothes to be.

Wearing the kimono dress with the military jacket on a great day out on Brick Lane yesterday, was one of those things that remind me why I’m sewing in the first place. 🙂

Day 16

• Trousers: Modified Burdastyle trousers
• Top: Self-drafted/copied camisole

Day 17

• Dress: Dior inspired dress
• Jumper: Thrifted for £1!!! 🙂

Day 18

• Jacket: Refashioned military jacket
• Skirt: Self drafted leather skirt (unblogged)
• Jumper/top underneath: RTW jumper/bodysuit underneath 

Day 19

• Trousers: as above
• Top: Burdastyle shirt

Day 20

• Top: Self-drafted bodysuit
• Skirt: Self-drafted pencil skirt

Day 21

• Trousers: Self-drafted trousers
• Top: Camisole top (self-drafted/copied)

Day 22

• Dress: The kimono dress (self drafted)
• Coat: The military jacket (refashioned)

As I am getting closer to finish Me-Made-May I started wondering what I should do with the clothes I did not pick up  to wear, or those that don’t fit me quite right.

Do you give up your unworn me-mades for charity, sell them or  recycle them?

Me-Made-May: Week 2

I’m not the kind of person who stands in front of the wardrobe in the morning for ages, trying to figure out what to wear. I usually find a few pieces that I really enjoy wearing and stick with them for as long as the season allows me.

However, having to choose from a very different set of clothes this month makes me totally clueless some mornings, and whenever the weather gets unexpectedly cold and rainy, like this past week, or when I need to dress for a special occasion (going out, travelling, etc), I find myself really challenged to get dressed without being absurdly late for work.

I have spent the weekend in Paris with my sister, where the weather was supposed to be 15 °C degrees, mostly cloudy with some sunshine. Otherwise known as that time you are unsure whether you’ll be boiling after walking a few minutes if you put on too many layers, or you’ll wish you took your winter coat. I am really embracing spring right now and feel like wearing bright colours all the time, so I decided to keep it simple and wear my favourite red trousers for the whole weekend. They are comfy, surprisingly versatile and I managed to dress them up for a night out too. So apart from wearing the aforementioned red pants for what feels like eternity, this is what I wore last week.

Day 8

• Top: Self drafted bodysuit
• Leggings: Self drafted, favourite/would-not-wear-it-outside-the house leggings 🙂

Day 9

• Dress: Backless dress, modified Burdastyle pattern
• Top: Cut-off RTW top (this is the only piece I am allowing myself to wear that I have not made from scratch)

Day 10

• Skirt: Infinity dress (made of cotton), worn as a skirt
• Shirt: Burdastyle pattern, oversized shirt

Day 11

• Top: same as above
• Skirt: same as above

We had a parents’ evening that day, the weather was really unpredictable, so I chose to go with pieces that worked earlier that week.

Day 12

• Dress: Backless dress, modified Burdastyle pattern, almost the same as the blue above
• Kimono: Vintage Japanese, got ripped on the side, then handsewn back that same day…

Day 13

• Dress: Wrap dress, Burdastyle pattern-slightly modified
• Jumper: Ready-to-wear

My favourite outfit of the week! 🙂

Day 14

• Top: (not visible) camisole+ RTW sweater
• Trousers: Modified Burdastyle pattern

Day 15

• Top: Camisole-self drafted/copied from RTW + RTW jumper
• Trousers: As above

 

Me-Made-May 2016: Week 1

Like I might have mentioned earlier, I was not going to take part in this year’s Me-Made-May, as I wasn’t keen on the idea to wear 1 me-made piece/day again, like I did for the previous 2 years. I also didn’t think I had enough garments to ONLY wear me-mades for a whole month. But then I didn’t want to feel left out either. 🙂

I’ve spent a few days in Budapest recently and while waiting for the plane back home, I started listing the things I’ve made and realized I could actually pull it off with a bit of creativity. I knew I had clothes in my wardrobe that I hardly ever wear, so the objective had to be to not only wear as many handmade pieces as I can, but also to be honest with myself and give away those I don’t enjoy wearing at the end of the month.

This first week was really challenging, as we practically skipped spring and went straight into summer. Since I wouldn’t wear most of my skirts without black tights on, my options became even more limited. I pretty much struggled through the week, but as I was taking photos yesterday I just realized it doesn’t have to be as hard as I thought.

It turns out most of my clothes actually work well together, some of the dresses can easily be turned into skirts or can be worn as a top. I managed to come up with 21 different combinations so far using 15 pieces, and this is just the number I cared to take pictures of…

So here is what I wore this week:

Day 1

• Red trousers: heavily modified Burdastyle pattern(s)
• Nude bodysuit: Self-drafted/copied from an existing one
• Bag: Le Barcelona bag, made using scrap leather pieces (current favourite!)

Day 2

• Top: Wrap dress worn as a top
• Skirt: A-line skirt

Day 3

• Dress: Modified Burdastyle pattern (the same as this one)
• Shirt: Oversized shirt based on a Burdastyle pattern

Day 4

• Dress: Wrap dress

Day 5

• Top: Camisole based on a self drafted pattern
• Skirt: A-line skirt

Day 6

• Top: Asymmetric dress worn as top
• Skirt: Self drafted jersey skirt

Day 7

• Trousers: Modified Burdastyle pattern(s)
• Top: Camisole

 

Camisole numéro deux

This is the second version of my copycat camisole pattern. This fabric, just like 90% of my stash, was a remnant I got a few months ago. It is probably inspired by that Prada print from 2012 (image source), which I was madly in love with at the time. 🙂

I love spaghetti straps and I think camisoles have that pretty sultry, half-lingerie/half-totaly-decent-can-wear-it-outside-the-bedroom look to them. They also don’t use a lot of fabric (although because of the bias cut, there is a relatively large amount of waste), and can be sewn up fairly quickly.

I am quite happy to have this particular piece in my wardrobe (although I haven’t worn it yet…), but it needs a bit of tweaking before I can make up the next one:

• It’s not visible, but the side seam does not run straight down as it’s supposed to. However, when I put it on backwards, it falls just right, so I guess it needs some kind of an adjustment…
• The whole point of wearing something with spaghetti straps is to show off that tiny piece of fabric against the skin, and bra straps just take away the attention. For decency’s sake it would be nice to have a sort of lining without having to line the whole top. Since it’s bias cut, I am not sure if I can do it without ending up with a longer facing (could be one of the options) all bunching up. I was also thinking of inserting some kind of a built-in bra thing, but knit fabrics and very lightweight wovens are not famous for working well together. Or are they?

Any ideas how to solve this?

Bias and lace

The top that I wore during Me-Made-May for the first time is a wearable muslin really. Since I didn’t think I could find anything in my wardrobe that would go with it, I decided to make matching French knickers from the leftover fabric, so that I end up with a fancy set of nightwear (that I can occasionally wear out too 😉 ).

I got the fabric from my all time favourite source – the remnant box at the fabric shop. It was probably about a 1.5m x 1m piece and I bought it so that I can try my hand at making a bias cut camisole. It’s a polyester fabric and my sister says it looks like something bridesmaid dresses would have been made of in the 90’s, but at least it doesn’t wrinkle too easily and I wasn’t afraid to cut into it.

I copied the camisole pattern from my sister’s RTW version and added a facing at the top. The shorts are high-waisted French knickers with a placket opening on the side. The pattern was drafted by following Vera Venus’ free pattern instructions (it’s towards the bottom of the page).

Since I didn’t quite have enough fabric to cut the shorts on the grain – and because I had to re-cut the legs after cutting two right back leg pieces – I had to insert a patchwork panel and some lace on the front and back. I have never worked with lace before, and especially after the nightmare that sewing the main fabric was, working with lace was a pleasant surprise.

I haven’t worn these shorts yet, as I still need to hand-sew some snap fasteners on, but hopefully it will work as a piece to protect my modesty during hot summer cycles under skirts and dresses. Of course it doesn’t look like it will be that hot in London anytime soon, so the dreaded hand sewing can wait… 😉