Nesting Dolls of Science

What Went Right: I wore handmade clothing 26/31 days in May!  I wore the first dress and first button down I ever made.  I didn't repeat too many outfits, which is big for me in general.  I think this month of focusing on what I was wearing and what it looked like helped me define my style in a far more sophisticated way.  I don't think I would have ever called anything about myself sophisticated, but there you have it.  I think it inspired me to push for more fashion risks, which is another sentence I thought I would never say. I made more clothing this month than throughout the rest of this year.  It took me MONTHS to make a dress, and within May I made a skirt, a top, redid a sweater and a t-shirt and finished a knit sweater vest.  Now, when I look at this, it does not look prolific, but when you think about how much work I was doing at school and how busy spring weekends can be, I'm pretty happy with it.  And I'm hoping that inspiration will...

Monday:  (No IG post) Raglan T Tuesday:(No IG post) Jane T-shirt Wednesday: (No IG post) Rae Skirt in rust colored poppies Reflections: This was just a piece of the month, but it was also the final week of school, so documentation did not happen.  I think the big thing I decided was how much more important just wearing the clothes that I made was to me than to post photos.  Any teacher can tell you this is a tough week.  You're just trying to make it to the end.  But now it's over, which means more sewing!  Look for those posts as they come through.  Also, this will be short because I've made a full project reflection that I'll post during the week.  Let me just tell you what to look forward to: -Posts about sewing projects -A hair style post.  No, really, this will happen. -More We Make Stuff posts -Yard updates So, keep posted.  I'm thinking I'll stay with the Sunday post date, but it may be more frequent as it is summer. ...

Sunday:  (No IG post) Hayden top from Seamwork, see previous posts Monday:  Upcycled Old Navy top Tuesday: Jane Seamwork Top Wednesday: Colette Violet top under Sewaholic Fraser sweatshirt Thursday: Nope Friday: Nope Saturday: Nope Sunday: (No IG post) Hayden top Reflection: This week, I did what I previously thought was impossible: I think I figured out my style.  I'm casual.  The best fit for my style seem to be Seamwork patterns.  I love the magazine, and the basics provided are a stylish basis to grow an outfit via fun fabric choices.  The Hayden top is becoming my go-to dress it up or dress it down look.  There will be more, and I have a Sorbetto top cut out with a big plan for it.  (To come later in its own post). I completely agree with So, Zo on the toughest part of the project:  posting.  I feel like a terrible Millienial because I didn't like posting a photo of myself on Instagram.  I began to really fa...

Sunday:  Agnes Top from Tilly and the Buttons Casual Sunday #agnestop #tillyandthebuttons #mmmay17 #memademay2017 #iactuallywentawholeweek A post shared by The Shreve (and Carvalho) (@nestingdollsofscience) on May 7, 2017 at 12:43pm PDT Monday: Rae Skirt in polyester #Raeskirt what you don't see is the paper clips holding the skirt up since the elastic broke #mmmay17 #memademay2017 #sulerstar A post shared by The Shreve (and Carvalho) (@nestingdollsofscience) on May 8, 2017 at 4:39pm PDT So I have learned a lot by making mistakes and cutting corners.  The corner I cut?  I didn't sew the elastic together strongly enough.  Now, why this is often not an issue, at a certain point, it'll come apart if put under enough stress on the seam.  Or any stress.  Or just over time.  So...the elastic came apart first thing Monday morning.  Didn't have enough time to fix or a sewing kit.  What did I do?  Paper clip my skirt...

Here's the good news for Me Made May: It's flippin' hot here.  High 80's (F) all the way.  Also, I am a teacher, which means while shorts would feel so good, I don't feel like that is appropriate to wear in the classroom.  Even a skirt above my knees feels a bit much for me.  And it is hard to find a skirt below my knees because I am rather tall for a woman.  Another challenge is, as a science teacher, most of my day is spent running around and climbing on counters.  That means I need something to let me stay cool and look professional and be able to climb on counters.   Skirts for the temperature and bike shorts for the climbing, so it all works out. Sunday will be on the next post.  I'm still in (homemade) pjs. Monday:  Peplum Shirt from See Kate Sew #memademay17 Zuko doesn't care that my shirt is homemade. #seekatesew #girlcharlee A post shared by The Shreve (and Carvalho) (@nestingdollsofscience) on May 1, 2017 at 4:51pm P...

(I meant to post this yesterday, hence the title and past tense.  Whoops.) So tomorrow begins Me Made May and I'm becoming more excited.  The prep turned less into "MAKE ALL THE THINGS" to "organize my stuff so I can actually see what I have."  Which I was surprised to find was a lot more than I expected.  Which made me really proud of myself and those who have made stuff for me (mostly my mom.) I also spent that time really trying to define my style so I could make outfits I actually want to post on the internet.  I have just started reading a book on capsule wardrobes, and I really think I need to do some major gutting of my fast fashion pieces that were nice in the moment and just ended up degrading quickly or being tossed aside as quickly as they were purchased. While initially in this process I started a thrift store binge, recently I began looking at my own closet and seeing what I already had and could alter.  I also took a moment and looked thro...