Me Made May 2021

It is so close to that time of year again!  

Me Made May is an initiative started by Zoe at So Zo What do you know? I don't know how many years ago? - but it was quite a few!

There are no real rules, it is up to you how you structure it.  This year I would really like to wear something me made every day.  I will try to record it on Instagram but may not post every day.  I will also try to record on here, but that is likely to be a weekly entry!  Why?  You may ask.

I would like to refresh my wardrobe - find out what I like wearing, and what goes with what - with a view to plugging the gaps.  After Me made May, I will look at my Year of Projects list and review it!

Since it is a long weekend here in the UK, I am hoping to do a kick off post on Saturday.  I would like to try and empty my wardrobe at that point and at least recycle/donate some items I know I will never wear.

Now to get ready for the Sewing Bee to get me in the mood!

#memademay2021 

A Year of Projects Update - week 43

 Thought I would update nice and early and take advantage of the weather.

Here's my first coffee and a sneak peak of the project I have been working on!

We have had a bit of an up and down week.  Restrictions are continuing to ease here in England,  but on Friday I had a call to say that Daniel had been in close contact with someone who has now tested positive for Covid.   This means he has to isolate for 10 days.  As I wrote yesterday this could be much worse of course, but it means I now have to work from home this coming week.  I shall be projected into the classroom by Zoom to take the lessons - what fun!

Although remote teaching is tiring it does mean I should have a bit more time and can organise my time better at home - every cloud ☁️

So, what have I been working on?

I have been working non stop on my Antiquity blouse.  

This is an absolutely delightful pattern by Fabel knitwear.  I am really enjoying it,  and the yarn is gorgeous  - it is Keld fingering by Eden cottage yarn.  This is a merino, linen blend which is so soft!

I have finished the Sewing on Olive and now just need to attach press studs.  I will show you when that is done. 

Later I will be making chocolate marmalade loaf with some marmalade I made yesterday.   In the week I will be working in my Me Made May plans.  Other than that a lazy day is what is needed!  

Have a lovely week. 

Hmmm

 Well, just when you think you may have turned a corner, it bites you in the bum!!

Yesterday afternoon we had the call from my youngest's school to say he had been in close contact with someone who has now tested positive for Covid.  He therefore,  has to isolate for 10 days.

On reflection,  it could, of course, be worse.  It only means in reality 5 days away from school, I have had my vaccine and I can now teach and work entirely from home- I  will be projected in onto the screen by the powers of Zoom!

He isn't too impressed,  but, it could be worse.  The only potential worry is my husband who has his vaccine next week, but I'm sure Daniel won't have got it 🤔 ... well we'll see. 

Anyway, brighter things.  I was inspired by Boud over at Field and Fen to treat myself to flowers.   I love flowers in the house so I don't know why I've not done it before.  I don't go into shops so I looked online and found an ethical subscription service that looked ideal.  I chose Arena flowers and the first delivery came today.

They are beautiful,  so I'm impressed so far, and that is all my news for now. 

Midweek catchup

 I call this a catch up, but in reality, there is little to catch up with.  I am back at work, which is manic as always and exhausting.  School is fairly full on at the moment as the exams have been cancelled and so we have to gather evidence to award the students with the appropriate grade.  This, as you can possibly imagine, takes up a lot of time and so, when I get home I am just falling asleep!

So that is pretty much all that is in my head at the moment (in terms of writing things down!)  I have done a tiny bit of knitting on my socks and Antiquity blouse.  It is also the Sewing Bee tonight,  which is likely to be the highlight of the week!  It is holiday week this week.

A Year of Projects Update - week 42

 I am a tiny bit later with this post, but with good reason!

Earlier this week I was reading some articles and found one about writing.  Now, I have started journals many a time,  but they fall by the wayside and I lose them!  So I thought I would try a version that I could make work.  For the rest of the week, I  gave been doing some work with a notebook combined with writing more here on this blog.

For the remainder of the week  I have been blogging every day (if you are interested you can use the archive tool on the right).

How is this related to my year of Projects?  You may well ask!  Well, a couple of days ago I mentioned my love of hand sewing in a blog and said that I was currently working on my Olive pinafore.   Yesterday I discovered that I had done something wrong (I think I put the front pieces on the wrong way - easily done if you fabric is reversible and you think you are better than cutting notches!)  Anyway, far from calming my anxiety (which was the reason behind the writing in the first place) this served only to make me more anxious as I kept going over and over how I was going to put it right.

So, this morning I have deconstructed parts of ot, cut bits off and I can report that it is looking much better (excuse the other dress already on Patricia).

Just the finishing hems and press studs to do - hurrah!  (And this was why my post is a bit later!)

In other news, I finished Oare Water.  This is unblocked, but it will do for a mo!

This is knit in John Arbon Textiles yarnadelic and was a lovely knit.

I did a little work on my socks, but the rest of my knitting time has been spent on a new project which I will tell you about next week!

I hope you all have a great week and I will see if I can do a few extra blogs this week as I return to school.

Ups and downs!

 Just a short one today.  I have been very productive in the chore department.  I have cleaned the oven and cut back a rose bush in the garden which was huge in order to remove a piece of trellis that it had brought down.  Now we can sit on the bench without our head in the Bush and fence!

They were the ups!

My Olive pinafore has hit a snag.  I have clearly put something together wrongly so it doesn't sit right.  I think it should be a fairly easy fix, but it will require me unpicking a few bits and reworking (I really don't want to start again).  So for a moment, I have put it on Patricia and I  will spend some time with it later and tomorrow.

So this is me now!

Hand Sewing

 The Sewing Bee is back!  

I love Sewing bee - I find it so motivating, and generally find myself somewhere in the middle (that isn't blowing my own trumpet, it's just not putting myself down).  In some aspects, I think I am quite proficient and in others I think I will probably never get to!

Anyhow, it has prompted me to dig out my sewing projects.  Namely,  the Olive pinafore from Tilly and the Buttons.  I have had this cut out and interfaced for months, so it was overdue some attention.

My love of Sewing started when I joined in the Andi Satterlund outfit-a-long.   As a result I bought a cheap Sewing machine from Hobbycraft, which has served me very well for years.  But over the years  I have fallen out of love with sewing with the machine.  

During our first lockdown, I discovered Bernadette Banner and watched a few of her videos on hand sewing.  Now, I was fairly certain, I hated hand Sewing  but I  think the years of knitting has reset my need for all things immediate!  I started hand sewing and loved it - my first piece was a pair of knickers.  They took me a while but I really enjoyed the process.  

Since then I have completed several pieces by hand, it does take longer, but I like the control that it gives.

So today I have sewn the darts, the side seams (French seams as I don't have an overlooked and the fabric is a bit frayed).  I am hoping to sew the facing later and then finish things like the hems on the machine over the weekend.  Here's hoping I have  new dress to go back to work with. 🤞

Mapping my life

 Along with blind contours, another technique suggested on creativebug was mapping.  The tutor had a book called You Are Here which of course, I  had to buy and am currently making my way through. 

I have started to think what a map of my life would look like.  

This is very much a preliminary sketch.   I will keep adding to it, details, probably colour and other notable events.  Anyway it is a start.

In other news, I bought myself some flowers today.

I need to display them better, however,  so I'm going to do that now!

In keeping with my whole being good to myself philosophy that is a huge bowl of chocolate by the side!

Mending

 I'm currently sitting in the car waiting for my eldest to have his hair cut,  before me and the youngest go in to have ours done!  So I thought I would take advantage of the time.   

So... mending.  I was thinking actual mending and perhaps mending myself.  Do I need mending?  No.  But it can't hurt can it?!

Actual mending - I have a little pile of things that need fixing.

First up an old knitted jumper.  I noticed it had a few holes in it.   Now if I  loved wearing the sweater, I would be upset, but would also consider darning it.  However  I  don't love it - it is the wrong shape and not long enough.  I don't like the neckline which slips off my shoulders.  So, I have frogged it.

I have also mended a couple of holes in sweaters that I do love.  I ran out of time to take up Daniel's school trousers so I will do that tomorrow. 

I am trying to continue the writing from yesterday to help me to be mindful.  I also tried a blind contour this morning sitting on the patio.  I discovered these at the beginning of the week whilst watching a class on Creativebug.  You draw what is in front of you with 2 rules - you don't look at the paper and you don't take your pencil off of the paper.  I have only done a couple but I really like them.

And there we have today.  I am going to try to keep this up for the rest of the week, I  don't know how it will pan out when I  return to work next week,  but I shall take it day by day. 

Crumble

 I was reading this afternoon.  This is quite unusual in itself.  

I was reading about how writing things down is good for your soul.   

I've been feeling anxious (this is not unusual,  especially at the moment).  And I  have been looking for ways to address this.

So this afternoon, whilst sat in the garden,  I started to write down a few things.  Along with some arty additions using my new brush pens.

To be honest, this first attempt was more of a list, as well as finding and writing down a recipe to use my broad beans and fennel.  However,  I did feel calmer once I'd finished and felt my heart was not beating as fast. 

Now here I am a bit later on, and I thought I would also try writing some down here.

I entitled this crumble as we have just enjoyed a rhubarb crumble made with our own rhubarb which is cropping really well now (it's only taken 14 years!)  I also planted out the rest of the potatoes today - it would be lovely to be self sufficient over summer on the vegetable front.

Tomorrow, I would really like to start some of my sewing projects (the olive pinafore particularly), but that will require me putting down my latest knitting project down.

This is the Antiquity Blouse that I am knitting in Eden Cottage Keld fingering.  Both pattern and yarn ate gorgeous,  but I will fill you in on that in another post.

So have these two pieces of writing helped?  It is, of course,  too early to say.  But, I think I will try to keep it up. 

A Year of Projects Update - Week 41

 It's been a lovely week.  I finished my blanket,  but more about that in a moment.   We had a bbq on Tuesday as it was my birthday and we are now allowed to meet as a 6 in a garden!  I've never bbqed in the snow, but I did then!  

Here you can see me and my friends trying to keep warm!  I am at the back with my new blanket.   It is knit in all sorts of leftover sock yarn, corner to corner in garter stitch.

For the rest of the week I have done very little apart from work on my Oare Water.

I am now on the second sleeve and hope to be finished today.

I haven't worked on anything else, but I  will his coming week.   

I have also been doing some gardening, which is nice - I have got some of the vegetables in and again will do a little more this next week. 

So now to get back to this sleeve!  I hope everyone has a great week.

A Year of Projects Update - week 40

 It has been a slightly more relaxed week,  this week - although with our exam classes it has been pretty intense.  We are now on holiday for a couple of weeks,  so,  although I have a bit of school work to complete,  I should be able to relax a bit! It is also my birthday in the week so I am determined to make some time for me.   

We have a couple of friends coming over for a bbq on Tuesday.  We are starting to relax rules and are now allowed to meet as a six outside in the garden.   They are only allowed in to use the toilet!  It is however, supposed to be -3 on Tuesday so although I have run up 2 blankets from some fabric I  had, I would really like to finish my garter stitch blanket.   I am at about 100 stitches.

I should be able to do it!

I have made good progress on  Oare Water. 

I have completed the back and am now making my way up the front section.

I have also cast on my April socks. 

These are knit in a Little French meadow yarn and I am doing a sort of Blueberry waffle sock pattern. 

Otherwise, I  hope to run up a table cover for ouf new garden table complete a dress I havd had cut out for some time as well ss doing some baking this week!  Oh and I have a number of jobs to do in the garden!

And so again, that is it for this week - I hope everyone has a lovely Easter holiday and great week.