I did a Me-Made IRL post a few years ago and always thought I’d turn it into a annual thing, which, clearly, I did not. But there’s no time like the present! Here’s a little sampling of how I incorporate the things I make into my actual, wearable wardrobe. My main goal here isn’t to show how fashionable I am (because I’m not), it’s to show that the things I make really do turn into my clothing. When I first started getting into sewing, I would sew a garment, wear it a token one time (for pictures!) and be done with it. Thankfully, I’ve been shown that taking my time with sewing, using a good pattern, and choosing quality fabrics can turn my sewing projects into clothes I enjoy wearing.
Right now, my closet it probably about 1/2 handmade and 1/2 RTW (ready to wear=store bought) and I’m okay with that. I know some people get a lot of joy from the challenge of having an entirely handmade wardrobe or from trying not to buy anything RTW. I say, to each their own! I love making my clothes (most of the time) but sometimes I buy because it’s cheaper, easier, or something that’ll be better bought than made by me (an example of this is graphic tees. I know I could technically make my own, but economically-both time and money-it feels more effective to just buy!). There are days where I don’t wear anything I’ve made, but I’d say the majority of the time I’m wearing at least 1 item that’s handmade.
*All the photos are phone pictures, with my very un-instagrammable bedroom in the background. Links will direct you to blog posts that have more information about the clothing item*
We’re in our colder weather season now, which means I get to wear some of my warmer clothes. Here I’m wearing my McCalls 7874 sweater, which has been one of my favorites. I’m also wearing my athletic Hudson pants which get worn at least once a week. The fit was off with these pants so I ended up cutting off the ankle cuffs, removing about an inch from the legs, and resewing the cuffs. Now the fit is much, much better.
Here I wore my striped Tarifa Tee and my wide leg Ash jeans. Again, the fit on these pants was off and I ended up not wearing them for close to a year. Recently, I pulled them out to assess fit and realized getting a better fit would only take unpicking the hem. I did that and kept the hem raw and now they are much more wearable.
The top and jeans here are RTW but the sweater is my Driftless Cardigan. This was something I made toward the beginning of me sewing clothes, but it’s one I still wear regularly.
Basic but comfortable-RTW leggings and a sweatshirt I’ll be blogging about soon!
Here we are again with another striped Tarifa Tee and jeans! Ha! Yep, pretty basic. The jeans are RTW.
Just keeping things real. Often, when I’m at home, I’m wearing something like this-Hudson pants and a comfortable sweater. This pair of Hudsons is made from an excellent French terry from Raspberry Creek Fabrics. I probably have about 2 more yards in this color. I was going to make a top to match, but I might just hold onto it so I can make another pair of these Hudsons when they wear out.
I pretty much only wear dresses and skirts on Sundays to church but I’d say that the dresses and skirts section of my closet is probably at least 95% handmade. This outfit felt very “me.” The top/cardigan are RTW and the skirt is one of my Mave skirts, which is another favorite.
Thanks for coming along to see what I’m wearing in real life during the week! Surprisingly, I learned a lot about myself and my aesthetic as I organized these pictures. I’ve got the clothes and patterns I like and maybe I shouldn’t try so hard to change that. Tried and true are tried and true for a reason!
This week is Thanksgiving in the United States. I hope you all can find your way to some pie and know that I’m grateful for you being here!
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