Turquoise Renfrew

I sewed up my second Renfrew shirt.  This time I used some turquoise jersey I had in my stash.

I didn't have enough to cut the front and back on the fold, like the instructions say, so I just cut them in two pieces each (plus a seam allowance) and sewed the pieces together.  This gave me seams down the front and back, but whatevs...Yay for stash busting!

To hide the seam down the front, I used some lace (also from my stash!) and sewed it right along the seam.

Quick, easy, painless!

Carpooling

Recently, my husband got a new job which is right around the corner from mine and with the same hours!  It only made financial and eco-friendly sense to carpool.  Of course, an added benefit of carpooling is more knitting time!!  I started the Motte Shawl on April 15th before I went to bed one night.

Since then, I've only been working on it while we carpool to and from work.

It's only been about a half a month since I started and I'm already this far.

 I feel like I've created a 25th hour in each day!!

Pink Amvets Sweater Refashion

I've done my first sweater to cardigan refashion!  I picked up this cute little number at my local Amvets thrift store for $6.

It's a cute 3/4 sleeve cotton lace sweater that hits me right above my hips.

I cut it down the middle front then hemmed it to create a "button band."  (Button band is in quotes since there are no actual buttons)

 I plan on attaching a hook and eye closure.  I was running late for a party so had to settle for a safety pin in these pictures!  I'm also toying with the idea of shortening the sleeves a bit to hit me right above my elbow.  What do you think?

Other than my lop sided safety pin placement, this sweater was easy peasy!  It's a perfect addition to my wardrobe just in time for Me Made May!

 Are you participating in Me Made May 2013?  If so, what is your challenge?

I'm Loving...Andi Satterlund Sweaters

Have you seen any of Andi Satterlund's sweater designs?  They are seriously too cute!

Marion

Chuck

Agatha

One of each....yes PLEASE!  I think my next project needs to be the Marion sweater!

Oh, one last thing... Andi Satterlund also has a super cool blog, Untangling Knots, but be careful, you could lose a few hours time perusing it!

A Beignet and a Renfrew

The title of this post sounds like the beginning of a really corny horrible joke...A beignet and a renfrew walk into a bar.  The beignet says to the renfrew... Hahah!

Anyways, I finally have pics of my grey wool Beignet skirt and my first Renfrew shirt.  The Beignet skirt is made from a thrifted wool skirt which I deconstructed and used for it's fabric, and the Renfrew is made using interlock knit.

Check it out, the skirt even has pockets!!!

I think I really need to work on my pocket construction.  When I sit down, they stick out so much that I think if I had anything in them it would spill out.

 Seriously, what is this pose??!

Other than the pockets, the skirt fits really well.  I'm really happy with how it turned out.  I still need to add the belt loops, however, I'm having issues with making them big enough.  I think I may end up just adding a thread belt loop and calling it a day.

As for the Renfrew, I would love to know what I was thinking when making this.  I measured myself to be a 12, traced my pattern for a size 14, then cut the actual fabric waaaay larger than a 16.  Hmmm. I then sewed the shirt up, tried it on, and surprise surprise...it was way too big.  In order to selvage it, I created a seam down the middle of the back and took it in about 2 inches.  I found that taking it in along the middle back not only eliminated the gaping in the neck but also narrowed the shoulders and got rid of the excess fabric in the mid section. 

After I made those changes, I'd say it turned out pretty good...if I do say so myself :)

Black Miette Skirt

Over the weekend I sewed up one of my very own Miette skirts!  Have you seen the pattern by Tilly and the Buttons?  It is seriously THE CUTEST!

Ugh, black is so hard to photograph...

I made my skirt out of some medium weight cotton blend (I think?) that I got from the clearance section at Joann's.  I had just enough fabric in my stash to squeeze this skirt out.

It's so hard to tell from these pictures, but the skirt is a wrap skirt with a bow tie front closure and pockets!!!! You can kinda see the tie and pockets in this crappy phone picture.

I loved the pattern, it was so easy to sew...especially with Tilly's step by step instructions.  I will definitely make another one of these, maybe a denim Miette next!

Me Made May 2013

It's here!  It's finally almost May, and that means....Me Made May (MMM)!!  Have you ever heard of it?  MMM is a challenge in which you challenge yourself to wear your handmade garments.  Whether you knit beautiful shawls, sew clothes, or make jewelry, you create a challenge for yourself in which you incorporate your handmades into your daily wardrobe.

I know for sure that I'm going to sign up for MMM '13, however, I'm not sure what I'm going to set my challenge for.  I reallllllllly would love to challenge myself to wear one me made item everyday, however, I'm not sure that is obtainable.  In order to do that, I would have to sew/knit one thing EVERY DAY until the end of April to get a decent sized wardrobe.  Realistically, that is totally not doable.  So far I have the following wearable things:

3 skirts
1 almost finished skirt
1 tshirt
1 knit shawl
1 almost finished sweater

Yesh, I hardly have anything!  I better scale down my challenge.

Is anyone else planning on participating in Me Made May 2013?  If so, what are you challenging yourself to?