On cutting yourself some damn slack

I don't know how many times over the years I have said these words or words to this effect to people. Watched people overload themselves with demands and expectations then buckle under the pressure. It does you no good and you win no prizes (unless you're training for the Olympics in which case have at it, go for gold!) There is no point when it is all finished and you've completed everything asked of you; it just keeps stepping up a level getting more and more. It's like Space Invaders really.

Day 1

Isn't this very sage and wise advice? Don't I sound like some benign old spirit spilling my drops of wisdom? Well also acknowledge that it comes from an absolute hypocrite. Yes you should take a break and go easy on yourself but me? Well I have cracked the code and therefore will be able to beat the system entering the mothership if I can complete just. one. more. task.

Day 2

Nonsense. Absolute gibberish. This conclusion occurred to me in the participation of Me Made May. Now there is nothing wrong with the challenge as it is, in fact I think it's a great idea. The problem is with me. There are no rules apart from the ones you set yourself and really the one I set myself isn't unrealistic... on its own but taken in combination with the other obligations I hold it becomes overwhelming.

Day 3

First off I realised I flipping hate taking a photo of myself every day. It's been 7 days and I've already skipped 3. Again this is not a rule of participating yet I seem to think it is making the process unnecessarily angsty for myself. I also don't quite think I'm there with the 5 days of wear without resorting for a number of days to a handmade scarf or hat. I know that this officially is quite acceptable but to me, for me, it feels like a cop out.

Day 4

So unless I resort to panic sewing (AGAIN Humbug did you listen to what Zoe was saying at all?!) to knock up a few more garments it won't get done. I realised this wasn't going to happen when I sat down to stitch in a sleeve and thought I really don't want to do this right now. I refuse to turn my hobby into a chore so I need to change my thinking. There are some half finished pieces that I can be working on but this will be to an as and when schedule.

Any future modelling will be carried out by my stunt double Olive.

So I'm going to reconsider my pledge thus:  'I, Miss Amy of Handmade by Humbug, sign up as a participant of Me-Made-May '15. I endeavour to wear as many of my me mades for whatever days I feel like for the duration of May 2015 and just chill the heck out. I will use this as an exercise to find which me mades I like to wear and purge those I don't. I will not be taking sodding daily photos.'

This is just a first step that can be built on next year. No pressure.

What I'm choosing to spend my time doing at the moment