Me Made May 2015

I was intrigued by the Me Made May event last year and watched with interest as lots of people I follow shared pictures of their handmade garments and accessories online.

I watched from the sidelines last year but this year I am raring to go and eager to join in with what is shaping up to be a great, vibrant and fun event.

I recently shared the information about the event here and plucked up the courage to make my official pledge:

'I, Louise Tilbrook of Louise Tilbrook Designs, sign up as a participant of Me-Made-May '15. I endeavour to wear a handmade item each day for the duration of May 2015'

I also plan to use the opportunity to assess my wardrobe and work out which items I wear and which I don't. Those that I don't wear will be gifted or sent to the charity shop and I will be reassessing my Ravelry queue with wearable items in mind.

I am full of a cold today so I will spare you a photo of my unmade up self and instead share my school run outfit for this morning. My cosy Isis Tailcoat in yarn from Purl Alpaca - a trusty wardrobe staple on chilly spring mornings.

You can commit to as much or as little as you like - wear just 1 handmade item per week or wear a full outfit every day - the choice is yours. Just use the hashtag #mmmay and join in the fun.

A new challenge: Me Made May

I have really enjoyed and been inspired by the #loveyourblog series running this month. Kate (of A Playful Day fame) has done a wonderful job of bringing together quite a diverse community of crafters and for me, it has brought back a love of blog reading and of blog writing that I thought I had lost.

It turns out that it wasn't lost at all, it was just having a little sleep and needed a kick of inspirational caffeine to get it moving again.

With that in mind, it was very timely for me to happen across the 'Me Made May' challenge. See - the inspirational snippets that pop into your life when you read other blogs!

Hosted by the very talented Zoe over at the So, Zo What do you Know blog this challenge has been running for several years now is both a personal and a community based one. The premise is simple - to celebrate the handmade and to both show and share our love for our craft.

The decision of how much and when to participate is a personal one. Some opt for the challenge of a daily 'me made' outfit - complete with photographs whilst others go for a more pared down approach. I can't help thinking that for us knitters, the daily outfit might be a bit of a challenge. As much as I love my Icon dress in Purl Alpaca yarn I'm not sure I want to wear it too much as the weather warms up here in the UK.

 

Getting into the swing of things this week though I have been enjoying my very seasonally coloured Knit Night shawl, in club yarn from Ginger twist Studios - in the Muddy Daffodils colourway.

Knit Night by Louise Zass-Bangham

But, the whole point of the challenge is that anything handmade counts and it doesn't have to be everyday. It is a celebration of the handmade and a culture that values the time, effort and skill of making wearable items.

There is a Flickr group, for sharing all those lovely photos and the hashtag #mmmay15 for following along on the various social media channels.

Even if you're not planning to take part there is bound to be lots of inspirational eye candy, so why not take a look?

Are you planning to take part? If so, be sure to let me know so I can check out your progress and we can cheer each other on.