Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Me Made May 2014: the pledge, the sad inventory, the UFO pile & the plan

Mikhaela's Me Made May 2013: Polka Dot Overload blog

Most of my Me Made May outfits from last year

The Pledge

I, Mikhaela Reid, of Polka Dot Overload blog, sign up as a participant of Me-Made-May '14. I endeavor to wear one me-made, refashioned or friend/mom-made item each day for the duration of May 2014.(Cutting myself a little slack here because my size has changed, I didn't sew for six months due to carpal tunnel and lost sewing mojo, and a few of my favorite me-mades have gone mysteriously missing).

The (Sad) Inventory

I'm calling this sad because I am sad that a number of my me-mades have either gone mysteriously missing (lost during travel or in the laundry room, I guess) or are just too small (or in the case of old maternity makes, too big). What remains, and can be actually worn:

When I look back I have made over 50 garments over the past five years or so, but some of those were maternity, some were for my daughter or other babies, and some just didn't work out. So... this is all I've got out of the starting gate. And you all saw most of them during Me Made May last year. Oh well!

The UFO pile

The UFO pile
These are the UFOs that are so close to done I hope to finish them within the first half of Me Made May.
  1. My Cake Patterns Red Velvet Knit Dress in blue and purple patterned ITY (upper left). She's all cut and ready to sew, but I abandoned her after sewing one seam due to carpal tunnel last fall.
  2. My third Cake Patterns Hummingbird peplum top—the Blue version, with the dickey and three-quarter-length sleeves. I cut her out during the sew-along last summer, but was so busy moderating said sewalong I didn't actually finish her:

    Hummingbird "Blue" in progress
  3. My Delancey cardigan by Alexis Winslow (center bottom row): I am just finishing the bands, then the buttons and collar and I am DONE.

There are a few other items in the UFO photo I probably won't bother finishing with any urgency—it's the wrong season now for my coming-out-far-too-big Knotty Gloves. The chartreuse doubleknit jacket you can just barely see the edge of on the bottom left is too big and requires more fitting (it also dates from 2010). And the blue silk dot bias half-slip in the upper middle is cut rather askew.

The plan

  • Wear at least one me-made every day.
  • Don't worry about outfit repeats.
  • Don't worry too much about boring the blog readership (that's you!) with the same clothes I wore last year.
  • Take a photo every day—even if it's just an Instagram mirror selfie.
  • Whip out a few TNT patterns in fabrics from the stash.
  • Make at least one pattern I haven't made before.
  • Refashion at least one wardrobe item.

I cannot even describe how excited I am for Me Made May. Last year it really got me energized and sewing again after a horrible six-month bout with severe chronic sinusitis and surgery for same. This year I'm hoping to get back into sewing after a ... horrible three-month bout with carpal tunnel (no surgery this time, but the mojo was definitely lost).

And it also gives me an excuse to dress up and feel, well, pretty. I've got to admit the winter has been getting me down, and I've been feeling a bit like Frumpy Food Allergy Mom (or that's how I imagine myself in my head) who never does her hair or makeup, always looks frazzled and sleep-deprived, is always covered in flour or pickle juice from one allergy-free culinary experiment or another, and wears the same jeans and old falling-apart T-shirts and worn-out flats every day.

So here's to old makes, new makes, refashions and new ways to wear and combine them!

10 comments:

  1. Ok, you've totally inspired me with this post. I've been going back and forth ad nauseum on whether to participate in MMM this year for many of the same reasons -- so much of what I'm wearing is the same as last year, and my wardrobe is in dire need of a transfusion. I'm going to figure out a way to make it work for me and get into the game...!!

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    1. Wait, I think you have it backwards! You inspired ME when we were talking about this in Texas... anyway, I loved your idea of just whipping out some TNTs. And anyway, I don't want to be ashamed if some of my me-mades are well-worn, that just shows I love them!

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  2. Thank you for joining up and sharing honestly. I think this is really what MMM is about. Not all the pretties but how our clothes are ACTUALLY worn. This is life!

    Plus do you really think we'll remember all your outfits from a year ago? I'm not sure my memory is that good. Plus everyone was complaining about how big the group was so they didn't get to see everything so don't feel bad! DON"T!
    I'm so excited you will be participating again!

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    1. Oh, you are awesome. Thank you! That is a good reminder... it is such a huge group. But I am still probably going to go for a bit fancier than how I USUALLY dress in real life, cause that would be a bit too schlubby for this blog. ;)

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  3. EmSewCrazy nailed it! I'm happy to see you blogging again!

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  4. good luck! i think boring us is a small price to pay for getting some energy and excitement going in your own life and sewing room. that is what spring is all about!

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  5. I found this post so refreshing!! Here's to keeping it real! :)

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    1. Ha! Well, I just hope I don't keep it TOO real or I really will have flour and pickle juice splattered all over my clothes in the photos.

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