Me Made May So Far

Above are the outfits I wore on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, & Monday. For some reason I can't find the original images of Wednesday & Thursdays outfits. Anyway, I'm finding that I am putting things together that may not have been matched before. For example, the top left image features the Trapezoid Tee that I knit a few years ago with an old Dries Van Noten skirt (sans outer layer). The image on the bottom left features my recently finished dress shirt paired with a dress I made while we were in Berlin in 2013. I love the act of discovering new ways to wear things you already own.

The ladyfriend and I caught the Mitchell/Riopelle show at the AGO just before it closed. I've been a Joan Mitchell fan since I saw a show of hers at the Whitney in New York City in 2002. It was great to see her work in person again.

Included a close-up of this one as the layering of the paint was quite compelling.

Sure, there was a counterpart - Jean Paul Riopelle - but frankly, his work didn't speak to either of us except for one piece.

Avalanche by Jean Paul Riopelle

The way we saw it, Mitchell danced with the canvas while Riopelle boxed, or to put it another way, Mitchell collaborated with the canvas while Riopelle seemed to want to conquer it.

It's been great seeing art lately. The Kusama show in April was pretty cool although the whole ticket thing was out of control. We lucked out and got tickets in advance. If I remember to, I'll post some images from that as well. If you're in the area, the ladyfriend is on a panel at the AGH on Thursday and has an opening at b. contemporary on Friday.

I start the Lander pant class tonight. I'm pretty excited to make these!

Back at It in May!

Oh, the ambitions of April! My three goals had been to finish all three WIPs (Anna vest, Kate Davies cardigan, and the ladyfriend's sweater), sell the two bikes we have in the shed, and make a plan for all the things I want to make this year and particularly this summer.

Hmm, how did it go? Well, I finished this -

It's the Brae Cove tunic, which is a Squam KAL. There was some endless knitting, on size 4 needles no less, but I couldn't be happier with the result. The length is perfect; I can wear it as a dress or over something, and I used yarn from my stash to make it. It's the beginning of May, which means Me Made May, and this is how I chose to start it. This is also my second finished item from my Make Nine list.

Here are the updates on April's goals - sad but true:
I fixed the Anna vest issue and now have to stitch it together, so I didn't finish it.
The Kate Davies cardigan remains unfinished.
The ladyfriend's sweater is one sleeve shy of being sewn together. My new goal for that is to finish it before we go to Nova Scotia.

So while I finished one WIP, it wasn't on the list. I also started another sweater. What can I say? I'm incorrigable.

One of the bikes has been taken; the other still needs to go up on Kijiji.

My making plan? Well, I've been working on it, but not on paper, so let's do that here!

I'm already deep into my Afghani Nomad Dress. I'm hoping that will be done Wednesday or Thursday.

I'd originally wanted to make one of the three possible pants for Fringe Association's Summer of Basics challenge, but Needlework, my local fabric store, is running a class on the Lander pant this month so I decided to take that opportunity. I'll be making these in white canvans. Whoo-hoo!

June will be for the Liv cardigan; I'll be picking up the yarn in early June and starting it while at Squam, which is what I tried last year, but then I realized I didn't have enough yarn. Looking forward to adding this cardigan to my wardrobe. It is one of my Summer of Basics projects.

One of my issues with the Summer of Making is that I'll be in Nova Scotia for most of it. I have a sewing machine there, but not necessarily all my tools. That said, I think I will try to make Paxson. I actually bought fabric for it last year, but then they revised the pattern, and then well, I went onto other things.

And because the pieces made for the Summer of Basics are meant to fill a hole in one's wardrobe (I know, how could there be a hole in a wardrobe of my size?), I'm making the decision right here and now to make Pants No. 1 as well. Paxson and Pants No. 1 will be July/August projects.

That brings me up to 7 of my Make Nine. I'll work on Azami (8) over the summer; it feels like a good cottage knit, and then I'll make Erica (9) in the fall. Of course I have other things I plan to make as well, but this is the core.

So, what are my May goals?

1. Project to Finish (WIP): I need to finish a Frank Lloyd Wright cross stitch.

2. Fix/Remake/or Let Go: Time to revisit the floor lamp.

3. Get Started On: My veggie garden.

Hope the weather in your area is good; we're having some beautiful days right now.