Me-Made-May 2021 Recap

The paisley skirt.

May went really fast.  So fast I rather uncharacteristically didn't even get a chance to obsess about my birthday this year.  All of the sudden it was May (and I'd missed making my MMM21 pledge on time).  Then before I knew it, mein Geburtstag was here.  And then wham-o!  It was the end of the month!  I think I did well on my Me-Made-May aspirations though.  I certainly averaged more time at my sewing table than I have been of late.  That's positive and I enjoyed it very much.  

The bike bag.

I readily accomplished my four mending projects.  This just goes to show that I really shouldn't put these tasks off.  I mean, I quite enjoy mending.  Plus, they're usually pretty quick projects to knock-out, delivering a speedy burst of accomplishment and pride.

The Ginger fanny pack.

Mending:

• I reattached a button from one of my Tiffany Miller shirts.  It was the eye-catching lone red button, too.  (The rest of the buttons are white.)  That took all of three minutes and I don't know why I even put it in the mending basket to languish for months.  In hindsight, I should have just taken three minutes and fixed it straight away.  I can be so lazy sometimes...
• I reattached the ruffled sleeves on a striped, stretchy t-shirt dress.  My friend Kelly sends me her hand-me-downs and is the single source of my love for the ubercomfort of wearing these stretchy knits.  This one is a "fancy" t-shirt dress in that the sleeves are gathered into a ruffle.  Over the years, the ruffle had come loose in several places.  That one took maybe ten minutes to fix, about five minutes per sleeve.  ;)
• I put more than half a dozen patches on a pillow case that seems to have been eaten by the washing machine agitator.  The poor thing was peppered with tiny rips.  I have plenty of pillowcases so I would have just scrapped it save for the sentimental factor.  My mom made it to match the quilt she made me for my high school graduation.  Both quilt and pillow cases are a beautiful, earthy batik that I love.  So, I patched it and put it on the bottom of the stack in the linen closet.  It could still be used, but I am putting it on light duty from here on out.  That took the longest out of my mending projects because just when I'd think I was done I'd find another little tear.
• I patched some holes in a paisley skirt that had been in my mending basket for so long that I'd pretty much forgotten it even existed.  It is a real groovy skirt though so I am glad to have rediscovered it.  Both of the inseam pockets had blown out.  One pocket was so trashed I just sewed it closed.  The other pocket just had a hole in need of a little patching.  This task probably took all of seven minutes.

The inside of the clutch for Kelly.

A few days shy of my mid-May birthday--when I had started several projects, yet not completed a single one--I considered that perhaps I'd bitten off more than I could chew with this make-four-new-things declaration.  I was half way through the allotted time and had nothing finished to show for it.  But, it all came together in the end.

One of the blackout/insulated window shields for the JamJar.

Sewing:

• I sewed Kelly a little bag for her birthday, which happens to be the day before mine.  I have a little clutch that I use all the time.  It is perfect for my wallet, keys, and sunglasses.  With that in mind as a pattern I went to my stash to find just the right fabric to use.  I came across a luxurious piece of cloth Kelly had gifted me after her honeymoon in Thailand.  It might be silk.  I'm not sure.  Regardless, it was perfect!  I used my serger to finish the inside seems and since the "wrong" side of the fabric was almost as beautiful as the "right" side the little bag has a beautiful lining, too.
• I made a little triangular bag for Matt's bike.  He used to have one and it got stolen at some point last year.  They might have gotten some allen wrenches out of if, but mostly Matt uses it to hold his keys secure when he rides so it might have been empty.  While we certainly could have bought a replacement it also seemed like the sort of thing I could make myself.  I used a trashed pair of Carhart pants for the fabric.  As is often the case with my self-drafted pattern, it turned out okay, but could be better.  I'm not happy with the zipper.  I see a 2.0 version in my future.  
• I finally completed my Ginger-inspired fanny pack.  This cute little bag is modeled it off of the cat patterns in The Cat Lover's Craft Book, which I got from my mama, combined with a Dream Spinners fanny pack pattern...that I also got from my mama.  It had been 97% finished for pushing two years.  For reasons I cannot explain, I never got around to finishing the strap and buckle.  Since the vast majority of the bag was made well in advance of MMM21 counting it towards my four projects feels a little bit like cheating, so...
• ...to make it feel a little more robust I'll add that we completed the last insulated blackout window covers for the JamJar, too.  Technically this is a no-sew project so I wasn't sure about counting it toward my four MMM21 projects either.  Matt was excited, as always, to have a project that allows him to use my super sharp sewing scissors.  I plan to detail the construction of these in a separate post about our progress rigging out the JamJar.
• I think these two half-projects count as one whole project.  It might be a stretch, but I'm the boss and I'm going with it.  ;)
• I made a purse using a pattern and fabric I picked up while visiting my mom at Easter.  My mom clearly does a good job keeping me supplied with patterns and fabric, doesn't she?!?  After dresses, bags are probably my favorite thing to make.  The pattern is a Simplicity 2335. The fabric was, once upon a time, a fitted bed sheet.  I could tell because of how the elastic had been cut off at the corners.  I fussycut around the various cosmic bodies to maximize their visibility on the finished product.  This is my favorite creation for the month.

The outside of the clutch for Kelly.

I didn't complete a single garment as part of this initiative.  This is not standard for me since I love making dresses, but I'm fine with it, too.  Heaven knows I don't need any more dresses (or bags, for that matter.)  I did cut out a black jersey knit dress this month using a pattern I've made once before--the Cynthia Rowley 1801.  I was making good progress until I managed to simultaneously break both needles on my serger during the last week of May, necessitating a delay until I could run to to Jo-Ann's for replacements.  I thought it was possible that I'd finish the dress, but that delay put me behind schedule for a MMM completion.  That and the fact we were out of town the last three days of the month, cutting short my work time.

The space purse.

Huzzah and hooray for a good month down in my sewing studio.  I truly appreciate how Me Made May pushes me to try harder, to get inspired, and to have such crafty fun.

My sewing su-purr-visor, Johnny Depp, overseeing my selection of dress patterns.