How great are vests? This pattern is available on Squidney Knits Patreon and it's brilliant. Her whole method is to use your own measurements and spi (sts per inch) to create a personalised pattern. My version is knit with leftover Bendigo yarn from a jumper finished earlier this year so I was being yardage conservative at best. The ribbed band should be a bit longer but it's nothing between friends. The stitch pattern is a mix of knit and purls that is easy to 'read' what row you are up to. I much prefer to read my rows rather than make tally marks of where I'm up to. Makes me feel like even more of a knitting wizard. One interesting thing about this pattern is that the upper back and upper front are different widths. As you take your own measurements and work that in line with your gauge (5spi for me), it can be a different width for the front and the back. I have never knitted a garment where the front is not an exact repeat of the back but with neckline shaping. What a revelation! This did require wet blocking as the armholes and neckline are only 4 rows of ribbing deep. They kept wanting to flip upwards. They soon discovered my patience is not infinite. (Just a little Black Jack Randall quote there.) The wet block took an age because just after the vest had soaked, it rained for 3 days. Oh, and I used the double-worked super-stretchy bind off for the neck. I don't think "bind off loosely" is enough stretch. Aside: How much mileage can I get out of this 18th C shirt? Honestly, not enough. I love it so much. It can do Poldark, Outlander, any Jane Austen / Regency period, might even be able to shove it into early Victorian! Drama. Linen. Comfort. Historical. Vest: Knitted from Squidney Knit's Patreon Pattern - Scarecrow Vest Shirt: 18th C mens shirt Skirt: Squared out pencil skirt from the Blue Suit Shoes: American Duchess Claire
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I'm unstoppable. I can't stop making suit sets. Suits are so polished and put together. Instant style. I don't know what it is about matching sets that immediately reads as overdressed. Is it because this has been the pandemic of stretch trackies? Who knows. This suit is a simple straight skirt and a what is basically a blouse with a bit more ease. But somehow, it looks so much more formal that it is. This is the same Simplicity 8747 jacket as seen in my green wool suit post. There are lots of modifications! Scroll to the bottom to see them as a list. I have really enjoyed this pattern and made it 3 times now. I like the amount of flare in this version at the back, and the flappy turn-out collar is a bit more relaxed than the Peter Pan style collar on the green version. I've been highly recommended to try the skirt from this pattern - apparently it's a bit Victorian in the back? Might give it a whirl in the future. Sure, the sleeves aren't set in a smoothly as possible. But mate did I wrestle with them! This cotton drill from Spotlight doesn't have much stretch in it, so it was a serious challenge to get any ease happening. Eh, not that big of a deal, because LOoK aT hOw cUtE iT Is! Mods
Details Suit: Simplicity 8747 & By Hand London Charlotte Skirt Shoes: K-Mart, circa 2015 Clutch & Brooch: Vintage from Etsy Hair flower: Target It's finished! This suit will be my partner in crime for stylish social gatherings and assorted civilised mingling. If you follow me on insta, you will recall some tense moments recorded in my stories. The most emotional of these moments was The Collar Issue. It was dire there for a moment, but nothing 6 hours of painstaking unpicking, thread marking and hand sewing couldn't save. Now, you couldn't even tell that I butchered the collar. Sure, the skirt insides are a bit... post modern. There is the champagne coloured lining, buttery yellow petersham ribbon facing, and then Kelly green rayon hem tape. A post-modern party only I get to witness...and viewers of this blog. But still, this is the 1950s suit of my dreams. Simplicity 8747 has a lot of flare in the back. I'm talking needs-to-be-wrestled-into-submission sort of flare. The CB seam has ample swoosh which could cope with having half the amount (if you take your reference from the CB seam line). There is also space to remove some flare from the back princess seams. It feels like a circle skirt back there. Dramatic, absolutely. But perhaps a little impractical. I'm struggling to get it to sit nicely. All in all, this took about 5 weeks to complete. That included having a week off while I was waiting for petersham ribbon to arrive. There is a lot of hand sewing in this project, but living in Sydney lockdown means I had plenty of couch time for that! This suit makes me so happy. I was thinking the other day - what's the point in sewing clothes if you don't make things you absolutely love? Mods / notes
Suit: Simplicity 8747 jacket and By Hand London Charlotte Pencil Skirt Fabric: Wool Cashmere in the colour Kiwi by SuperCheapFabrics Hat: Vintage Bag: Vintage Out of frame shoes: Kitten D'Amour A new knit has been finished! This whole project was started and completed in less than a month, and that included a few days off while I waited for new yarn to arrive. It's a fast knit but there has been a lot of 'down time' where I have been in my house, listening to music or watching Star Wars to help pass the time. Knitting makes me happy so of course I have been doing a lot of it. I was short of yarn by 3 rounds of decreases, 10 stockinette rows, 13 rows of ribbing, and a stretchy cast off. So.... yeah, that's a bit short! I'm not sure if the pattern underestimated the amount required, or if there wasn't the correct amount in the skien. Perhaps both? More yarn was ordered, and it turned up a few days later. Imagine how relieved I was to discover it was the same dye lot as the original ball! :D This gorgeous yarn is by Bendigo Woollen Mills, Luxury 4ply Sweetheart in the colour Sienna Kiss. It's such a rich and warm colour perfect for autumn and winter. If you are a fellow Aussie knitter, you should know and use Bendigo Woollen Mills. Seriously, their yarn is an absolute dream to knit. If you want more tech notes then have a look at my Ravelry page for the project. Here, it has been styled with some old faithfuls from my wardrobe on an overcast day. Top: Beauty School By Poison Grrls
Skirt: Wool blend from eBay Beret: Part of my high school uniform circa 2000/01 Lipstick notes: Certainly Red by Revlon This Halloween, my lovely said to me, why don't you whip up something for the Halloween party? You can make a dress in a day or so, yeah? ... Paraphrasing here of course. But that was the general jist of the conversation. Cue a trip to Spotlight where their Halloween fabric range was on special for $8.00 / m. Sign me up! Bought 4m in total - 2m for the skirt, 2m for the blouse. The fabric was pre-washed and then thrown in the dryer for ultimate shrinkage. I prepped the pattern at about 10.30pm and cut everything out. As the skirt is a collection of rectangles, I didn't cut the fabric but just did the ripping trick. If you have a rip-able fabric this is such a great and quick technique to get on grain rectangles. While working on the outfit, he kept saying this looks like my shirt from London... You know the one? I couldn't remember the one. He kept describing it in detail and I truly had no recollection. Turns out the fabric was a perfect match! Look at him remembering exactly what his clothes are. This is a Vivien of Holloway shirt that was purchased in London April 2019! We were all matchy-matchy for the party. It was fun. The skirt is a basic gathered skirt with side seam pockets and back lapped zipper. The blouse is the button back blouse hack of Simplicity 1692. I didn't use the little loopy ties for the neckline and cuffs. Ain't nobody got time for that. Seriously, I love this button back version of this pattern. I don't like side zippers at the best of times (especially with my shoulders) and invisible zips in side seams for tops is just plain dumb. Why make something so hard to put on with no give through the high bust / armpit to armpit section of the top? Silly. Button backs are great and the spacing of these tops mean I can get fully dressed myself. I'm a regular dressing wizard. As a side note, I also put the grey ribbon on his hat along with a little mottled brown feather for Guys and Dolls in September 2019 - he played Sky Masterson. Grey suit, black hat with matching grey ribbon. Perfect. The plan was that if I made separates then I might be able to split them up and get a bit more wear out of them. And so far, I have! All in all, a very successful hurried Halloween outfit. Please see the success of separates below. Blouse: Salme Patterns Kimono top in silk from Marrickville Skirt: Self drafted pencil skirt Shoes: DSW Blouse: Simplicity 1962
Skirt: Salvos Shoes: DSW |
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