This was my first year really participating in Me Made May, and it was mostly a success! So of course I had to do a wrap up featuring all of my Me Made May 2020 outfits.
Me Made May what?
“Me Made May” is a challenge of sorts. The origins of the challenge are to help makers connect with their handmade wardrobe. Individual makers add their own spin to it–some create their own rules around what they’re going to wear or how they’re approaching the challenge. There are some criticisms of the challenge, and I’ve been resistant to it in the past. In part, that stemmed from the fact that I didn’t sew and it was too hot to wear.
I’ve been sewing a lot this year, and since I built out my wardrobe with more items I made myself, so I wanted to see what I could do for 31 days. My rules were simple. I had to wear at least one item that I had made every day for the month of May. Made with yarn or with fabric, it didn’t matter. And it was a pretty solid success!
The Outfits
I will try to name all of the patterns shown in these photos, but I won’t be able to tell you much about the yarn or fabric. I don’t want this to turn into a book!
First up, there’s the Deanna Dress (sewn); my Water Clover top over my Cross My Heart cami and Diane Joggers; then my cardigan over my Zadie Jumpsuit.
Top row, from left: LB Pullover; grey Deanna Dress, grey Paige Piko (I didn’t really want to get out of bed that day).
Center row, from left: Weatherman Sweater, grey Paige Piko, Weir Sweater
Bottom row, from left: Larch Cardigan, grey Deanna Dress, chambray Mojave
Top row, from left: black floral Mama Lily dress; grey leopard Sporty Piko, Captain Marvel sweater
Center row, from left: Sislana Sweater, yellow cats Sporty Piko and Diane Joggers, pink floral Mama Lily dress
Bottom row: Bayberry vest; Hexigranny cardigan over blue floral Mesa dress; Perdita sweater
Top row, from left: Easy Tee in dress length (which I also wore for the last day of May but didn’t photograph); Marsh tee over black floral Mama Lily dress; blue cities Mojave dress
Center row, from left: yellow cats Sporty Piko and Peg Leg shorts; black Wilder Gown; Mado sweater over Zadie Jumpsuit
Bottom row, from left: Cross My Heart cami, blue cities Mojave, and a duplicate of the black floral Mama Lily photo
My Thoughts on the Month
If I hadn’t been working from home due to the pandemic, I’m not sure I would have made it all the way through the month. But since I didn’t have to dress “business casual” while sitting in my living room, that helped. I have sewn mostly casual clothes thus far, and sewing more workplace-y items is on my to-do list. That said, there’s some question as to whether my workplace will be returning to in-person work, so my need for appropriate clothing is perhaps diminished.
But it was really nice to be able to see all of the things I’ve made and really identify gaps. I want to sew more pants–I only have the one pair right now. And I start to think a general color palette is emerging, though it’s still all over the place.
I don’t know that I’ll participate again, however. Or if I do, perhaps it will only be on the sidelines–taking a photo every day and posting to Instagram took more energy than I thought. And ideally, I’ll get to a point with my wardrobe where it will be predominantly hand made. But that’s likely a ways off, still.
Have you participated in Me Made May? What are your thoughts?
