Reflections on Me Made May 2019
So, this was my first year really diving in to Me Made May. I first learned about it last year, but at that point I hadn't been sewing for long and I didn't have very many me made garments to wear. I decided to observe rather than participate and I saw lots of Me Made May inspiration on Instagram. It inspired me to want to participate this year. I did not, however, post a photo a day like many do. May is just an insanely busy month for me as a school teacher, and I knew from jump that that just wasn't going to happen. I also did very little actual sewing in May and keeping it 100% real I never even made it over to Zoe's blog to officially sign up (oops!). But I love that she encourages everyone to set their own personal goals and not to worry about what everyone else is doing. So, my personal Me Made May goal was to wear something me made every day of the month. It didn't have to be the whole outfit, but a top or a bottom. I'm happy to report that I only missed one day! There was a Saturday or Sunday somewhere in there where I was so totally spent that I stayed in my ready-to-wear PJs for the entire day. But 30 out of 31 days isn't bad!
So, will I do Me Made May again next year? I think so. What I liked about it was that it really helped me identify gaps in my me made wardrobe, and since it is a goal of mine for the majority of my wardrobe to be garments I've made, I was able to identify what I need to make more of. There were also a few me made items that I didn't wear all month, which tells me that certain items don't get a lot of wear simply because they don't fit my lifestyle or are only for special occasions.
So, what do I need more of? Pants, pants and more pants! I currently only have two pairs of me made pants. I used to have some leggings, but I think I gave them away, so the only two pairs I still have are Simplicity 8516 which I made in black cotton sateen, and Simplicity 8222 which I made in a navy stretch denim. These pants got a LOT of wear in May. I think I'm about ready to make another pair of the S8222 pattern. I prefer the fit of that one over S8516, and I would say I wear them at least twice a week. I'd like to have a pair in black stretch denim or even in a lighter wash. With it being summer, you might think I'd opt for shorts, but I really just don't enjoy wearing shorts. They tend to ride up on me, which isn't a good look and is so annoyingly uncomfortable. So as far as bottoms go, I'm in need of pants and a skirt or two.
What about tops? Well, thankfully I have quite a few me made tops, but because the fit isn't perfect on some of them, I kept gravitating toward the same 3 or 4 tops that fit the best. My current favorite tops to wear are the Deer and Doe Plantain Tee (which I've made twice and plan to make again) and a shortened version of Simplicity 8334 (which I've made 3 times, once as a dress and twice as tops). I also love Simplicity 8513, which is a bodysuit pattern, but I hacked it into a top. I love it because it has a center back seam and I have a pretty pronounced sway back. I've made it twice, but the long sleeved version was way too hot to wear in May. The sleeveless version (pictured as the featured image on this blog post) is a great summer tee, and it gave me an awesome canvas to try iron-on vinyl with my Cricut Maker.
I will say that even though it's summer, I wish I had more me made layering pieces. I tend to freeze in restaurants and movie theaters if I don't at least bring a cardigan, and I don't currently own any that I've made. I'll need to get on that lol.
So, to wrap this up relatively quickly, I'm glad I participated because it helped me to narrow down my sewing plans for my me made wardrobe. I'm hoping by next May to not only have more me made items, but to have better fitting items that fit my lifestyle and get a lot of wear.