May 7

Another sick day, I'm afraid.  Lucy's handspun sweater kept her toasty in the early morning.  I'm grateful she got to wear it one last time, especially when she wasn't feeling well.  When she shed it, I made a mental note to wash it and put it away for Sebastian to grow into.

He's got yet another white bib to show you today.  What an exciting life we lead....Thanks to pinterest, I now want to make him some plaid shorts and a few bucket hats for this summer.

I wore my black spiral skirt again today, but by the time I'd thought to take pictures, I was already in pajamas, bicycles this time.  Infinitely more interesting than a certain person's bibs, I daresay.

Yarn Along: Actual Yarn

After finishing up my L'Arbre hat last week, I put my knitting aside and got out my spinning wheel.

 It's been far too long since I sat down for a spin.

At first it was rough going, but everything started to come back.

 Once plied, the inconsistencies were not as obvious.

 This pound of wool/mohair blend is from Rhinebeck a couple of years ago.

 I'm already trying to dream up what it should become.

 As for Me Made May, we are having a cozy day here.  Lucy came down with something, so she's snuggled in the quilt I made her before she was born.  We are reading all of our favorites.

 I'm wearing my favorite pajama pants, which make the rough night we had more bearable.

 And Sebastian is rocking his pants from yesterday like a champ.  If we can manage to wear handmade under these circumstances, we've got this challenge in the bag.

***edited to add: we eventually got dressed in repeats, and suddenly we all felt better.***

May 5

Here I am 3 years ago with a baby Lucy, stitching away on the skirt I decided to wear today.

Since then, I've added some stenciling (June's Spring) in black to the bottom.  I finished it up just last week, after it sat for months untouched with only one or two more panels left to paint.  After heat curing the paint, I threw it in the wash without thinking.  Only after it was already too late did I remember that the books advise waiting at least 2 weeks after painting before washing.  As a result, the more recent panels have faded badly.  I plan to add appliqué and beading to give it dimension and blend in the inconsistency.

 It was definitely a challenge to stencil on an existing garment.  In future, I think I'll stick to doing that before a garment is assembled or not at all.  Since I can only use the airbrush tool outdoors, I'd like to think a few projects ahead and get some stenciling done this summer.

 Lucy's wearing another patch job and Sebastian's sporting upcycled leggings again.

I'd love to come up with a slightly more grownup version of this flower appliqué for something of mine.  One of my white shirts recently succumbed to a stubborn ketchup stain.  I'm mulling over just how to save it....

May 4

Yet another Alabama skirt--this time a mid-length version from the third book.  This skirt represents a turning point for me.  I finally took the plunge and bought one yard of this organic cotton jersey on a trip to A Verb for Keeping Warm.  Since it seemed so expensive to me, I was determined to eek out as much as I could from it.  As a result, the length is a bit awkward and could stand to lose a couple of inches.  I also made the mistake of attempting to economize on the elastic ribbon and lining.  I found cheap elastic at Hobby Lobby, meant for making cloth diapers.  It has not aged gracefully.  I've often thought about getting a length of better quality grosgrain elastic ribbon and redoing it.  If I ever do, I would also scrap the $2/yard polyester jersey I used to line it.  Since making this skirt, I have realized that the initial expense for better materials is more than worth it, since they can stand the test of time and truly do justice to the amount of work involved with hand stitching.

Lucy still wears her ratty tiny tea leaves sweater, which I knit over two years ago.  The proportions have always been out of whack, but she keeps reaching for it.  I have learned a lot about making a successful, long-lasting top-down sweater since then.  Another simple bib kept Sebastian in the running today.  Any ideas for other items I can whip up for my boy?

May 3

When I started this challenge, I thought dressing the kids in handmade items would only happen every once in while, since I've only made a handful of garments for them.  Now that I've started looking, I've discovered so many little projects I've thrown together over the years.  These little bits and pieces are so integrated into our life that I've nearly forgotten they are handmade.  

Sebastian's bib is a great example.  I've been making a point of putting one on him every day, so I hope you don't get sick of seeing them.

In addition to her worn-to-death hand knit cardigan, Lucy is also wearing a bow I put together out of scraps of wool.  She has dozens of these, which I made when she had very little hair.  We are just now beginning to make use of her collection.

This lavender dress is a modification of the one from Alabama Studio Style--longer, with a higher neckline, and sleeves I borrowed from a store-bought pattern.  In future I can use the variety of sleeves found in the Alabama Studio Sewing + Design book.  I've also loved seeing Anna's solution of making plain sleeveless dresses with heavily embellished matching boleros that elevate them if the need arises.

The slip beneath is the skimpiest version of the tank dress, with a low neck and back and the original length.  This is my solution to the double layer conundrum I mentioned yesterday.  Making separate pieces feels much more economical, for some reason.  I would love to make a few lightweight slips out of her deliciously pale neutrals if I'm feeling practical--or more punchy colors just for fun.

Future versions of this dress are definitely on the horizon for me.  They are my absolute favorite thing to wear--when nursing isn't a frequent occurrence.  They even fit well throughout my pregnancies.  I have a black one in progress that I hope to finish up before beginning anything else.

May 2

I made this maxi skirt shortly after Lucy was born.  The Alabama Chanin patterns can be made either with one layer of cotton jersey or two.  It seemed wasteful to use up so much fabric on just one skirt, so I whipped up a grey one and a black one, and wore them constantly.  Since then, I've realized how clingy just one layer of jersey can be, and I've grown to appreciate the substantial feel of two-layered garments.  These skirts languished--until last night at my handwork group.  I removed the grosgrain ribbon elastic from both waistbands, basted the two skirts together at the waist, and stitched a single piece of the ribbon elastic over both tops, essentially making this a fully reversible skirt.  Expect to see the black side one of these days....

Today Lucy is sporting a hand-me-down dress she and her cousin wore to death, until a few holes appeared in the jersey.  I cut out a generous circle from a thrifted shirt, chosen expressly for this hard-to-define pink that looks so great on my girl.  A little freehand embroidery later, we have a dress that has been improved by the hard love it has had to endure.

  I made matching leggings from the sleeves of a thrifted thermal tee.  This tutorial also led to Sebastian's pants, which used to be his Auntie Anna's sweater.  I have a feeling I'll be whipping up dozens of these over the years.

 Sebastian is also wearing a bib in adorable Very Hungry Caterpillar flannel I found at our local quilt shop.  It has held up better than any flannel I have ever used, which usually looks like someone chewed on it after the first wash.  I plan to obtain more when I have a clear plan for what it should become.

May 1

Today I kicked off Me-Made-May with my trusty Alabama Chanin swing skirt, made from my dad's old t-shirts, which I jazzed up with circle spiral appliqué and bugle beads.  It's a workhorse, which I wear at least once a week.  If I make another one, I might lengthen it a tad and try to finagle a way to bring the waistband up a bit higher.

 Lucy rocked a dress I finished a long time ago, which only just now has started to fit.  I spun the yarn, knitted it into a bodice, and sewed on the corduroy skirt.  It sure is wonky, but she loves wearing it.

 Sebastian needed this cozy sweater in the chilly overcast morning, though I tugged it off when the sun came out.

Even Peter got in on the action and wore his new vest.  He wears it every day, so it looks like we're going to be in good shape this month.