Thursday, May 2, 2013

First day of MMM and the Liebster Award


It's my first Me Made May outfit! And look, I also figured out how to make a collage! Don't worry, I'm sure I'll get better at them.

The blue skirt is actually the first thing I ever made and while I don't love it, I don't hate it either. (And seriously, I wear this at least once a week!)

The outfit as a whole I don't really care for. I adapted this skirt into my "office look" complete with a gray cardigan because it's a bit chilly where I'm temping. The belt is added because the seams are fraying (oops), but you can't tell as long as I cover it up.

On the right I've lost the cardigan and I'm going to let loose! Just kidding. I do love this black shirt because of the large puffy sleeves, and I think it gives a nice balance to the fullness of the skirt, but no one ever gets to see it because it's never just the right temperature.

Also, I really hate the leggings with flats look. Everyone wears it, and obviously I'm rocking it above, but I think it looks awful. I don't know what to wear in its place though. Tights would be too warm I think. Bare legs too cold. I hate pants. Any ideas?

liebster
In other news, my little blog has been nominated for a Liebster Blog Award from both Ashley at Craft Sanctuary and Stephanie at Mabel Makes! I'm beyond honored and I'm still a little surprised that people read and like some of the things I'm creating.

The Liebster Award was created to reward and promote excellent and interesting blogs with less than 200 followers. The rules tend to vary, but generally 11 small blogs are nominated and you ask them 11 questions about their sewing or I suppose anything.

I've been putting off doing this, especially since I've been dreading picking out only a handful of blogs to highlight since you know I love you all (and especially because I'm sure I'll forget someone!), but since my sewing machine is still broken, I figured I should definitely use the time to spread the love and maybe introduce everyone to their maybe-new-favorite small blog!

Ashley's Questions:

1. Do you have a favorite pattern? (Sewing, knitting, crochet, whatever.)
Hm, actually I don't think I do. Maybe! I really love the pattern I just used for the Mad Men Challenge, McCall's 6449 and I plan on making it again so it might become my new favorite.

2. What was the last thing you made?
The dress for the Mad Men challenge. It's also currently the favorite thing I've ever made!

3. What is your favorite print? (dots, stripes, floral) Or, do you like solids better? If you like solids, what's your favorite color?
I love solids. I don't know that I have a favorite color, but I tend to gravitate toward blues and reds.

4. What is a typical day like for you?
There is no typical day! As a freelancer, my day changes a lot so I could be off work, working from home, or working on site somewhere.

5. Where is your favorite place?
At home with my kittens and boyfriend!

6. What do you do when you're feeling down?
Drink tea, take a bath, read a book, eat cheese or chocolate or anything, really.
I also try to take a few minutes to cry and feel sorry for myself. For some reason that helps.

7. What is your crafting space like?
I've taken over one of the living rooms in our apartment. I'm trying to decorate it in a vintage way, but it's not finished since I don't go out and buy things for it. I wait for them to come to me. I suppose it could be described as eclectic for now.

8. Which blogs do you look to for inspiration?
That's tough because I have so many blogs I love for all different reasons. I especially love when someone has a strong point of view, even if it's different than mine, because there's a lot to learn there. I also love some of the bloggers who have been sewing for years. They have so much to teach.

9. Would you rather live by the sea or the mountains?
Psh, why can't I have both? I guess if I had to choose, it would be the sea... But really mountains behind the house, with a forest, and then the sea out front. That would be nice.

10. What's your favorite meal?
Anything with fruit, vegetables, bacon, and an amazing butter or cream sauce. And cheese! Can't forget the cheese.

11. What makes you happier than anything else?
Accomplishment.


Stephanie's Questions

1. Tell me a few things about you and why you sew or knit?
I love to try anything once! Within reason of course. I think that's why I started sewing. From there I loved being able to build and create the clothes I wanted rather than what was available to me for the right price in the store. I started knitting because I wanted something to occupy my time while I watched tv.

 2. Why did you start your blog?
I wanted to join the sewing community! I had been following along with a few blogs and after a few months I felt more and more encouraged to try and sew myself. I really wanted the love and encouragement that exists within the sewing community online, especially since most people I know don't sew in real life!

 3. What is your fashion style? Does it match your handmade style?
Before this, I tended to dress somewhat preppy. However in creating my clothes, I lean towards a more vintage style. They're both arguably 'classic' looks, which is really what I've found I enjoy. Timeless, classic looks that could exist in a variety of eras.

 4. Where do you get your inspiration for projects from?
Recently it's been television shows. There was a time when I used to be very inspired from runway looks, but I'm not as into that anymore.

 5. Where did you learn to sew/knit/crochet?
Mostly I taught myself from the internet. I did take a sewing class where we made a bag to learn the basics, and I had a 2 hour lesson to learn cabling (and figure out why my purls sometimes looked very odd).

 6. What is your process – for sewing do you make a muslin, for knitting do you make sure to swatch? Or do you just make it up as you go?
No, I just make it up and go. I feel like knitting is more forgiving because you can always unravel it whereas once you cut fabric, it's done.

7. Where do you buy your fabric or wool?
Local shops mostly!

8. What technique or item of clothing are you afraid to make?
I'm afraid to make things with a lot of layers or a lot of pieces, like jackets and coats and whatnot.

9. What was the first thing you ever made?
This circle skirt! It was supposed to have scallops, but I hadn't really mastered the whole concept of turning fabric while stitching on the machine so no scallops for me.

10. What is the best thing you ever made?
My latest Mad Men dress. It's still not perfect, but it's the closest I've come to loving the finished product AND thinking that it can really last awhile in my wardrobe.

 11. Do you work in a creative industry? If not do you plan to eventually make a business out of your crafting or do you want to keep it a lovely hobby?
Sort of. I work in the entertainment industry, which is definitely a creative industry, but I'm attempting to move into a non-creative industry due to lots of reasons. I'd love to turn my blog into a business because I love working on projects for myself, but I'm not entirely sure I want to create for other people just yet. Too much pressure.

My Nominated Blogs (in no order!)

Nessa's Place - I found this blog during Sew Grateful week and I just love her dresses - especially her period pieces. She's also an excellent knitter and I'm still a little in awe of the lunchbox she made!

My Vintage Visions - Though she mostly does 18th century period costumes, Emily loves all things vintage. The photos and music she posts always inspire me in some way!

The Hollywood Sew - Rachel normally blogs over at Layer Stitch Repeat where she shows off her beautiful dresses (and presumably soon enough she'll have adorable baby clothes!), but she just started the Hollywood Sew, a blog that takes television and movie costumes and turns them into wearable outfits. Right now she's taking votes on which dress to make from Game of Thrones. Can't wait to see more!

Cuckoo Chanel - Shelley is an amazing seamstress and makes the best clothing. I showed off her adorable Pushing Daisies dress, but a quick search through her blog shows you how talented she can be! One of my personal favorites is this flowered blouse with collar. Fantastic!

Sent from my iRon - MrsC sent me the ring pin cushion that I rave about (and will continue to do so) so really that should be all you need to know! But in case you're still curious, she's been a bit busy opening up her second shop, but check out her lampshading skills here and the awesome Steampunk convention she went to.

The Cute Kipepeo - The website doesn't entirely appear link-able, but BlogLovin' still has this site up and says you can follow it so I'm not sure what's happening. Regardless, I love this site because Njeri makes gorgeous cards (and shows you how to do it!), but also makes the most beautiful clothing for herself!

Vintage Follies - Cherise runs a vintage blog out of Finland and I love everything she does. Just look at this sweater! And this coat! It's all great and inspired by the 40s and 50s!

Tiffany's Notions and Knits - Another newbie like me, Tiffany runs her blog out of British Columbia. She knits and sews, among other things (like martial arts!). Check out these cool Batman socks! I also saw some Doctor Who crafts on her blog, but right now she's focusing on a sewalong for this shirt - her first ever shirt!

SweetFrenchToast - I searched and searched but couldn't find the number of followers so hopefully this one doesn't break the rules! I just discovered this blog through the group Stitch Once Rip Twice and Sabrina seems to do more than just sewing. This girl bakes, crafts, and takes some of the best pictures I've seen in a long time! Check out these awesome shorts she just made for the Black and White Challenge (that, ahem, I'm a bit behind on...).

My Questions:
1. How old were you when you started sewing?
2. What compels you to create something?
3. What is your favorite medium to create? (e.g. sewing, knitting, painting, writing, etc)
4. What is your best memory of sewing?
5. Is there a time period or style that you create within?
6. Is there a time period or style you're drawn to but never work within?
7. Do you have any insecurities regarding sewing/crafting/etc?
8. If you make vintage inspired or period clothing, how often do you wear it?
9. What's your favorite thing you've made? (Not exclusive to sewing.)
10. If you could give any piece of advice to someone that you've learned about anything, what would it be?
11. What's your favorite dessert to bake?

I sort of hate that these are meant for only my nominated blogs because I'm curious about what everyone's answer is so feel free to answer below or on your blog or wherever. Also, I may have delved off the sewing subject a bit by the end so hopefully that's okay. Thanks for indulging me a bit!

7 comments:

  1. Thanks Kristin! How kind of you to think of me for the award. Question ten got me thinking the most, and my advice would be to just keep trying and just keep making. It is only through persisting, trying and making that we will achieve creatively.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Such fantastic advice! I just LOVE the quote you sent as well.

      Delete
  2. I vote for tights. Always.

    Thanks for answering my many questions :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. See, I thought tights were becoming more of a faux pas, and I saw this with entirely no knowledge of fashion, just that I never see anyone wearing them anymore. Hm.

      Delete
  3. Thanks for nominating The Hollywood Sew!!!! looking forward to reading all of the other blogs you nominated. Good luck with Me Made May outift selection, it's hard to get dressed in anything without stains on in the morning for me!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I like your outfit! Thanks for nominating my blog. Now I have to check out these other blogs you linked to. :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thank you for nominating my blog! :) I'll try to answer all your questions and nominate an other bunch of new blogs (It'll be a tough job to choose though)

    ReplyDelete