MMM - The Finale

Okay....

I don't want y'all to think that I haven't been MMM'ing it. I have. I just haven't been taking pics. I don't have a good spot to take picture of myself and rely on others to take the pics for me.

I have worn my own creations the entire month. Even on days where I wore store bought clothes, I wore a headwrap or a bag I made or repurposed.

I have come to the realization that I have a lot of dresses. I have skirts that I've made (I don't wear pants, though I am considering harem pants), but I don't have tops. Tops are the reason I started sewing. I'm top heavy and I started sewing sew that I could have clothes to wear that fit me. But I like dresses because it's one piece and I'm done. Since that realization, I am going to focus on sewing more and more tops vs. dresses and/or skirts.

I did my thing. I just didn't photograph it.

I was reading a fellow sewist's blog and she was building on the fact that she made 21 dresses in the last year. Her mom said that was excessive, she wouldn't buy 21 dresses. I agree. There is no reason to make a ridiculous amount of clothes just because you can. She showed her closets and they were bursting. Sewing may be cheaper than purchasing ready made clothes, but its not free. You have to buy fabric and notions then our time. From the stuff she posts each of those dresses have to have cost at least $50 if not more to make. She posted the site where she buys fabric from online and that place ain't cheap. I wouldn't order from there at those prices without feeling it first. You cannot return fabric.


I'm sewing today now. There will be pictures.... eventually.




Peace

This is what I wore today....

Good Morning Good People!

Here is another shot of what I am wearing today. I neglected to mention that I am observing to a very mild degree "Me-Made-May." What is that? Let me explain it to you....

I am following a LOT of sewing blogs. Y'all already know that sewing is a passion for me. I enjoy it. I am a bit selfish and protective with what and how I sew, but all and all I do a lot of it. Me-Made-May is a challenge to wear the clothes that we make. A lot of sewist spend a lot of time on their garments, and consequently want to only wear them on special occasions. OR... Feel self conscious wearing the clothes they made because they feel that since they were novices, something must be wrong with the garments.

I have felt both ways. If I spend a lot of money on fabric and notions and then it takes me forever to make a garment, I ain't just gonna wear it anywhere. Even if its a casual look. Sewing your own clothes creates and emotional investment. I would hate to spill something on them or have them soiled. Even though I only really sew with natural fibers like cotton and I know them to be very washer-friendly, still I don't want anything to happen to them. they are my babies, and babies are the greatest!

For the longest I felt like people could tell my clothes were "homemade" Like homemade was a bad thing. I was very self conscious and stopped sewing completely for years. What I didn't realize is that there was a lot of haters spreading their bile around. If they can't do something, they don't want you to do it either.

So, Me-Made-May sounds like a good idea. After perusing the blogs of folks wardrobes, I don't think I have enough Serenity-made clothes to wear every day for a month. I have quit a bit, but not like I would like. Perhaps that will will be a goal for next May. To make enough clothing this summer to have a summer wardrobe for next year. Or maybe begin to prepare for "Me-Made-November" if such a thing exists. Anywho....

This outfit I am wearing, I did not make the maxi dress. I did make the jacket... sort of. That's why I'm wearing it. I never said I don't ever buy store bought clothes. I do. Especially when it a good deal. I got this dress last fall on sale with another dress for $8 for the two of them. I couldn't buy fabric and notions for 2 dresses for $8. So I do purchase clothing. But the jacket.... I rigged that.

It gets good and hot in GA but it's always really cool indoors. So I needed a jacket, that went with everything, that wasn't real hot and that I could ball up and put in my purse or throw over my shoulders when I go out of doors. Also I didn't want to spend much money. At the time I rigged the jacket I was on my clothing restriction and couldn't buy anything brand new.

The jackets started out as a thrift store t-shirt. I bought a zipper that matched, cut the front of the shirt in half and reattached it with said zipper. I get more compliments on it than a little. It is the perfect lite jacket. When I'm feeling preppy it looks nice over my shoulders.

So that's how I'm doing this month's challenge. I may not have made the entire garment, but I at least made some of the ensemble. And pay close attention, because it might be rigged!



Peace

Dress 3

Peace!

Over this weekend I made this Butterick pattern from 1996. Not exactly vintage, lets say reto. I cut it at 16. I had some orange linen that I got on sale last year at Joanns. I had a car accident last year and the chiropracter's office was across the street from Joanns. I don't normally shop there for fabric. I don't like it for fabric. It is really a craft store. And I have never been in one where the employees where kind and helpful. It has been my experience that sewing is a community activity. At least when you are buying the fabric. A lot of newbie sewists go into the frabric shops and need assistance. Not just for fabric choices but guidance and advie on how to make the garment they are planning. When they don't get it, they make big mistakes. That's why I shop at either local fabric stores where the owners are very familiar with their stock and can give good insight or Hancocks. Folks are always uber-friendly in Hancocks. And that's at every Hancocks I have ever been in. Back to my dress....

I changed this pattern so much that I feel bad referencing it. But the dress turned out lovely. So much in fact that I have all kinds of plans for wearing this dress. Firstly, the pattern called for it to be a completely button down dress. I don't have the patience for all that. thinking about the facings, interfacings, buttons with their holes.....! Emphatically No! Also, the pattern had princess seaming. I have never done that before, yet it came out lovely. I'm scratching off princess seams off my to-learn list.

Scrapping the buttions means I had to change the entire idea of the dress. And I had to figure a plan for getting in the dress. I initially planned to put a zipper in the back, and rearranged the pattern to accomodate that. But.... The zipper was too short. I bought the zipper last year when I still was slightly scared of zippers. My mother taught me to fear zippers and for most of my sewing career I avoided them using buttons and drawstrings. But I made a denim skirt a 2 years ago that had to have a zipper, and it came out with no problems. After that I have been putting zippers in more and more garments. I have gotten over my zipper-phobia. I put the zipper on the left side

The front I made 1 panel rather than the two it initally called for. The only big problem I had was the collar. Since I was planning to put a zipper in the back, I cut the collar in half to open for it. So when I changed that, the collar came up short. I had some fabric that I am reserving for a headwrap and I decided to NOT cut that up. So I made do with the collar I cut. I did add a bow to camouflage the short coming. I like it. The bow makes it look nautical. And I was planning to add just 1 nautical outftit to my wardrobe this summer. Killed two birds with one stone.

The skirt is longer than I thought it was gonna be. It is a real floor duster. But with the arms out, I'm okay with that. I actually really like that.

The only thing that gives me pause is it is very low cut. But I'm not sure if its the dress' fault or the bra I'm wearing. This bra does make the girls perky. I will try the subsequent wearings with different bras, and if it is still too racy, I will add some fabric to cover it. I really love this dress.


Peace