Day 30 - Cropped Tan Wool Pants! And the FINAL COUNTDOWN!

What I made:

Simplicity 3686 pants pattern (now out of print), also used to make those really wide-legged pants from Day 3!

Wool fabric from the bargain table at Paron's on 40th

When I made it:

November 2009. 

What I like about it:

Say it with me now:  POCKETS.  Both the ones in the front, and the pocket flaps in the back!

The length - I love cropped pants.

These pants are a constructional improvement over Day 3's pants - I just did a better job making them since they were my second pair intead of my first.

ONLY ONE DAY LEFT!  I MADE IT!

*If you are wondering why this is the last day of September and I'm saying I have one day left still, you need only look back on Day 9, aka the day Valerie never got dressed.  I must make up for that!

And I have left a grand finale of sorts for last - possibly my favorite thing I've ever made...curious?  :)

Day 29 - Mauve Skirt Repeat + Multi-Chain Necklace!

What I made:
Mauve pencil skirt which you may remember from Day 14
AND the necklace I'm wearing!  I had some chain leftover from a little foray into jewelry making last fall, and I had been seeing necklaces like this and this around, so I decided to make one myself.  Bet you weren't expecting that one, were ya?!

When I made it:
Skirt - earlier this month
Necklace - last night while watching One Tree Hill!  Only took about 30 minutes to string altogether and get it clasped.

What I like about it:
I like the skirt for the same reasons I did before:  color, cut, fit.
I like the necklace even though I'm really not a jewelry person!  I wear pearl earrings everyday and of course my wedding ring, but other than that, you'll hardly ever see me wearing anything else.  So this necklace is like a journey into the unknown for me :)  Also, I like the contrast of the shiny silver with the dull silver and the bronze, and that all three types of chains are a little bit different.  It was kind of fun to make (you get to use TOOLS!) and pretty dang easy too!

Day 28 - Cardigan + Dress = Skirt Mash-up!

 

What I "made:"
Burgundy and black knit skirt, a result of a marriage between the knit dress and cardigan pictured below!  There was a hole in the top of the dress, and there was a hole in the armpit of the cardigan, so I cut off the dress in half, took the bottom ribbing from the cardigan to use for a waistband, and voila!

October 2009 (hey friends!) - used the bottom of this dress!

August 2009 (on our honeymoon) - used the ribbing of this cardigan!

When I made it:

November 2009.  Looks like a good skirt for winter, right?

What I like about it:
Well, as I've said a lot of late about my me-made clothes, it's comfy!  Very soft.
I also like the way the waistband turned out - I like the buttons for a closure instead of a zipper...even though they are kind of unnecessary as this skirt is really stretchy!

ONLY THREE DAYS LEFT UNTIL THE END OF SELF-STITCHED SEPTEMBER!!!

Day 27 - Lovely Teal Tie-Up Cardigan/Smoking Jacket (?)!

What I made:

Karen Cardigan pattern from Burdastyle

Teal doubleknit fabric from Fabric.com

When I made it:

Last week!  I suddenly got very desperate to make enough new things so that I could repeat garments as little as possible this week, so I churned this one out over the course of three or four evenings.

It's like a Batman cape!

What I like about it:
Color - GORGEOUS.
Comfort level - off the charts.
The silhouette created by both the tie and the extra fabric in the front - it really falls quite beautifully.

Saturday Afternoon Jam Sesh

Mandy Lynn + mandolin.

Day 26 - Backless Summer Dress + Scarf!

That's right, people.  Get ready to have your minds blown.  I'm wearing not one, but TWO me-made things today!

What I made:

This little backless sundress (see below for the risque view), my own design (though I'm not quite ready for Project Runway)

Cream and white floral cotton from Granny's stash

AND red knit scarf (pictured below), using the same pattern and fabric from yesterday (although I'm not entirely certain a pattern is needed for a scarf when all it requires is sewing two ends together and hemming the whole thing, but thanks anyway, McCall's!)

So scandalous!  Clearly this is meant only to be worn on a very hot summer night.

When I made it:
Dress:  April 2010, as a possibility for a bridesmaid dress for Kendra's wedding, but I ended up wearing something else, which you may remember from Day 20.
Scarf:  Friday night!

How I wore it today with the scarf - again, gotta layer up for fall in New York!

What I like about:

Dress:  Where to begin?  Oh yeah, with the POCKETS, duh!

The boatneck collar - have always loved this shape.

The fact that I designed this one myself!  This is something I do very rarely because I really just lack the creativity to design my own clothing (and even for this one I was inspired by a couple different dresses from Urban Outfitters), but I was proud that I was able to cut this one out myself, made it fit, and it really turned out just the way I pictured it was well!
Scarf:  Warm and cuddly, just like yesterday's tunic top!

Day 25 - Gigantic Red Cozy T-Shirt!

What I made:

McCall's 6205, big ol' t-shirt tunic top pattern

Rayon jersey fabric from Gorgeous Fabrics

When I made it:

Guess when?!  LAST NIGHT!  True story.  I know that's a rather lame thing to do on Friday night, but I had a weekend coming up with no more casual clothes that I had made left to wear, so I got busy!

What I like about it:
As you can imagine by the gigantic nature of this top, it is comfy times ten!
I also really love the fabric - it's warm and cuddly, plus I rarely wear red, so it's a good addition to add a little variety to the wardrobe.

**Unfortunately, it actually turned out to be a whopping 87 degrees outside today, so this was way too hot to wear!  I had to change when we walked to a restaurant for lunch, or else I would have sweat up a storm.  But I still wore it all day when inside the apartment!

Day 24 - Sack-like Jumper!

What I made:

Simplicity 3738 jumper pattern.  Kind of looks like something a little girl would wear, no?

Houndstooth cotton fabric from Hobby Lobby (the examples on the pattern envelope use way better fabric choices than I did - I should have taken a cue from them!).

How I wore it at work today - I think I successfully brought it into 2010 with my styling...
or at least closer than it was! 

When I made it:

Fall 2007, when I first started getting back into sewing again.  I chose this project not for it's stylish-ness (hopefully that's obvious...) but because it was a nice and simple project to get my feet wet again.

What I like about it:

Duh, POCKETS!

The shape of it when cinched in with a belt - very retro and flattering!

And to get a little bit feel-good family sitcom on you, I also like it because of what it represents:  my first tentative step on this journey of making my own wardrobe.  The hem is poorly done and I picked out some weird sort-of green colored buttons for it, but I'll keep it forever just for nostalgia...and possibly force my future teenager daughter to wear it!

Book Nerds Wear Glasses

Tonight I went to an open house information session for a master's program in Library Sciences.  I promise I totally paid attention to the speaker and the PowerPoint presentation and looked at the brochures and all that good stuff, but I was actually slightly more fascinated to find that as I surveyed the other potential librarians, I noticed that of the 30 people in the room, only FOUR of them were NOT wearing glasses (and I was not one them).  That's 87% of people wearing glasses.  Does anyone else find this totally weird and unlikely, while at the same time kind of stereotypical and predictable?!

Day 23 - Grey Corduroy Vest! Is it fall yet?

What I made:
Project Runway-inspired vest pattern, Simplicity 2556 (and in fact, this comes from the same pattern as the vest in Day 8!)
Corduroy fabric from Joann.com

When I made it:
March 2010.  Fun fact:  I burnt a whole in the lining while I was ironing the vest after I had finished the whole thing.  But at the point, since I was completely done and basically just too lazy to go back and fix it, I just left it how it was.  So never ask me to see the inside of this vest!  Or maybe DO ask, if you want to see the damage a hot iron can truly do.

The part of the lining that is NOT burned through :)

What I like about it:
I've always dug corduroy, so I loooove that part of it.
I also love the tortoise shell button I used for the front closure.  It's one of those things that I just happened to have lying around in the sewing notions box, and I think it goes perfectly!

Day 22 - Secretary Skirt Repeat + Suspenders!

What I made:
The same skirt from Day 10, now with some added suspenders!
Same fabric as the skirt - wool blend from Fabric.com

When I made it:
I made the suspenders last weekend. I wanted to wear the skirt again, but add a little variety to it!

What I like about it:
Suspenders are fun.

Day 21 - Ruffled Front Dress!

(Notice anything different? We're going BIGGER, people!)

What I made:
This "Coffee Date Dress" pattern unselfishly shared by The Selfish Seamstress - for free!
Fabric from the bargain table at Paron's on 40th

(how I wore it today to the office - with a blazer)

When I made it:
Fall 2009 - during that famous unemployment drought of mine.

What I like about it:
Um, it's really stinking cute.
Also, it was insanely easy to make, even that fancy ruffle in front!
Unfortunately, my zipper insertion job in the back is fairly horrific, so I can't ever really wear this dress without a jacket or cardigan over it, but that's okay because it's a great basic to build outfits around.

What I loved about our family vacation...

Geeking out with my sister.

Having a sibling, a sibling-in-law, and a husband who don't mind getting just a LITTLE wet.

Walking around with a husband who dresses like this. While eating this.

Being a member of a family that gets there before the park opens. And is excited about it.

Having parents who plan family vacations with their kids, even though they are all grown up.

Love you, Mom and Dad.