Mushroom skirt

During Me Made May I realized how versatile my pink a-line skirt is.  After all, I did wear it practically every week. I also realized that this was one of the first skirts I ever made, and some of the finishings leave a little to be desired.

Summer Baby

A few months ago,  I was able to go fabric shopping with my boyfriend's mom.  It's so much fun going fabric shopping with other people.  At that time I bought the fabric that made the failed dress shown here (it ended up being far too big and I haven't finished it).  She, on the other hand, picked out some adorable fabric to make some spring/summer clothes for her 18 month-old grand-daughter.

Some things came up and she wasn't able to finish the clothes; so, she handed the pieces off to me to finish up.  I couldn't have been happier with this task. When I got the pieces, the fabric had been cut out for a top, pants, and a dress.  There was an additional piece of fabric as well, which I turned into another dress.

I finished up the items in a few evenings after work.  Baby clothes are so gratifying to make because they are so quick, and adorable.  It can be tricky to work around such little curves (armholes are so small!), so I tried out a few different techniques to get the finishes as clean as possible.   On the purple dress I used bias tape to finish the neckline and arm openings.  On the blue top I used a tiny hem around the openings.  On the green dress I lined the bodice so there were no edges to finish.  I also played around with french seams on the skirt panels for some of the pieces. 

Despite being made out of different fabrics from different patterns, all three pieces have the same blue buttons.  Does this make them a "collection"!?

Babies grow fast, and Emilie is no exception.  Hopefully these dresses will fit by the time they arrive for her!

Abstract

Pattern: NewLook 0156 and Butterick 5017

Fabric: Floral seersucker, green polka dot quilting cotton, purple shirting, all from Joann's

Cost:unknown

Time: Approximately 8 hours

Me Made May 2014: The End

Happy June! Me Made May is officially over. I managed to wear a me-made item every day this month.  Here are the pics from the final week.

Monday, May 26: Memorial Day visit to Fort Washington

Shirt: Banana Republic
Skirt: NewLook 0116 (pre-blog)
Shoes: Keds

Tuesday, May 27: Work

Shirt: Sewaholic Belcarra (to be blogged soon!)
Pants: Target
Belt: Target

Wednesday, May 28: Work

Shirt: McCall's6604 (pre-blog)
Cardigan: JCrew
Skirt: The Limited

Thursday, May 29: Work

Dress: Sewaholic Cambie

Friday, May 30: Work

Sweater: Gap
Cardigan: Old Navy
Skirt: Blue Simplicity 2226 (pre-blog)

Saturday, May 31: BBQ

Shirt: Floral teal Plantain by Doe and Deer
Shorts: Banana Republic

I made it through the entire month without repeating an entire outfit.  Towards the end, this was a very conscious effort, but it made for some creative outfits that I wouldn't have come up with otherwise.

My most worn item this month was my blue striped plantain by Doe and Deer, worn four times.  Three other items were worn three times: my floral teal Plantain by Doe and Deer, my black and white cowl neck shirt, and my pink skirt. Interestingly, these most-worn items include most of the me-made shirts in my wardrobe.  Speaking of patterns...

This month I wore me-made shirts more often than skirts or dresses.  I never would have predicted that, as I have far more dresses and skirts in my me-made arsenal.

I wore about 55% woven me-mades this make, and 45% knits.  Seeing how frequently I wear them, I should probably make more knit garments, as they currently make up a pretty small amount of my makes.

Another revelation was how many patterns I wear.  84% of the me-made items I wore this month were patterned.  Since I still wear a considerable amount of RTW clothes, this isn't an issue.  If I wanted to wear a completely me-made wardrobe, though, I'd need to switch this balance.

I'll leave you with my favorite outfit of the month, as chosen by me and popular vote on Instagram.

Me Made May 2014: Week 4

Another week of Me Made May is in the books.  Just one week of daily selfies left to go.  Phewf. Here's the round-up for this week.

Monday: Work

Dress: Moneta by Colette Patterns
Belt: Banana Republic

Cardigan: JCrew

Tuesday: Work

Dress: Floral NewLook 0180

Jacket: The Limited

Wednesday: Work

Shirt: Express

Cardigan: Old Navy

Scarf: Gift from the Gap

Skirt: Miette by Tilly and the Buttons (pre-blog) 

Shoes: Nine West

Thursday: Work

Jacket: Banana Republic

Shirt: McCall's6604 (pre-blog)

Skirt: The Limited

Friday: Work and sewing

Shirt: Blue striped Plantain by Doe and Deer

Capris: Loft

Belt: Banana Republic

Saturday: Bike ride

Shirt: Floral teal Plantain by Doe and Deer

Shorts: American Eagle

Shoes: Keds

Sunday: Brunch and BBQ

Shirt: Camaieu

Skirt: Simplicity 2226 (pre-blog)

Belt: Banana Republic

It looks like this was another week of me-made knits.  Four out of 7 me-made items worn this week were knits. The pattern of wearing my newer makes has continued. Check out how many of the items I've worn this week that are on my blog, a.k.a made this year.  It's great to see that my most recent makes are getting more wear. I'm especially excited about my last two dresses--worn on Monday and Tuesday. 

So far I've been able to not have any complete outfit repeats.  With just a week left, I think that I can keep that up for the rest of the month. 

Floral NewLook 0180

I bought this pattern on a whim.  The NewLook patterns are always on display racks at Joann's for just a few bucks.  This one caught my eye because of the fun floral styling.  I couldn't resist and had to make a version of my own. 

This is NewLook 0180. It is a very simple dress without darts or princess seams, just pleats around the neckline for shaping.  I made the version with the lower pleated neckline and straight skirt. The dress is unlined and closes in the back with a lapped zipper. My first lapped zipper, actually. I got a little confused with the top and bottom of the zipper, but overall I think it turned out pretty well. 

Despite its simple shape and construction, I did have some fitting issues with this dress. I made a straight size 8 and ended up with a gaping back neckline.  Fortunately, I have been reading sewing blogs for a while now and had read how others have fixed this problem.  I took a large triangle out of the center back seam (about an inch and a half on each side going about halfway down the back bodice) and re-inserted the zipper. That seems to have done the trick. 

The fabric is a slightly stretchy cotton, also from Joann's, that I love. If they made it in different colors, I would already own it. I bought two yards and have a decent amount of fabric left over.  I'm hoping it's enough to make a pencil skirt. 

The dress is super comfortable, even after a long day of sitting at my desk. I like the versatility of this dress, and the pattern in general.  It is appropriate for work, parties, and maybe even a more casual wedding.

Abstract

Pattern: NewLook 0180 (the link lists a different pattern number, but the pictures are identical)

Fabric: Floral cotton from Joann's

Cost: 2 yards of fabric @ $10/yard = $20 + $2.50 zipper =  $22.50 ($26.50 if you count the cost of the pattern)

Time: Approximately 8 hours

Me Made May 2014: Week 3

Another week down! This week I wore one me-made make each day: 3 black and white dresses, 2 colorful skirts, and 2 patterned shirts. About half are repeats from earlier in the month. Here they are:

Monday, May 12: Work

Dress: McCall's 5972 (pre-blog)
Belt: Banana Republic

Tuesday, May 13: Work

Dress: Moneta by Colette Patterns
Belt: Banana Republic

Wednesday, May 14: Work

Shirt: Banana Republic
Cardigan: JCrew
Belt: Banana Republic
Skirt: NewLook 0116 (pre-blog)
Shoes: Nine West

Thursday, May 15: Work and happy hour

Shirt: Express

Cardigan: Old Navy

Skirt: Hacked version of McCall's 6503 (not yet blogged)

Friday, May 16: Work

Shirt: Blue and white plantain

Cardigan: Thrifted Jones New York

Pants: Banana Republic

Belt: Banana Republic

Shoes: Keds

Saturday, May 17: Chilly barbecue with friends

Shirt: McCall's 6613

Sunday, May 18: Lunch and shopping

Dress: McCall's 6609 (pre-blog)

Jacket: North Face

Taking pictures of my outfit every day is getting pretty old, so I'm glad that this month is over halfway over. I'm finding that, even though I have more clothes that I've made in the closet, I keep reaching for the same pieces over and over. I think that I may donate the clothes that I still haven't worn by the of the month.  Fortunately, my mom and I are the same size, so she'll get first dibs.

The next week of Me-Made-May will feature at least one new make that I'm pretty excited about, so stay tuned!

Me Made May 2014: Week 2

I'm pretty excited to have made it through 11 days of May with little difficulty--and 10 days without any me-made repeats!  This week was a full work week for me, so there are more work looks than in my last post. There are a few unflattering cell phone selfies, but if I'm okay posting them to the internet, hopefully you'll be okay looking at them.

Monday, May 5: Work

Dress: McCall's 5972 (pre-blog)
Shirt: Express
Belt: Banana Republic
Shoes: Nine West

Tuesday, May 6: Work

Shirt: McCall's6604 (pre-blog)
Pants: Cynthia Rowley c/o Marshall's
Belt: Banana Republic

Wednesday, May 7: Work

Dress: McCall's 5972 (again, pre-blog)
Cardigan: Old Navy
Belt: Banana Republic
Shoes: Nine West

Thursday, May 8: Work

Shirt: Express
Skirt: NewLook 0116 (pre-blog)
Belt: Banana Republic
Bag: Vera Bradley
Shoes: Kenneth Cole Reaction

Friday, May 9: Work and shopping

Shirt: H&M
Cardigan: Bought in Paris
Skirt: Simplicity 2226 (pre-blog)

Saturday, May 10: Embassy open-house and lunch

Dress: Purple knit McCall's M6347 (pre-blog and the first knit garment I ever made)

Sweater: Maxx Studio

Belt: Target

Sunday, May 11: Mother's Day spent with my mom

Headband: Gap

Shirt: Blue striped Plantain by Doe and Deer

Shorts: American Eagle

Sandles: Kenneth Cole Reaction

What I'm learning is that I have a few wardrobe staples that I like to wear over and over.  They include my skinny black leather belt, orange cardigan, and white button-down shirt.

I've now worn all of my knit garments. I think that means I should make some more, since clearly they are what gets worn. It appears that I tend to wear dresses and skirts to work, and pants more on the weekends.  I think that pattern holds true whether or not it's Me Made May.  I own quite a few pairs of dress pants, but hardly ever wear them.  Most of them are hemmed to wear with heels, which I've been trying to avoid due to a running injury.  I could shorten them, though. Hm...