Me-Made-March STARTS TOMORROW!

I wanted to do one more little post regarding Me-Me-March before it officially starts tomorrow (woohoo!).  In case I didn't explain this challenge very well, here it is in Zoe's own words, because they are super inspiring:

The purpose of Me-Made-March '11 is to encourage those of us who make and/or refashion clothes to actually wear them in their everyday lives. Rather than spend hours on projects that then languish unworn and unloved in the bottom of a drawer, I believe we should be proud of our achievements and creations. Let's show ourselves, as much as anyone else, that our efforts are more than just a pastime, that we have been slowly developing valueable skills that we can use to actually clothe ourselves, damn it! Let's learn to love our creations, to look past any flaws we can see in them (that probably no-one else would even notice).  Why not take an opportunity to learn about what garments work best for our bodies and lifestyles so we can make more informed choices when sewing/knitting/refashioning etc. in the future?

I took the pledge last week, but I wanted to lay out my rules here a little bit more specifically (because I had to create a lot of loopholes for myself, and I want to reassure myself that I'm not technically cheating!).

This month, I will be wearing things that I have "made" - which includes anything I have made from scratch as well as any garments that I altered (Scott's sweaters, a few pairs of pants).  Basically, anything I've taken a sewing machine to counts!

The following items that I wear will not be self-made:
Underwear
Tights/Leggings (I wonder how you even make tights?)
Outerwear (that is, coats and/or jackets)
Socks
Shoes (again...how do you even make those?  Actually, now I'm kind of interested in finding out...)

Here's to March being a fun, inspirational, slightly self-congratulatory month on my blog!

Jumping on the Fanny Train

On Friday, I enjoyed a post on Girls of the Wild Frontier (a fabulous blog written by three girls I know in real life!) about C's designer fanny pack.  I loved it.  Then soon-to-be-a-Mrs. Heidi of the Future (who I also know in real life - and I watched her get engaged!) wrote her own post about her fanny pack that displays her love for a certain Mouse.  I wanted to join in because I've got a pack that's near to my heart as well.

C's fanny pack is fancy.  Heidi's is personalized.  Mine is neither of those things, but it did serve me well as not only a carryall, but also a camera case/butterbeer mug holder.  Awesome.

Oh, and Scott wore it too.

Anybody else out there have a fanny pack and want to join the train?

What Scott Built

He built this inside our NYC apartment, from start to finish, without a blueprint, with his own two hands.  It may just be because I'm his wife, but I have to say:  I'm impressed.

Two Tanks

After one epic failure of a garment over the weekend (seriously, I should have taken pictures, it was so bad.  Completely unwearable), I came back strong and made these two tank tops, each in just a few hours.  Fairly unpractical considering as I write this it is currently 30 degrees, but what can I say?  I have Spring on the brain!

Left:  super easy tank literally made from 6 differently sized rectangles, fabric from leftover lining for my Winter Coat!

Right:  Simplicity 2998, which this dress actually came from as well, red/grey striped knit from Fabric.com

Anybody else anxiously awaiting the days when you can have bare arms again?

Hiya, Kids! I'm Flat Stanley!

My husband's cousin's daughter (got that?) is in 2nd grade, and her class sent out Flat Stanleys all over the place a few weeks ago, including one to us!  I'm basically a Flat Stanley pro at this point, since I think I've gotten three others before from various cousins, so we were more then happy to take the little guy around and "show" him the sights.

(Read about the Flat Stanley project and the Flat Stanley book)

Here's what we sent back to Brooklyn and her class back in Oklahoma (isn't Stanley cute?!  Brooklyn made him!):

Dear Brooklyn,

Scott and Valerie were so surprised and excited to see Flat Stanley arrive in the mail!  What a treat to have a visitor.

We live in New York City, New York, which is a big, BIG city, with over 8 million people living here!  Can you believe that? 

The first thing we showed Flat Stanley was the BIG bridge we can see out our window.   It is called the George Washington Bridge, and it was named after the very first President of the United States.  You can take the bridge across the big river to visit New Jersey, a completely different state! 

Next we wanted to teach Flat Stanley how to get around town, because here in New York City there are so many people, we don’t have our own car!

Instead, we use things like the subway, which is an underground train!  You can ride one to wherever you want to go.  We showed Flat Stanley the subway map that shows him how to find his way, and then we waited for the next train to arrive.

Here it is!

Our first stop was Grand Central Station.  It is a giant train station, where people ride trains into New York City from all over the place!  Places like Connecticut and Massachusetts and New Jersey.  In Grand Central Station, there is a tall, painted ceiling – isn’t it pretty?

Then we decided to take a walk around the city a little bit to see the sights.

Flat Stanley really loved to see all the tall, tall buildings.  You have to look way, way up to see to the very tops of them!

Next, we showed Flat Stanley how to ride in a taxi cab.  A taxi is a yellow car that you can hire to drive you where you want to go.  First you have to wave to a driver so that he will come pick you up.

Then you get to sit in the backseat while the driver takes you wherever you want to go.  Can you believe that all the taxi cab drivers know how to get anywhere in the city?  They really know their way around!

We let Flat Stanley ask the driver to take us to Times Square.  This is where they drop the big ball at midnight on New Year’s Eve on TV – have you ever seen that?

Flat Stanley loved looking around at all the bright lights!

While Flat Stanley was visiting, we also took a trip to another city, Philadelphia.  We took Flat Stanley to see the Liberty Bell.  This bell is very old – so old that it rang on the very first Independence Day, all the way back in 1776!  75 years later, a big crack appeared in the bell, all the way down the side (can you see it?).  It doesn’t ring anymore, but it is a neat part of American history!

We were so glad that Brooklyn sent Flat Stanley to spend some time with us!  We enjoyed showing him all around New York City, and we even sent him home with a souvenir.  Thanks, Brooklyn!

Love,

Scott and Valerie

The Classiness Scarf

Weather just never wants to cooperate, does it?  As most other Americans are probably experiencing, we reverted back to hardcore winter over the weekend after a blissful two-day sneak peek of spring last week.  So cruel of you, Mother Nature.  In fact, we even got snow yesterday!

The bright side?  More chances to wear scarves!  Like this one, which I made a month ago with Kendra, but never documented.  Until now.

It's a different sort of scarf, made from this tutorial on Colette Patterns' blog.  One side is velvet and the other is a soft and warm sweater fabric, so it really is quite warm, and I can even pull it up all the way around my ears!

Reverse, reverse!

I feel extra classy in this big bow-like scarf.  Cream is a classy color and velvet is a classy fabric.  Enough said.

And the static-y hair will continue, along with the cold weather...

Me-Made-March

'I, Valerie of Threads and Thoughts and Things I Love, sign up as a participant of Me-Made-March '11. I endeavour to wear only handmade or refashioned clothing each day for the duration of March 2011'

Six months ago, I participated in Self-Stitched September, created by the stylish British blogger Zoe.  I pledged to wear one piece of clothing or accessory I had made myself everyday for the entire month...and I did it!  As all of you know, I've kept sewing diligently over the past 6 months, and I must say...my handmade wardrobe is seriously growing.

So when Zoe announced Me-Made-March a couple weeks ago, she challenged anyone who had participated previously to "step up their game" for this one.  I wanted to take the huge leap from one piece a day to everything I wore, everyday.  After taking a serious look at my closet, the combinations of outfits I can make from what I have made, finding the spaces in my wardrobe that need to be filled, and, yes, making an Excel spreadsheet...I decided I can do it!  (By the way, this is not including underwear, because I don't make underwear.  Nor would I want to.  It also doesn't include tights or leggings, because March is too cold still for bare legs!).

AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

Okay, now that's done.  I've got 10 days to go before I wear only clothes I've made myself for the next 31.  Get ready for an overload of outfit posts!