Day 24: After many, many days of repeats I feel as if this new little Scout Tee is a breath of fresh air - bright orange, fresh air.

Day 25: In an attempt to mix it up I broke into my me-made items that don't get worn very often.  First up is this Sew Liberated Schoolhouse Tunic.  Great pattern, cute fabric, blah garment.  Unfortunately I only realized after sewing it all up that this just isn't a style that I wear very often - mostly because it's not particularly flattering on me.  So sadly this little garment sits in my closet most of the year although I do plan to break it out as a bathing cover this summer.  Perhaps I'll find a use for it yet. 

Day 26: There's been a run of cold, rainy, and miserable weather around here which, on the one hand, sucks because, you know, it's cold and miserable.  But on the other hand it's great because it gives me yet another opportunity to wear my glorified sweatshirt.  

Day 27: Once upon a time I loved this top and wore it often but I now I just feel blah about it.  I'm not sure if the elastic stretched out or if it always looked this way, but it just seems sort of shapeless now and not flattering in the least.  On the upside though, it remains ridiculously comfortable and is perfect for eating ginormous Thanksgiving meals.

Day 28: Back to the self-drafted tee.  I'm beginning to think that I need to make another one.

Day 29: A new shirt (!) based off of the Alma pattern by Sewaholic.  I need to get around to blogging about this little sucker.

Day 30: Otherwise known as "The day that non-pregnant Carolyn wore her pregnancy clothes to work" since I made this little pencil skirt back when I was pregnant with C.  Truth be told, I still wear a lot of my maternity clothes.  In fact, I often wear my maternity leggings to bed at night.  That's right - Ben is a lucky man.

Day 31: Finishing Me Made May not only with double me-mades but also with double-orange because in addition to wearing this me-made bike jersey on my way to work, I changed into this me-made shirt once I got there.  Going out with a bang, people!

And with this Me Made May is done!  If I were a more thoughtful person I would have something deep and meaningful to share with you about this experience, but truth be told, I'm just pooped and I can barely muster up one sentence.  So if there's just one thing that I'd like to say about Me Made May it's this - the group of women in the Me Made May flicker group are some of the most of kind and supportive people that I have ever encountered on the internet and if you're thinking of participating in a Me Made event in the future, do it.  You won't be disappointed.

Me Made May: Days 18 Through 23 (The Ones In Which My Children Discover Photo-Bombing)

Prepare yourselves for a not-so-tantalizing week of repeats.

Day 18: I think that it was this shirt that cemented my love for voile.  Now if only I knew how to actually pronounce it.

Day 19: We meet again, ridiculously bright Renfew.  You're an oldie but a goodie.

Day 20:  Hello again, self-drafted tee.  It's lovely to see you again.  You're so soft and drapey and the most delicious shade of purple (even though you look black in this picture).  Let's be friends forever.

Day 21: Back to this tank, although this time with a wool sweater thrown on top because it's decidedly rainy and chilly around here lately.  Brrrr.

Day 22: All dressed up for court - or as my child likes to tell me, "Mama, you look like a man today."  Although I'm pretty sure that a man wouldn't wear this me-made shirt.  But I guess he could if he really wanted to.  I mean, who doesn't love a shirt with flowers all over it?

Day 23: Say it with me - Tova!  Tova!  Tova!  (Get it?  You're supposed to chant it like "Toga!  Toga!" No?  I'm the only one who thinks that's hilarious.  Well fine then.)

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.

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.

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.

Me Made May 2013

I'm always up for a little selfish sewing (or in this case the wearing of selfish sewing projects) but I have to say that I'm even more excited for this year's Me-Made-May - mostly because I've missed my me-made-clothes.

First there was the pregnancy and not fitting into anything because of my ever-expanding belly.  Then there were the pounds that stick around for a while after you actually have the baby.  And then there's your chest that ends up about two sizes bigger than normal when you nurse.  And while this might sound like an awesome thing for someone like me who barely has a chest, it was completely frustrating to find that all of my shirts were either too tight or too short to be worn.  With my body growing and shrinking and changing in so many ways over the last year and a half, about three-quarters of the clothes in my closest haven't fit me at one time or another and many of them are either packed away in a chest or collecting dust from being unworn.

But with the pregnancy weight finally gone most of the pants and skirts are fitting once again.  And after a year of lugging the breast pump to and from work everyday, I've finally parted ways with it for good and things seem to be shrinking back down to their normal size (if you catch my drift).

Which is all just to say that I'm ridiculously excited to unpack and dust off my me-made-clothes and participate in this year's Me-Made-May.  Who's with me?