From Cardigan to Cowl to Throw: A Tale of Super Bulky Yarn

Three years ago I knitted this cardigan:

It's the Marilyn cardigan from the book Twinkle's Big City Knits. If you haven't come across this book before, it's full of patterns in super bulky yarn - hats, cardigans, jumpers, you name it. 

Now, knitting in bulky yarn is great because it knits up so quickly. But knitting clothing in such thick yarn? Not so great. This cardigan was a stinker. It looked really silly on, with it's bell shaped sleeves - it would have been perfect for Karen's Ugly Amnesty, but I don't even have any photos of me wearing it. The photo in the book disguised the fact that the stitch pattern leaves big holes from the yarn overs. I think it's pictured in the book being worn over an evening dress (the book's since been charity shopped), and really, it's not fit to be worn in real life.

I certainly can't recommend the book - stupid patterns notwithstanding, nearly every single pattern has some kind of error in it, requiring you to check the online errors on the publisher's website.

This project was a classic beginner's mistake, but not a cheap one as I had to shell out about £60 for the wool (6 balls of Rowan Big Wool) and two pairs of really large needles (15mm and 17mm circulars). Once ripped out, what on earth was I going to do with all that wool?

Well, some of it had a brief incarnation as a cowl:

But I only wore it once, and didn't really like the shape. So it was also frogged. Rrrrrrrriiiiiipppp!!

All of that super bulky yarn was really taking up a lot of space in my yarn stash, so a few weeks ago I bit the bullet and got it all out again. I started knitting some stripes, adding in some red wool I was given by a work colleague. And I knitted and knitted until I got this:

 

Just a big ole' knitted rectangle. I think the garter stitch shows off the yarn well and it feels really cosy and squashy. I have put it over the back of the sofa, where it will of course get covered in cat hair, but it will also handily cover some marks on the sofa (the danger of a cream sofa...) and looks nice and bright. The green even goes with the lampshade (though not with the cushions or curtains, but let's ignore that).

If I was making it again I'd make it a bit wider, but I wasn't sure how far the wool would go. I'm pretty chuffed with the resulting bit of knitting, and tell myself it's the kind of thing you'd see for lots of money in a fancy shop. I'm certainly not ripping it out again - that's for sure! I'm very proud of my nifty bit of stash busting, and have added The Little Red Squirrel's Stash busting button to my blog to celebrate.

Have you had any yarn which has been recycled multiple times?

K x

Share Your Sewing Swap Goodies!

Hello Swappers

By now you should have all received your package from your swap partner, and I know that most of you have posted about what you received. I hope you all enjoyed taking part, it's been really fun to host it and to see blog posts popping up about it.

I am definitely going to run another swap again later on this year, so I would love any feedback you have - just let me know in the comments or by email at kestrelmail@gmail.com

Below, you can add a link directly to your blog post, so you can share your goodies, and also see what everyone else got of course! I hope this link thing works - it's the first time I've used such a thing on my blog, so as you can imagine it's a terribly exciting time for me.

Here goes....

Pattern Monday #29

Alec Baldwin and the Hotdog with the Human Face stalk Pippa Middleton

Pattern from The Butterfly Balcony

K x


p.s - I have to credit my Current Husband for today's caption :)

Mystical Baked Beans Maxi Dress

 

 Displaying a pasty arm. It's the British way.

 

It's done! After the people spoke (or in fact, wrote), I used my wax print fabric to make a maxi dress by extending the skirt on this Style pattern:

Don't you think the pattern on the fabric has a definite 'baked beans' look to it?

 Here's how the project went....

 Pattern Used

 

 Style 2667 from the 80s. I made view 3 with a square neckline, extended it to maxi length

 What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?

 I liked the neckline, and the potential for extending the length. I also thought it would suit a belt, but now made, I prefer it without.

Fabric & Notions

Fabric was a wax print bought last year in Goldhawk Road. I bought it without a plan in mind and ended up with 4.8 metres worth as it was the end of a roll, so it was destined to be made into a maxi. Once washed, the fabric turned out to be quite thin (much more so than the usual wax fabrics I think) so I needed to line the bodice. If it was a shorter dress I would have lined the whole thing, but life's too short to line a maxi dress that will probably get limited wear.

 

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made

Added 1" to the bodice and extended the skirt length. I had to change the strap positioning so that they covered my bra straps (mostly). I also lined the bodice with black poly cotton.

Would you sew it again and do anything different next time?

I might sew it again in the shorter length for a fun sun dress, but I have no immediate plans to do so.

Did you use any new techniques?

Extending a skirt to a longer length. I made a new pattern piece and had to play around with the shape. In hindsight, I would have been better to just sew on a rectangle with gathers, as I think this would have created a better shape. 

Would you recommend the pattern to others?

Yep, there are a couple of other nice bodice variations too.

Cost

Fabric about £8, zip £1.50, thread £1.55, pattern 49p so £11.54 total.

Conclusion 

I'm pretty happy with the result. The bodice is a good fit, although it is a little wrinkled at the sides, which might be something to do with how attaching the lining affected it. The shape of the skirt is a bit weird as it flares out from the waist but then in again at the bottom. Not sure why this is, but it doesn't bother me too much.

I made it for holiday wear and it will be perfect for this - I don't see myself floating round my neighbourhood in it, but you never know! 

A voluminous skirt is the perfect hiding place for cats

What do you think of maxi dresses? Would you make one?

K x

Summer Sewing Swap - What I Got

On Monday I received my package from my swap partner Leni of The Big Dipper Said.

Leni had chosen a '4th of July' theme and here's what I got:

 Some fun patriotic fabric - My Current Husband immediately earmarked this for a shirt

 A sewing supplies catalogue from 1950 - I love this, and am going to feature something from it in a future post.

Cute clothing labels and RAYON SEAM BINDING - is it weird that I'm really excited about using this? I've never had any before.

Box of sweet snaps and buttons

Thanks Leni!

So, as I've said before, I will post next Wednesday and then you can all post links directly to your blog posts about your swap parcel  (once I work out how to do that with one of those link tool things that lets commenters post an image and link - any tips on tools to use?!)

K x

Get those pins out of your mouth!!

Image from here

Have you ever held pins in your mouth while sewing? I know I have.

But after reading this story about what happened to a woman who inhaled a pin (yes really, not swallowed, inhaled), I think I probably won't bother in the future...

K x

99% Awesome Dress

I really love this dress. Really, really love it. I'm not particularly vain, but I will admit that I have spent a fair amount of time looking at myself in this dress, and thinking how much I love it. I love the shape, the fit and the fabric - it's quite a win for something that was originally intended to be a wearable muslin.

The fabric was a duvet cover bought cheaply a few weeks ago to be used to make a muslin. I would normally have just made a bodice muslin for a new pattern, but the fabric pattern grew on me, so I thought I may a well just make the full thing.

The pattern was bought from Etsy a couple of months ago when I bought a different pattern from a seller, and thought I may as well see what else she had since I was paying for the postage from the US. Soon afterwards I wondered why I'd bought it, since it's fairly similar to the Peony dress. But, since I'd kind of fallen out with that pattern, I thought I'd give this a whirl.

The fabric pattern might not be to everyone's tastes but I really love it, especially paired with a red belt. But I think it's the fit that makes the dress. My work friend commented today that it looked like it was made exactly to fit me. And that's a great compliment to receive on an item you've made. After having spent that last 2 years making 36" bust patterns and then taking them in, I made a 34" bust pattern and adjusted for my wide shoulders. I don't know why it's taken so long to figure that one out. The shape of the skirt is also super flattering.

The final version isn't perfect, but it's pretty close. I also managed to put the pockets at the perfect height, and used a bias faced neckline for the first time, which I love.

 

Here's my review of the project:

Pattern Used
 

Simplicity 4903 from the 1960s. I made view 2, with short sleeves, but left off the little bows at the waist.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?

I liked the shape of the neckline and that it seemed like a classic style. 

Fabric & Notions
I used a duvet cover for the fabric plus an invisible zip.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made

I added pockets - of course! I put them 2.5" down from the waist. I added my customary 1" to the bodice and also made a wide shoulder adjustment.

Would you sew it again and do anything different next time?

I will be sewing it again as this was technically a muslin. Next time I am adding more room for shoulders and will also lower the armscye a little - during wear I noticed that it was a little high.

Did you use any new techniques?

Yes! Instead of facing at the neckline I used bias tape.

Er, why have I never used this technique before? It's amazing! It worked like a dream and looks lovely and neat. Every time I learn something new in sewing I think it's the best thing ever and that's just how I feel about this.

Would you recommend it to others?

Yes.

Cost

Duvet cover was 99p, zip about £1.50, pattern about £6, thread £1.45 so £9.94 in total.

Conclusion
You know how I feel about it, no need to repeat myself. This weekend I will be making it using this:

Lovely Michael Miller Eiffel Tower fabulousness. I've managed to cut the pattern out with the towers the right way up - phew for that, so am hoping I can just fix the wide shoulder adjustment to my satisfaction.

After reading Tilly's helpful guide on sewing with quilting cotton today, I am now a little wary about adding the sleeves. But forewarned is forearmed so I'm going to give it a go, and if it looks awful I'll make it sleeveless.

I'll leave you with a photo of me and Tilda celebrating the dress....

K x

Giveaway Winner!

And the winner of the giveaway is................

Comment 15 - by jadestar who blogs at Crafted By Me.

Well done!

I'll email you to get your postal address


K x

Pattern Monday #28

Cheryl knew her Mum's 'Make Do and Mend' lifestyle was out of control when she started making clothes out of bath mats.


K x

Vintage Knitting Bonanza

I made a great charity shop score yesterday lunchtime:

   Vintage knitting patterns!

I went for a quick walk via a charity shop I often visit, and spied a box of vintage patterns. After wading through the usual 1980s baby patterns I found quite a few gems. I only bought about a third of what I originally picked out, as they were 49p each and I didn't want to spend a fortune. In the end, I made out very well for £5, trying to select ones which were different from patterns I already had, or ones which I thought I had a reasonable chance of making one day.

Here's a few highlights:

A 1930s pattern book - I don't have any patterns as early as this, so I was so happy to find it. I love the sweater on the left.

 

 Turban and gloves set - I think Bestway patterns are my absolute favourite

 

 Sweet sweaters

 Swimwear....OK, I will never make a knitted swimsuit. But come on, how could you not buy these?!

I think this is the best vintage knitting pattern find I have ever made. I could have bought more but resisted, so I hope some other vintage knitting fan appreciates my generosity - ha!

K x

Fabric & Notions Giveaway

It's giveaway time!

To mark my 2nd year of blogging (in June) and reaching over 200 followers on the blog, I'm having a giveaway to say thanks.

This blog means a lot to me. It's more than just a way to connect with people who share my interests, it's my own, personal, fabric-bedecked oasis from everyday life. It makes me happy that anyone is interested in hearing my thoughts and seeing what I've been making. I truly love reading your comments and very much appreciate all of you who take the time to read and comment.

Anyway, here's what's in the giveaway:

 

1.  1.5 metres of floral printed cotton. It's a light weight/loose weave in 58" width and perfect for summer
2. 3 metres of vintage lace trim
3. A sweet lace collar, perfect for adding to a plain top or dress (or a patterned one - you can do what you like with it!)
4. A pack of self-cover buttons
5. A bundle of 1.5" grosgrain ribbon

You need to be a follower to enter the giveaway - just leave a comment below to say what you would use any of the giveaway items for.

I will keep the giveaway open until 5pm GMT on Tuesday 10th July. Entries are welcome from anywhere, I will post worldwide. The winner will be selected at random - Please make sure your blogger profile includes your email address, or it is included in your comment, otherwise you'll miss out!

Good luck!

K x