So darlin' save the last dance for me

And now, my dear friends, we have the final four days of Me-Made-March 11. It's been a blast.

March 28 - I was having a rec day. A day to relax. Unwind from the weekend's activities. Maybe do a little quilting. You know the kind of day. But no - the morning was spent arguing various points with both my ISP and also the stupid antenna people who never came back to finish the job. I was beyond frustrated. And then my lovely new boots from Duo showed up. Bless you Duo! I was so happy I didn't mind that it was a warm day and I was wearing knee high boots and a corduroy skirt. Because corduroy skirts, especially me-made ones and newly mended and better fitting ones at that, make everything better.

March 29 - I love this dress SO MUCH. That's all.

March 30 - I'm not flashing the peace sign like some Harajuku schoolgirl. I'm reminding Kuka there are only two days to go. I am rather embarrassed today that it has taken me till day 30 to finish and wear something I've sewn in the course of the challenge. This is a new skirt pattern, with some pretty bloody splendid cotton sateen that has freaking DOILIES on it people!! DOILIES!! Also I'm wearing a me-made brooch (the zipper one).

March 31 - Holy jeepers - it's the end! I don't believe it. And not only that, it's finally cold enough to wear closed in shoes and tights! So excited. But only the skirt is me-made and you've seen it a couple of times already.

So there we are, at the end of a long month of me-made fashion. I have thought long and hard about lessons learned and all that. Here, henceforth, is my thesis, in dot point.

• It was easier than I thought to find something me-made every day


• I'm actually proud of my achievements given that for about 3 weeks of it I was crooker than a sick dog


• Actually, I think this challenge gave me something to think about other than my own pain


• My friends at work actually got excited by Me-Made-March and were especially keen to see the photos Kuka texted me each morning. I doubt people in Kuka's department were as excited to see my photos


• Doing this with a friend was pretty cool. Maybe next March we can rope more friends in and have a conference type texting photo session going on each morning. Or is that crazy talk?


• I think I need to make more blouses, especially of the button-up variety


• My husband got very sick of taking photos each morning, although secretly I think he enjoyed it and he will be bereft with grief tomorrow morning


• The fact my husband is 6'2" and I am 5'9" meant that my photos made me look very short-legged. My legs are not that short. Might have to get a shorter husband by next March.


• I don't normally like photos of my face going on Flickr or my blog. It's not a vanity thing, but a privacy thing. But getting a reluctant party to take photos at 7.15 in the morning, every morning, without the face being shown was tricky so in the end I bit the bullet. All future sewing project photos, however, will be of the headless sewing woman of Sleepy Hollow.


• This challenge was really, really good fun. The other bloggers doing the challenge are something else! So inspiring and talented.


• In case you were wondering what I was wearing tomorrow, I'm thinking of the corduroy skirt and some bright red tights, just because me-made is more fun for a Friday than shop-bought.

And to illustrate my thesis, here is a pie chart, simply because I love pie charts.

And to sum up, here's a little mosaic of the last 31 days.

Tomorrow: some quilting, perhaps!

Winding down

So Me-Made-March continues, and this weekend was a long one spent travelling, crafting and having more fun than should be legal.

March 25 and it's very early morning in the airport dunnies. I'm flying to Sydney this morning to attend Sew It Together, a big sewers/bloggers get together. But before I get to the first event (a fabric shopping trip! Wheeeeeeee!!!!), there is coffee with my bestie who lives in Sydney which is ironic given today is my 11th wedding anniversary and I am spending it not with the Mister, but with one of our witnesses. Anyway, I'm wearing a me-made skirt and a me-made crocheted cardigan.

March 26 and I'm looking decidedly crumpled as I've been sitting on my backside all day quilting at the Craft Session component of Sew It Together. I knew I should have had this photo taken earlier this morning. But thanks to Juddie for this one. The dress is me-made.

March 27 and we are all at the airport int he late afternoon for our flights home from the weekend of craft. We were having a last hurrah together with some superb decaf at the bookstore. Yum. Bronwyn took this photo - good one Bronwyn! I'm wearing a me-made Ink and Spindle skirt, along with a new me-made zipper brooch made last weekend at Brown Owls.

Only four days to go for Me-Made-March 2011! This challenge has flown. I have the day off tomorrow, so I'm hoping to be able to finish at least one item to wear for those last four days. I should be making project bags, but that can wait another day or two I'm sure! I also bought a little bit of fabric in Sydney to use for clothes. Just a little! Promise!

Saturday, Sunday, Workday

March 19 - Saturday - thank heavens. Me-made denim apples skirt. And I got a new pair of Salt Water sandals. Love them.



March 20 - Obviously in silly, relieved mood after being sick all day Saturday. The Mister cracked a joke as he was taking photos and I COULD NOT STOP LAUGHING. Me-made skirt.



March 21 - Monday, and we know what that means, don't we? GLEESDAY!!! Me-made blouse, me-made bad posture and me-made jazz hands (there is a photo out there which is a pair with this one. Go and look at it. It makes me laugh.)



March 22 - this is the day I found out why I have been so sick. That face is a mixture of fear and relief and "oh crap". Don't worry - I'll be well again in a few weeks. Me-made blouse, and I'm not too sure what I was thinking with those jeans. I have lost a fair bit of weight in my legs so I either need to take these in and call it a refashion, or start again with a new pair.



March 23 - I really, really love work but this week is dragging something awful. I'm waving to Bron in our early morning SMS photo exchange and to cheer me up a little. Me-made skirt.



March 24 - when does daylight savings end? This is getting ridiculous. But on the other hand today is the last day before a four day weekend. Go me! Me-made blouse.

My thoughts? I may have too many clothes, and they are all cotton and linen, so just as well I love to iron. Even though I am starting to repeat pieces I am still finding this challenge easy. But boy - it's fun, and I have more clothes on the sewing machine at the moment. Hopefully I'll be able to finish at least one piece before the challenge finishes in a week.

Working week

Thanks to Canberra Day on Monday, this week was a shortie when it came to work. Oh I do love a short working week!



March 15 was my first day back at work after being away for ten days. To say I was excited was an understatement. I am truly astonished that this photo doesn't better reflect that excitement. Top is me-made (same pattern as day 11 and 13) in a vintage-esque shirting with floral print.



March 16 - the top is the same as day 1, but I mixed it up with some black trousers that I didn't make. Not for variety mind you - it's because the usual bowtie skirt is in the mending basket waiting to be taken in.



Day 17 - This is my favourite me-made dress. Heck - it's my favourite outfit, full stop. I've been waiting for the right day to wear this, and today was the day. Yee ha!



March 18 - Finally a non-iPhone photo, and I got rid of that ridiculous brick wall. The thing with the iPhone is that it is easy to shove that into the Mister's hands first thing in the morning as we walk out the door past that red brick wall in the near-darkness. Much easier than handing him a DSLR is, anyway. Plus Kuka and I text each other our daily photos each morning (to keep each other honest, I think, but it's also a lot of fun!) and that's harder to do with a whopping great camera. But this morning's photos were positively grumpy, probably because I knew I had a horror morning of nuclear medicine and scans in front of me. By this afternoon I was mellow with the Friday vibe, and getting a decent photo in the front garden was possible.

Anyway where was I? Oh - my first me-made crochet items for the challenge, being the cardigan and the brooch.

Conclusions from the week - I seem to really, really love wearing red. And sandals. As a rule, closed in shoes don't get worn until after Anzac Day (that's my rule).

We have Brown Owls tomorrow and we are making brooches. That should keep me out of trouble as the weather cools and more cardigans and jackets come out of the cupboard.

A Me-Made Long Weekend

Since we last met, I've been lounging around the house on my sick leave planning outfits to wear each day for Me-Made-March. Ha! As if! In reality I've just been opening my cupboard each morning and pulling something out to wear that I've made. No really - I have. I'm not trying to boast, but at some stage in the last year, most of my clothes have become me-made. When did this happen? How did it happen?

And most importantly, can I keep this up through autumn and winter?

So let's catalogue the last four days, three of them which were a long weekend. Happy birthday Canberra! I think you're awesome!



March 11 - This is my "I can't believe you are making me drive you across town in peak hour traffic for a training course when I'm SICK. Can't you take a bus or something?" face. The black and cream madras top is me-made, using McCalls 5640.



March 12 - A lovely hot day, and we were off up the street to sticky beak at a house for sale. The weather was perfect for this dress! This is the dress I promised to blog back in January but never did. I will blog it properly one day. It's a beauty to make, and to wear, I love it. It's Simplicity 2929, the shorter version of the dress I made and blogged here.



March 13 - It's still lovely and hot, so I'm going all summery while it lasts. Plus I'm going fabric shopping with Carrie for our next sack/yarn club installment this morning, and I need to wear something comfortable if we're going to lug blots of fabric around the store. The top is me-made (the same as March 11), and it is the first version of it. This was the version than made me realise how ridiculously oversized this pattern is. It's far too big for me, but boy is it comfy. I now make it four sizes smaller (no really - I do) because, ooh, bra-strap alert!



March 14 - Oh hey! This is what I am wearing RIGHT NOW!! Coincidence? Oh wait ... Anyway, me-made top again, this time a buttoned back top courtesy of McCalls 2873 and some nice double gauze cotton. I'm doing a little skirt sewing today, so comfort is paramount.

Thanks for everyone for your kind thoughts and good wishes in the comments on my last post. I can report I am feeling a lot better and the pain has mostly gone. The tiredness is still there so going to work tomorrow will be a test, but I'm looking forward to spending some time with my crazy work peeps! It's been 10 days since I've seen them and I miss them!

Days 2 to 10

I know I've been quiet about Me-Made-March 11 lately, but I've had a good excuse. So let's summarise, shall we?



March 2 - I rode my bike into work and showered and changed there, hence the crappy iPhone-in-the-locker-room-mirror-shot. I'm wearing a me-made linen/cotton skirt and a me-made cotton top.



March 3 - Taken at the end of the day so I'm looking a lot scruffier than usual. I'm wearing a me-made skirt and possibly some tea spilled down my front.



March 4 - after a spectacular night of out-of-the-blue abdominal pain, I awoke very tired but in a lot less pain so decided to go to work. I was ready to kick the world's arse. Hard. I went for no-nonsense red and white stripes with a me-made skirt.

After two hours of kicking the world's arse, hard, at work, I admitted defeat and went home sick. Six hours later I was in the emergency department getting my own arse kicked by severe pain but enjoying the effects of morphine. 24 hours later I went home again, having slept in my black me-made skirt all night. It was actually quite comfy to sleep in, but that may have been the morphine talking.



March 5 - In this photo, taken a few hours after I escaped back home, I am wearing what is quite possibly the worst thing I have ever made - McCalls 5896. It doesn't fit well, it's baggy, the bodice sucks, it's in freakin' green gingham, for heaven's sake, but yet it is the most comfortable and coolest thing I own. I'm all about the comfort on March 5. Also, my belly hurts so much I can't wear trousers.



March 6 - oh, this is a special look, it really is. Me-made skirt, Myer-made top, and me-made dark circles under my eyes.



March 7 + 8 - Oh yes - I wore the same outfit two days in a row. I'm on sick leave. Shoot me. Me-made skirt. It's my favourite - an Ink and Spindle fabric that I don't think I've ever blogged before.



March 9 - by this time my bloating had gotten really bad so I feel and look 8 months pregnant, and the pain is worse and worse. I would have stayed in PJs all day except I had appointments. Do I look like I care what I'm wearing? No? Well I don't. This Me-Made-March thing can seriously GO. TO. HELL.



March 10 - isn't it amazing what a good night's sleep and a haircut can do? Also, the pain has reduced significantly, and I'm thanking that foul lime cordial tasting liquid I had to drink for my CT scan yesterday for that. It's coincidence, I know, but one can imagine. Anyway, I woke up this morning and it was raining. Lovely! So I decided to get all sunny. Me-made skirt, me-refashioned top. I had to put a jumper on an hour later because it was so bloody cold.

So there's where I'm up to with Me-Made-March 11. I still have at least another four days at home and my casual wardrobe is starting to look a little dull. Also the temperature is decreasing so it's time to maybe stop with the bare legs and get out some tights and leggings.

I was hoping by this stage in the challenge I would have finished sewing another couple of things, but alas I haven't been able to do much of anything, so I'm stuck with what I have in the wardrobe.

Luckily that should be enough, but I really do need to do some adjustments on a few more skirts.

Day 1

So the first day of Me-Made-March '11 has been and gone. I am lucky that I didn't have to go to any effort to find this outfit, as it's a regular in my work wardrobe. Taking a photo at 7 am on a dark cloudy morning wasn't the greatest idea though - and I've had to do some terrible Picniking to the photos as a result. (I haven't installed photoshop on my new computer yet - tragedy!)




This is an outfit I made a couple of months ago, but never blogged. The skirt is McCall's 2873, just like the Christmas Skirt, only I've lined it because the cotton fabric was quite see-through (it's from Tessuti's, in case you were wondering - and it's just fab). I also am really, really unhappy with this skirt in general. The lining, which was way shorter than the skirt when I made it, now peeks out under the hemline. The skirt seems to have shrunk even though it was prewashed, yet I have lost a little bit of weight so it now swims on me and I am forever adjusting it when I walk. I have decided to remove the facing, take it in (perhaps to pencil skirt proportions), raise the lining, and add a waistband.

The blouse, however, I am very proud of. It is a silk/cotton blend with a red thread woven into it which I bought from The Fabric Store on Brunswick St in Melbourne. I love how crushed looking it is, even after ironing. You can't see the front very well in the photo above, but it is an adaptation of the gathered-neck dresses I've made this summer. I've lengthened it, and added a button-up back variation. This is the part I love the best. Plus I got to use some of my vintage buttons.



My biggest task this week is to head into the sewing room and adjust a whole heap of skirts that are in danger of looking like potato sacks. Hopefully at least one will be done tonight. Otherwise tomorrow I'll be wearing a me-made crocheted scarf and duds that I've purchased.

Oh - you should go and check out Bron's blog too. She's doing the Me-Made-March '11 challenge with me (it was her idea to start with), plus she's a whole lot cuter.

Me-Made-March '11

I'm going to do something crazy.



'I, Michelle from Buttontree Lane, sign up as a participant of Me-Made-March '11. I endeavour to wear something I have made or refashioned each day for the duration of March 2011'

I'm joining in with So, Zo ... What do you know? to wear something I've made every day in March. It's a big call, but I think I might be OK. Most of what I wear to work, and on weekends, is me-made. If I get desperate, I can always wear a me-made brooch, but hopefully it won't get to that.

I have a few refashioning projects in mind which I am now motivated to get stuck into. I also have quite a few finished sewn projects that I haven't shared here. And I may not share them here, but I will be trying to post a photo each day over at Flickr.

So what about you? Are you keen to be Me-Made this March?