Sewing

Last month I had a cutting session and I was able to get about six projects cut out.  I've found that if I cut out a bunch of things, then I can sew them up as I have time, and even 10-15 minutes is enough to get a few things done.  I decide what order I want to sew them in (sometimes it's based on thread color, sometimes it's based on the pattern), and cut them out in reverse order, stacking the cut pieces and the patterns in a large tray I have.  Then I just carry the tray upstairs to my sewing room and get to work!

This is the Rhapsody Blouse from Love Notions, with the bell sleeves, sewn in Liberty Tana Lawn.  Since it's made in the lightweight Liberty cotton, I should be able to get a lot of wear out of it here, including into the fall, when I want to wear fall-looking clothes, but it's still 90 degrees outside.  This was not a difficult project to sew up, and while I haven't finished the ties yet (they're too long - I have to decide how long I want them, tie the ends in knots, and then trim the ends), it's otherwise finished.  The finished blouse is soft and comfortable, but I think it would also be nice in rayon or a lightweight linen.  (Both rayon and lawn are recommended fabrics for this pattern.)

Next up is a linen dress in some pink paisley linen from Lithuania!

A New Sweater!

Some of you may remember a couple of years ago I attempted to knit the Sous Sous pullover.  According to project comments, there may (or may not) be errors in the pattern, and at the time I didn't have time to sort through everything that might or might not have been going on.  I ended up frogging what I had, which was most of the back, and worked on something else.  I've never been able to get the sweater out of my head though and I've decided to give it another try.

I sat down and re-read all the notes I'd made on the first attempt, and read through the project notes of those who had already knit the sweater.  The weird thing is, there are people who say there are issues with the pattern and make corrections, and people who say they knit it as directed and had no trouble at all.  Some of the latter are probably experienced knitters who are just automatically correcting things as they go because they see what the pattern should have said, but the biggest problem I see noted is that the number of repeats don't match up between the front and the back (the sweater is seamed so front and back are knit separately).  The pattern directions begin with the back and that's how I started last time, but this time around I decided to start with the front.  I'm also marking the first and last stitch of the first row of each repeat.  This will help me count repeats, but it will also help with seaming later.

I'm knitting this in Madelinetosh Tosh DK in Fatal Attraction - a gorgeous, rich, slightly cool red.  I've just gotten to the place where the neckline splits the front, so I'll be working both halves at once as I continue.  There is shaping to the front that makes the raised hemline, but it also does the shoulder shaping, so that's why the piece is angled downwards on the sides.  I'm optimistic that I'll get this done this time, and I'm keeping copious notes, which I'll add to my project page, to either help out or confuse future knitters.  (Or so I can knit it again someday if I love it!)

Finished!

I finished and blocked the Katahdin Cardigan!  This was a lot of knitting, but the finished cardigan is cozy and snuggly without being too heavy.  I knit it in Malabrigo Arroyo in Azules, which is a tonal blue colorway that knits up looking like Paua shell.  I used almost 2000 yards for this cardigan, but I did make a few changes from the pattern.

The pattern has waist shaping, which is usually a good idea, but in this case, with an open cardigan, I knew it wasn't going to really do any shaping, it would just pull towards the back.  Instead I added some A-line shaping instead.  I mean, if you're looking for a shaped garment, you're not going to finish it off with a huge, dramatic shawl collar and hide all that shaping, right?  So I went with the big and snuggly.  I also made the sleeve cuffs shorter than the pattern called for.  Garter stitch takes forever to get any length, and I didn't think I had the intestinal fortitude to knit cuffs as deep as the pattern calls for.  (Mine are still a couple of inches, though.)

The collar is definitely a commitment. It's not hard to knit, there's just a lot of different stitch patterns and the original pattern was written as a leaflet for a yarn company: they used as little paper as possible, so I found it easier to make a list of each of the steps and manually checked them off as I went.  Overall, I enjoyed knitting this, and I believe it will be nice to toss on when the weather cools off again!

Not The Collar

Before there is panic, I'm still working on The Collar, but I have also done a bit of sewing.  This is the Stanwyck Skirt.  I made the pencil version with curved pockets and straight waistband.  I made it in a Japanese Cotton Linen blend canvas because I was looking for something casual.  This is actually the same fabric I used for Mr. Noodle's Christmas leaf.

The pattern was easy to follow, although some of the directions might have been easier in a different order.  For instance, she has you join the side seams of the front and back before installing the zipper.  I think adding the zipper to the back first, then sewing the side seams would have been easier.  I don't know if there's a reason for this, and I did follow all of the directions in order to make this skirt, but when I make another one, I'll probably do a few things in a different order.  Also, I'll probably make the circle skirt version at some point (with pockets, of course!)

Have a great weekend!  I'll be finishing The Collar (hopefully) and blocking my cardigan!