(Un)finished business

While digging through my stash in search of some fabric for a new project, I came across a halfway finished sweater. I started it about a year ago, but after lots of struggling, sweating and seam ripping, I tossed it away, discouraged!

I struggled mainly with the binding around the hood and the zipper. While the hood became reasonably OK after many attempts, I just couldn't get the bottom of the zipper right. It was all skewed and ugly. But upon seeing it again last week, I suddenly knew how to fix the problem. Hide it! I ripped the leather tag from one of the kids' jeans, cut out a triangle, and stitched on top of the flawed part! Hurray! A sweater saved!

Now it was just a matter of finishing the side seams, adding some elbow patches out of the last remains of my favorite fabric, finishing the bottom hem, and voila, a new fall sweater for my boy.

The color scheme is very 2013, but the boy won't care about that. More importantly, the sweater fits him perfectly, even after waiting a year in my stash. Fortunately, I cut out a roomy size last year!

The pattern is the Autumn Forest from Ottobre 6-2012. I must say that I'm not very enthusiastic about the pattern. First, the hood is enormous and quite out of proportion.

Furthermore, the pattern asks for ribbed knit for the binding. At my first attempts, I had trouble getting the tension right, resulting in a very wavy hood. So that's the part were the seam ripper was used more than I liked.

Finally, the pattern does not ask for lining. However, since the inside of the hood is always visible, as is the backside of the zipper (when zipped open), it would look much better if the hood and body were lined. I did line the hood with a heavy furry fleece (causing even more trouble for the binding), but in hindsight, I would have lined the body too. Furthermore, I would have encased the binding between the two layers. That would probably have resulted in a much nicer finish of the hood and zipper.

O well, at least I learned a lot from my mistakes. I do like how the binding goes all around the zipper and hood, so maybe another, similar sweater will follow, but with my modifications!
And that little triangle really saves the day, don't you think?

Knitting time

Fall is in the air, so that means that I feel like knitting again.

This hat is for a little newborn girl. It's the aviatrix again, a free pattern which you can find here. Even though it looks quite complex, it's actually very simple. A very satisfying little project!

Winners of the giveaway

I have good news for two people. Annika and Ann, you are the lucky winners of the Van Ikke giveaway. Congratulations! 

Ode to a humble knit!

Do you spot the common denominator in the creations above?

Today I want to bring an ode to one of my favorite fabrics!
The color of this knit is hard to describe. Would you call it tan? Beige? Khaki? Anyway, it has played an important part in many of my creations.  Often, its role was quite humble, providing a neutral background for other colors to show off. But of course those colors could only steal the show because they were backed by this solid, calm color.
It was fun to find back all the different creations that it has been part of.

Clockwise from top left: Winterland sweater, Panther hoodie, Owl sweater, Kingfisher tee

Unfortunately, the end of the fabric is near! It's final pieces are already cut out to become a Charlie sweater. They were originally meant to be used for the owl sweater, but I changed my mind, and used it only for the collar and cuffs.

So now I’m in doubt: how to combine this final piece of fabric? What to pair it with?

Should I go for coffee?

Iceland?

 Scandinavia?

Or something completely different?

Owl sweater - the photoshoot

As promised, some photos of the owl sweater modeled by its proud owner.

The photos were taken during an after-dinner walk to the ice cream shop. The 'golden hour' turned our nearby park into a magical place.

Notice how the colours are changing? I read in the newspaper that nature is a couple of weeks ahead of schedule, just like last spring....

Back to school and a givaway

Finally! After a long and busy summer during which I never touched my sewing machine, I finally found some time to sew again. Although a high pile of to-be-mended items was waiting, I decided to start off with something fun instead. The idea for this owl sweater had been in my head for quite some time, and it felt so good to finally realize it. The result was even better than I envisioned!

The owl applique is from Van Ikke, my favorite webshop. I love their funky, retro prints. The appliques are really high quality and stay on forever!
I went through my stash and found the perfect combination of fabrics for a fall sweater: dark brown, beige and mustard yellow, lined with an old shirt of mine.

The pattern is the Charlie sweater from Zonen 09. A great pattern. It's as easy to sew as simple tee, but the collar and lining make for a very finished look.

My favorite detail!

Did I already say that I love this color combo? I do! It's perfect for my brown-eyed, dark-haired boy.

You'll have to believe me on that, because I haven't had the chance to take photos of him wearing his new sweater. As soon as the weather turns a bit colder, I'll drag him outside for a fall photoshoot!

To celebrate my return I have a small giveaway! Two lucky winners will get a full colour applique (of their own choice) from Van Ikke. Leave a comment below in which you indicate which applique you would like to win. Post your comment before Sept 12, 8 PM CET. After that I'll randomly select two winners!

Knock it off at Elegance and Elephants

During the first three weeks of August there's a fun series going on at Elegance and Elephants: Knock it off.
It reminds me of the phrase: "talent borrows, genius steals"! Why spend a lot of money on a garment if you can create it yourself for a fraction of the price? And what's more, if you can ensure a perfect fit and omit or add details as you like?    
I'm certainly going to follow this series. I'm not sure if I will be able to sew along, but I'll link up my own favorite knock off, shamelessly copied from Scotch Shrunk!
Head over to Elegance and Elephants for more great knock-offs!