Me Made May: Days 12 Through 17

 Day 12: A me-made Tova top.  To this day it's one of my all-time favorite things that I've made for myself.  So comfy.  So wearable.

 Day 13: A me-made Renfrew top.  Can you get any brighter than a hot pink and orange shirt with teal pants?  I think not.

Day 14:  A me-made Tova dress.  I may love my Tova top but I'm not so in love with this dress.  All day long I alternated between thinking that it just looks like a sack on me and thinking that it's way too short for me to feel comfortable in (when did I get so old?).

Day 15: Yet another me-made Renfew top.  And yet another ridiculously bright outfit.

Day 16:  Hey look!  Something I knit!  A me-made sweater that I knit a lifetime ago, made from the Gathered Pullover pattern.  In wearing it I was reminded yet again that I definitely should have made it longer.  Eh, you live, you learn.

Day 17:  And we're back to the bike jersey.  It was bike to work day after all.  And I've now officially made it to work and back a whole two times.  Now excuse me while I go flex my big muscles.  Ha! 

Me Made May: Days 7 Through 11

Day 7: A me-made cycling jersey that I actually made for my husband but stole from him when I rode my bike to work the other day.  It's the first time I ever tried riding to and from work and while it's not very far, we live up a very big hill and I was a little worried that I wasn't going to make it home.  But I did.  And all without having to do the walk of shame (otherwise known as walking your bike up a hill).

Day 8: Can I just say that it's a miracle that I even wore something me-made today considering that the first thing that I put on I had to be cut out of?

I put this skirt on in the morning, only to discover that it's  now super tight and the middle of the zipper busted open while I was trying it on and I wasn't able to unzip it.  Fortunately, my husband was able to rescue me from this unfortunate situation.  He's a good man, I tell you.  After the skit fiasco, I decided to wear a me-made item that doesn't include a zipper.  Hence, this shirt.  It may not be fancy but at least I didn't have to be cut out of it.

Day 9: A me-made top made from the (free!) Scoop Top pattern by Kristin.  This version is made out of a cotton/lycra knit and I think the fabric is a bit thick and heavy for the design.  Plus, I totally screwed up the neckline and it has some unfortunate puckers in two places. We'll just consider this my wearable muslin.  I'm excited to sew it up again, next time in a lighter knit and I perhaps with a tad less flare at the bottom.

Day 10: A me-made top sewn from Simplicity 2922.  I sewed this up back in April of 2012 and I've worn it exactly zero times since then since the fit is a bit wonky.  By wearing it in Me Made May I can at least say that I've worn it once.  It's a step in the right direction, right?

Day 11:  Eleven days in...prepare yourself for some repeats.  First up is my self-drafted tee.  It's nothing special, but I do love it.

Four!

O is now officially four years old.

Four!

Not to be a total stereotype, but how did that happen?

I can't get over how tall she is, how strong she is, and how much she looks like a kid (where did my little toddler go?)

And I can't get over how much she acts like a kid.  She is incredibly silly.  Like can't-stop-laughing silly.

And she's incredibly talkative.  Like for-the-love-of-God-please-stop-talking talkative.

And her new favorite thing is to talk with a fake British accent while playing.  Where did that come from?

And while she's incredibly sweet and always down for a hug (especially since the baby was born), she is also ridiculously sassy.  Scarily so.

She loves to sing and much like her mother, she believes that the louder she sings, the better (I like to tell myself that it distracts people from noticing how atrocious my singing is).

She also has an uncanny ability to remember song lyrics and to make up some really creative ones.

She's still a massive thumb-sucker (even though we tried to get her to give it up when she turned three) and she still sleeps with a blankie every night (a minky one of course - the girl loves soft things).

But best of all, O just loves life and her excitement at even the smallest of things makes me smile nearly every day.

So happy birthday, O!  I may be a bit biased but I happen to think that you're pretty freaking awesome!

Me Made May: Days Two Through Six

All I have to say is that it's a lot harder to get dressed in the morning when 3/4 of your closet is "off-limits."  Obviously the only way to remedy that is to up the ratio of store-bought to me-made clothes.  Perhaps even someday most of the clothes in my closet will be made by me.

A girl can dream, can't she.

Day 2: Wearing my self-drafted tee (which looks black in this picture, but I swear that it's purple.  Damn you, weird indoor lighting).

Day 3: Wearing a dress that I made back in the day (before kids) when I actually had time to make fitted items because, man, they take a lot of work to get just right.  The pattern is New Look  6799.

Day 4: Wearing my split-back Tiny Pocket Tank.

Day 5: Wearing a self-drafted dress (although I use the term "self-drafted" very loosely here considering that most of the shape in this dress comes from all the shirring).

Day 6: Wearing a me-made top, made from Simplicity 3835.

This Weekend

It could not be more beautiful this weekend and we are determined to suck up every moment of warmth and sunshine while it's here.

<< that would be left-over yogurt from breakfast all over her face.  oops. >>

<< first bike ride of the season for both of us.  notice the intense concentration on my face as I try to remember how the gears work >>

<< how else do you get your kid's bike to the park>>

Now if you need us, we'll be outside sunning ourselves like geckos and frolicking in the kiddie pool.

Me Made May: And So It Begins

Me Made May preparations began not with sewing clothing for me (because, let's face it, I was busy sewing clothes for the little ones thanks to KCW), but rather it started with a culling of the herd.  Otherwise known as going through all of my handmade items and donating those that just don't get worn anymore.  Don't get me wrong.  I'm a massive hoarder and it sometimes pains me to part with items - especially handmade ones - but I'm slowly coming to the realization that there's just no point in keeping things that I either don't love or don't wear.  So with that I bid adieu to this blouse (yucky fabric), this blouse (weird color and fit), this top (it's too big now thanks to my shrinking chest), and this sweater (stained on two different occasions with two different items...how did that happen?).  It feels good to send them off to a new home rather than looking at them everyday and feeling guilty that they never get any use.  Here's to making more room in my closet for things that I truly love.

And here's to the start of MMM.

In honor of the day I made everyone wear me-made items (man, my kids are going to need serious counseling when they grow up.  But they sure are good sports.  Well, except for the little one.  She looks pissed).

O is rocking her homemade sweatsuit, C is stylin' in her new Class Picnic Blouse, and I'm wearing my Grainline Studio Tiny Pocket(less) Tank.  If you had asked me this morning I would have told you that this is one of my all-time favorite things to wear.  But after someone asked me if I was pregnant today I'm not so sure about this shirt.

Ah, screw them.  I love this shirt.

Rocking My World

Have you ever discovered something that just rocked your world?

That's how I felt when I first found Knitting From The Top.  The whole process of designing a sweater was laid out so simply that I felt like a whole new world of knitting was now open to me.

And that's also how I felt when I found this tutorial for how to copy your favorite t-shirt.  Suddenly I found myself looking through my closet at all my favorite knit shirts and thinking "I can make more of you!"

You see, it all started with a trip to Anthropologie where I found a t-shirt that I fell in love with.  Three quarter length sleeves with a fitted top but a more flowy bottom (is that even a word?).  I was in love and soon became obsessed with the idea of learning how to copy it so that I could have more.

I ended up copying the shirt using pins, parchment paper, a flattened diaper box, and the method described in the tutorial (What?  You don't consider an old diaper box a sewing notion?).  And what do you know?  It totally worked.  I was a little worried that this top wasn't going to work because the original shirt is made out of 100% cotton jersey and this fabric is a rayon/spandex blend, but in the end all that meant was that this top is incredibly soft and drapes beautifully.  I opted to leave the sleeves and the hem raw and I bound the neck using this tutorial (my new favorite way to finish a knit neckline).  In looking at the shirt, I wish I had made it a bit longer (maybe 3/4 of an inch or so) but this version is definitely very wearable.  And this in itself is a miracle because in trimming the neckline I cut a hole in the shirt about an inch below the neckline.  I cannot tell you how mad I was when I realized what I had done.  In the end I ended up smacking a tiny bit of fusible interfacing behind the hole, pulling the neck binding down as much as I could to cover up some of the hole, and putting some tiny stitches in the shirt to sew up what couldn't be hidden.  The fix isn't perfect but it's good enough.  And I haven't seen anybody pointing at my shirt and laughing when I've worn it out, so that's gotta be a good sign, right?

Don't have the time/energy/effort to trace your own favorite shirt?  Check out Kristin's new (free!) pattern - the Scoop Top!  And don't say I never did anything for you.

KCW: Sailboat Top

Alright, KCW, it's official - you done kicked my butt once again.

All you asked is for me to sew for one hour a day and I couldn't even do that.  I lay down with C to nurse her every night and on most weekday nights it is nearly impossible for me to get out of bed after my head hits that pillow.  Needless to say there may have been one or two nights that I didn't get around to sewing.  Eh, what are you going to do?

I did manage to bang out one more top before the end of KCW.  It's yet another Oliver and  S pattern that I've been meaning to get around to making for ages - the Sailboat Top.  I cut out a size 12-18 months hoping that it would fit perfectly like the Class Picnic Blouse did, but this one seems to be a bit big on C.  But that just means that it'll fit her for longer, right?

The pattern itself is fabulous (like all Oliver and S patterns) but I had a hell of a time making buttonholes this time around (damn you, sewing machine!).  I ended up having to rip two of them out and that is a total pain in the butt (it ranks up there with ripping out a serged seam).  At one point I gave up and tried to install snaps but that ended up being a bit of disaster too so I ripped those out as well (also, not fun).  In the end I went back to buttonholes and finally got four perfect little button holes.  Cue the singing of angels.

The fabric is a cotton sateen fabric from the Lisette collection that I purchased at Joann Fabrics many, many moons ago.  It has a nice hand to it and I just love the color.  The buttons are from the stash (although the button stash is quickly decreasing.   What will I do when I have to go out and buy buttons like the regular folk do?).

Alright, that's it for me and KCW.  Now on to Me Made May!

KCW: So Nice I Made It Twice

It's confession time around here.

First confession: I've barely sewn anything for my littlest nugget.

It just so hard to get motivated to make something for her when she has a ton of clothes already thanks to having an older sister and two older girl cousins who have given generously to her (I believe that this is what's known as a first-world problem...).

But as a third child I'm well aware that non-first children deserve some new things too.

So may I present to you, a little shirt made just for C.

If it looks familiar it's because it's Oliver and S's Class Picnic Blouse - the same shirt that I made for O the other day.  It was so nice, I made it twice.

The fabric for C's shirt is also a cotton lawn from Fashion Fabrics Club (obviously I went a little crazy when they offered free shipping a couple of weeks ago).  I cut out a size 12-18 months for my 13 month old and I was worried that it would be a bit big, but it seems to fit perfectly.  Woo-hoo!

Second-born children unite!

PS - this is what happens when I try to take pictures of the girls together.  Somebody doesn't like sitting still for any significant period of time.

PPS - Enjoy this picture of C smiling.  She chipped one of her front teeth after this picture was taken  so in all future pictures she'll be looking like a welter-weight boxing champion of the world.  Super.

KCW: Pretty On The Inside

I should probably warn you that there's no method to my madness this KCW.  Just a whole lot of sewing of random patterns that I somehow hadn't gotten around to making yet. 

Like the Class Picnic Blouse from Oliver and S.

I should probably admit that when I first saw this pattern I wasn't too interested, but the more that I saw it sewn up, the more that I became convinced that it is a ridiculously adorable shirt.  Both simple and sweet.  And perfect for O.

I cut a size 4T out of some cotton lawn that I recently bought from Fashion Fabrics Club.  The fabric is ever-so-slightly sheer so I opted not to serge the seams since they're visible through the shirt and I only have gray thread in my serger (yes, I could change the thread but I can't be the only person who thinks that changing the thread on a serger is a major pain in the butt...).  After a couple of minutes of deliberation I decided to bind the armhole seams with matching fabric but half-way through I realized that that was utterly stupid and I should have just done french seams for the entire blouse including the armholes.  It would have taken half as much time and about a quarter as much effort.  Oh well.

On the upside, those little bound seams sure are awfully pretty.