Me-Made-May Day 9

Me-Made-May

Day 9

I am quickly becoming sick of my me-made clothing. Everything is either a skirt or far too fancy. There will be many pieces that I will have made the night before because I changed my mind about what I want to do with the day and therefore need to change my outfit. I promise to do an update soon about everything I have made thus far this month but until then just keep on guessing!

Basics:

   Top - sunflower polka dot crop top made by me

   Bottoms - grey yoga pants from Old Navy

   Shoes - Yellow wingtips from Modcloth

   Accessories - bird hair scarf

Today's outfit score

I was so comfortable and confident in this outfit. I personally love crop tops and it wasn't until recently that I got the self-confidence to wear them as I used to think I was too big to wear them.

Me-Made-May Day 8

Me-Made-May

Day 8

Finals week has been killing me so I had to take it easy today because I knew I would be spending all day in either the library or taking my exam for 3 hours.

Basics:
   Top - sunflower polka dot tank made by me
   Bottoms - black and white squares wide pants from Modcloth
   Shoes - black and white saddle shoes from Modcloth
   Accessories - N/A



Before I say anything else I just have to say I apologize for the insane amount of patterns here because it is literally everything I am wearing. I actually love this particular combination but I can understand if anyone finds it overwhelming.

Today's outfit score

I knocked off a point only due to my own shotty workmanship on this tank as it was done very quickly. However, I would will this tank because it is comfortable and cute and I am the only one who will notice its imperfections.

Me-Made-May Day 7

Me-Made-May

Day 7

Today was so beautiful I wanted to have some fun and embrace the full spring look. What is the most spring color? Green of course!

Basics:
   Dress - green cotton leaf patterned dress with lace trim made by me.
   Shoes - yellow wingtips from Modcloth
   Accessories - green leaf patterned hair scarf



I made this dress from cotton and lace I got in Ireland when I was there over spring break. It is busty than most dresses I wear but it is so comfortable that I don't mind it at all.

Today's outfit score

I only knocked off a point for the dress because it is so busty on me which makes its re-wearability less than perfect.

I realize that none of my pictures actually show the shoes that I was wearing, but I mean these shots by the pond are just so cute I couldn't resist.

I love this outfit and will no doubt wear it many more times. It doesn't hurt that I realized that I can fit a decent sized bag of gummy bears in the front pockets of my dress.

Me-Made-May Day 6

Me-Made-May

Day 6

Today I wanted to try a more casual look with a rather adventurous print. I was running around doing stuff most of the day so I wanted it to be comfortable and casual, but also give a little bit of my usual flair.

 Basics:
   Top - Me-made abstract watercolor lilies and bamboo top
   Bottoms - high-rise jeans from Old Navy
   Shoes - brown sandals from Macy's
   Accessories - N/A



I made this top on a whim just a few days ago. Late one night I got inspiration for this fabric because of its abstract nature to just make a very large basic top and then use fun pleats and darts to make the shape something more suitable.

Today's outfit score

The only reason I took a point off is that in the pictures this shirt is slightly shorter than I envisioned, but it could also be my funky posing. Wearing it it felt the perfect length. As is I would probably only add a half inch or so so it's not a huge deal.

I'm very happy that I decided to make this top, even if it is a little funky and uneven. I think that the pattern hides my mistakes well and doesn't translate as garish as I originally thought it was going to.

After we had already taken these pictures I tried this top on with some new high-waisted army green pants that had just arrived and I felt that these pants were just a better style for the top. I actually hate the way jeans fit on me anyways and it is possible that these particular jeans are a little tight on me, but the next size up was way too big. If anyone has some good pants patterns please send them my way!

Me-Made-May Day 5

Me-Made-May

Day 5

I know this post is a couple days late but I have not been feeling it lately. I have been wearing me-made clothing but life has been crazy with finals week and preparing to move for the summer. I went for a truly lazy Sunday look as I only left my room for meals. I actually struggled immensely picking something to wear today as I have come to the realization that the majority of my me-made clothes are on the fancy end of the spectrum.

Basics:
   Top - me-made green floral crop top with bows on top of the straps
   Bottoms - black yoga pants from old navy
   Shoes - black sneakers from Amazon
   Accessories - N/A

minimal effort outfit = minimal effort pictures

Today's outfit score

I actually made this crop top as part of a matching set with a mini skirt. Together they work really well but I've never worn them as actual separates and I am wholly disappointed. It shouldn't surprise me that much as I was working with minimal fabric so I knew going in that they would be a little shorter than I normally like. Oh, I also made the outfit overnight so it is not my best pattern work.

Despite all of this it actually was pretty comfortable and I would like to wear it again once I adjust the straps a bit. For a lazy Sunday, it worked pretty well and this experience has definitely inspired me to make more casual tops and bottoms.

Me-Made-May Day 4

Me-Made-May

Day 4

Today my friends and I had a plan to go into Providence so that they could get some small tattoos that they had been planning for a while now. So, of course, I had to go all-out for today's outfit! I decided to wear my cream 1955 traveling dress from McCall's Archive Collection. I have only actually worn this outfit twice, mostly because it has been cold and also because I only made it a few months ago.

I actually almost forgot to take pictures today because the whole outing was so exhausting and I accidentally fell asleep in the dress (shows you how comfortable it is) only to wake up and beg my friend to take pictures before it got dark. Obviously, it got quite wrinkled from me sleeping in it and I promise it is normally not this wrinkly but that's cotton for you!

McCall's M7625 that I used

Basics:
   Dress - cotton 1950's cream bird traveling dress made by me.
   shoes - purple second-hand 2" heels
   accessories - white cat-eye sunglasses, ivory leather gloves

I'm usually not one to wear a lot of light colors due to my proclivity towards eating messy food and staining my clothing but I fell in love with this sunset bird fabric that I used for the accent. When I couldn't find basic cotton that matched the colors of the sunset I decided to just go for it with this cream color which matches the birds.

Side note: I have no clue what kind of birds these are but if someone figures it out let me know! They luck vaguely duck-like at first glance but I think they are some sort of shorebird.

For scoring, there is a bit of an adjustment because I have one main article of clothing rather than two. In this case, I am going to score this dress out of 10 instead of 5.

Today's Outfit Score

I actually felt the best in this outfit compared to the other outfits thus far, however, comfort isn't the only scoring piece here.

I had to knock off a point on the dress because of how unlikely I actually am to wear it. As adorable as it is it is not an everyday look for me unless I find some way to dress it down.

For the heels, I'll be honest it was just because my feet hurt quicker than I would have liked. This is really not the shoes' fault but more than I have gotten out of practice wearing heels.

For accessories, my issue was the sunglasses. As cute as they were online there are much smaller than I wanted and I feel like they make my face look much bigger than I would like.

I included the above photo (even though it is blurry) so you can see a little better the fun accent fabric of the back.

I am so glad I decided to wear this dress as part of this challenge and I feel like I have to find more excuses to wear this dress this summer.

Me-Made-May Day 3

Me-Made-May

Day 3

Today was a lazy day and I wanted to try a combo that I have never tried before. If you aren't aware, yellow is making a huge style come back which I am super happy about this because I have always loved wearing yellow and actually used to wear quite a bit when I was a child. As you will see these yellow pants are pretty spectacular and I wanted to try and make a casual outfit with them because I usually dress them up because of their style.

 Basics:

    Top - blue cotton top with daisies made by me
    Bottoms - Yellow trousers from Charlotte Russe
    Shoes - brown sandals from Macy's
    Accessories - black daisy hair scarf and strawberry-mango smoothie


I don't wear this shirt often, but after I removed the elastic from the bottom of the sleeves I like it much more. It is a little shorter than I would like but I did make it several years ago when I was smaller so it is understandable.

In the picture below I wanted to show another way I like to wear this shirt is off-the-shoulder which is why I made the top elastic.

This outfit's score

I did not start today intending to score this shirt so highly, especially in the context of this outfit as I really took a risk color-wise. I really think that removing the elastic on the base if the sleeves was the turning point for this outfit. The only thing that made me knock off a point is the length of the shirt because it highly limits the way I can wear it in an outfit. If I manage to find some more of this fabric I may either remake this shirt longer or add a ruffle so that I can wear it more often.

I was unsure how much I would like this me-made-may, and it is still a little early to tell for sure but so far so good! Now I really need to get to work making clothes.... 

Me-Made-May Day 2

Me-Made-May

Day 2

Today was my last day of classes this semester and I wanted to have fun with my outfit! I originally had other plans but eventually decided on the following outfit.

 Basics:
   Top - white ruffle blouse from H 'n M
   Bottoms - cotton book skirt with ruffle made by me
   Shoes - Brown heeled booties from Nordstrom's
   Accessories - cotton book hair scarf made by me



I wanted to wear this outfit as it is one of my last true studious days of the semester (besides studying for finals next week of course).

Today's outfit score

This outfit is another favorite of mine. While I have not worn this particular top with this skirt, because the top is new, but I love the aesthetic of the white contrasting the business of the skirt. The only reason I marked down the brown booties is that I was unable to wear them for as long as I wanted due to the fact that I have not worn heels in a while.

I am hoping that soon I will be able to show you my plans for actively making clothing this month with all of my excess fabric.

Me-Made-May Day 1

Me-Made-May 2019

Day 1

If you haven't heard of Me-Made-May head on over to Sozo's blog here to read up on all the details!

My Pledge:

I Lillie Shepherd, sign up as a participant of me-made-May 2019. I endeavor to reflect on any gaps in my wardrobe, at least 15 outfits with an element made by me, make at least 3 outfits from the fabric in my stash, and make plans for the rest of my stash!

Now May is a bit of a crazy month for me. As you may or may not know I am a college student in Massachusetts which means I am in peak finals season. On top of the craziness of classes later this month I will be moving to Brighton for the summer. I am very excited but that means I really need to focus to make this month successful.

Now on to the fun part!

For day 1 of me-made-may, I wanted to start with something simple as I actually chose two outfits for today! I have a work banquet tonight so I need to dress semi-professionally, but I wanted something more casual and colorful for this beautiful spring day!

Outfit 1:

Basics:
    Top- basic yellow T-shirt from Old Navy
    Bottoms- black denim jumper from H 'n M with hand-embroidered lavender by me.
    Jacket- Purple and black plaid jacket from Target
    Accessories- Black tights, brown combat boots, black and white daisy hair scarf made by me

Score:
I have created a scoring system for each outfit as follows:
Each category is scored on a scale of 1-5

• 1pt - wear for the whole set time
• 2pt - comfortable/minor fidgeting
• 2pt - re-wearability

Categories:

• Top
• Bottoms
• Dress (instead of top+bottoms)
• Shoes
• Accessories

All pictures are taken on my college campus by my friend Becca with her iPhone XR

This outfit is actually one I wear quite often when the weather is nice enough. The only pieces I actually made in the outfit are the lavender embroidery on the jumper and the daisy hair scarf.

My scoring of this outfit

The only reason that the yellow T did not get a perfect score is that I do not wear T-shirts often except in outfits such as this and it is also cheap so it bunches up under the jumper often.

Outfit 2:

 As I mentioned I had a work banquet to attend tonight so I wanted to continue on my purple trend and wear this fun outfit.

Basics:
   top - black and purple plaid jacket from H 'n M
   dress - purple and cream "ribbon" dress with a full skirt with a built-in petticoat and pockets!
   accessories - black tights, light brown leather booties from Nordstrom's

My score for the second outfit of day 1

I love this outfit and once it is a little warmer I fully intend on wearing this dress more often. In fact, if you go to my photoshoot page (coming soon) you will see the full photoshoot I did in this dress back in March 2019 in Kinsale Ireland.



                                                                                                 
That concludes Me-Made-May day 1! I am so excited to show you everything else I have in store for this month including actually making some new outfits and taking you all through the whole process.