In the Loop: May
It's May! Hooray! Right? There are flowers growing, birds have something to say, days are longer, creativity is in the air.
In some parts (that is, these parts) that means it's Me Made May. This is a time to challenge ourselves in a lot of different ways. For those who do not know, Me Made May is a wardrobe challenge that helps makers improve their relationship with handmade items and (ideally) helps to spark a little creativity. Makers engage with the challenge in a variety of ways that are personal to them—there are no universal guidelines, no rules, no right or wrong way to participate. Some people pledge to wear a handmade item for each day of the month of May and post a photo to social to document the journey. Others seek to engage with handmade items in a different way, whether by repurposing formerly loved items, reconnecting with forgotten gems, upcycling, mending, and hacking. Note: Whatever it might be, Me Made May is NOT a competition or a comparison of skills (no one is expected to make all new items just for this challenge) or a photo challenge to gain likes.
Me Made May can be an inspiration and a struggle. It's true this is not a photo challenge per se, but it can be very disappointing when there is limited engagement with creative works on social media. Is the work no good? Has the welcome worn out on social media feeds? Is it an algorithm problem? It's not all about the "likes" but they sure can help. But with all the angst comes a lot of inspiration, both from within and from without.
Every year this challenge sparks creativity, and who couldn't use a little creativity jolt from time to time? Sometimes it sizzles, and sometimes it fizzles. And for a couple of gals working in a left-brain world, it can be a welcome respite to give that right brain a little room to work.
If you want to follow along with this maker/editor's Me Made May projects, you can follow me (Michelle) on Instagram: @manny_and_bernie
Editing Q&A: Insta Famous
MLA Style
Accidentally Wes Anderson [@accidentallywesanderson]. Photo of a Yellow Ziggurat. Instagram, photographed by Kayla Heersink, 26 Apr. 2022, https://www.instagram.com/p/Ccz_n_bLg7k/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY=.
(Accidentally Wes Anderson)
Chicago Style
Renegade Craft Fair (@renegadecraft). 2022. “✨RENEGADE CHICAGO ❣️ May 21 + 22, 11am–6pm 🐛Andersonville ~ N. Clark St. between W. Bryn Mawr Ave. + W. Edgewater Ave. 👉 See you there!” Instagram photo, May 9, 2022. https://www.instagram.com/p/CdWZRwoLsk8/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=.
(Renegade Craft 2022)
APA Style
Coughlin, Renee [@reneecoughlincreating]. (2022, April 23). Guess what ya beauties?! I’m releasing another new song on Friday! This one is a collaboration with the one and [Photograph]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/Ccs0JBXrXPs/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
(Coughlin, 2022)
Men with the Pot [@menwiththepot]. (2022, May 2). This is the BEST bread we have ever made over the 🔥 Soooo Goooood ❤️😏 #menwiththepot #cooking #forest #fire [Video]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/tv/CdEUVgJIzGu/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
(Men with the Pot, 2022)
APA Notes:
Provide the first 20 words of the post as the title. Count a URL, a hashtag, or an emoji as one word each, and include them in the reference if they fall within the first 20 words. Do not italicize emojis.
A temporary post (e.g., Instagram Story) or a livestream (e.g., Instagram Live) that is not archived and cannot be retrieved by any other means should be cited as a personal communication (we promise to cover personal communications in a future In the Loop. For reals).
We Crafted this Playlist just for YOU!
What's the Diff?
There are a lot of sneaky words out there—those that sound awfully similar to others, but with a different meaning. Here’s the dish on some of those commonly swapped-by-accident words.
Palette (n.) A palette is the board that an artist uses to mix paint. Palette has also come to figuratively refer to a range or selection of things (like a color palette in design or a tonal palette in music).
Palate (n.) A palate is the roof of your mouth (or someone else's mouth). Palate has also come to figuratively refer to a person's appreciation of taste and flavor, with connotations of sophistication or discernment.
Pallet (n.) A pallet is a wooden platform used in shipping and storing goods (it's there so that goods can be moved with a forklift), or a thin mattress stuffed with straw.
Cool Guides
Stuff We Like
Sisters with Transistors is a new documentary about the key role of women in the history of electronic music.
Artist Susie Ganch directs Radical Jewelry Makeover (RJM), a traveling community mining and recycling project that remakes jewelry into new pieces.
An interview with poet Ocean Vuong on heartbreak and possibility.
Do you want to sew but don't know where to start? Try Noodlehead, where you can find tutorials, learn new techniques, read a blog, make a bag, get inspired.
Do we spend too much time awake these days? (Yes.) See why psychologist Rubin Naiman’s argues that we need to sleep more so we can restore the power and potential of dreams and dreaming.
Check out this mini documentary about the making of the video for Amanda Palmer’s harrowing song, “The Voicemail for Jill,” about a young woman walking through a city on her way to have an abortion.
Part beautiful and part yucky mold art.
Explore the amazing work of The Universe in Verse, an ambitious series of videos that pairs contemporary singers with classic poems and combines both with animation that touches on everything from the evolution and flowers to the consciousness of octopuses.
Russel Brand and David Lynch talk about creativity and compromise.
Read this conversation with Sara Ahmed on the making of her latest book, Complaint, and her critical study of institutional approaches to diversity, equity, and inclusion, her resignation from her academic position in protest to university polices on sexual harassment, and on how you, too, can embrace the figure of a Feminist Killjoy!
Read this interview with Rebecca Solnit and Jamie Cortez about how they think about writing, social justice, and writing about social justice.
The Rolling Stones’ Exile on Main St is fifty years old.
Giving credit where credit is due in the world of haute craft.
Itsy bitsy teeny weenie tiny dioramas.
“Done properly, a mix tape is like writing poetry.”
Pay It Forward
Cover of Is a Wave a Page of Water, a:c print projects, 2021
Speaking of making things, let us tell you about a:c print projects, the collaborative art book publishing project of Carrie Cooper (that’s me!) and my favorite person, Ahmed Ozsever.
a:c print projects curates contemplative publications that bind artist and viewer in an organic, generative process.
Each artist's book supports the creation of future artist's books.
Each collector's purchase supports the publication of more artist's books for you to collect.
Ahmed tells us more about the project in an essay on the PostScript blog—Check it out!
Visit the a:c print projects website to see more and maybe collect artist's books for your very own.
