Monthly Archives: March 2014

Dressy Jacket

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I’m working on an evening look for an upcoming benefit gala.Dressy-Jacket-OM Dressing up for an event is always fun to plan for. I’m making palazzo pants, a slinky top and then I’m topping it off with this jacket. I’ll show the pant and top as I finish them, but both are already under construction.

I’ve had this fabric in my stash for at least 5 years just waiting for the right moment. The texture has some dimension and a bit of stiffness, but also drapes enough for this Vogue pattern by Geoffrey Beene (V2232 out-of-print). Dressy-Jacket1-OM-web

Black, copper and bright blue threads are woven together to make this slightly iridescent textile. It’s the blue threads that really make the copper pop. I don’t want to ruin the surprise, but the other pieces have a lot of gold metallic so I added the gold studs on the pockets for just a dash of sparkle.Dressy-Jacket-web-DM

Samurai Sweater

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No, the design of this sweater has nothing to do with Samurai. Purple-Batwing2-FMwebHowever, I watch movies with my husband when I knit at night with my little red LED neck lamp. He LOVES Samurai movies, especially the old classics. His favorite is a series of 26 movies about a blind Samurai, Zatoichi. Let me tell you, when the heads are rolling, I get a lot of knitting done! What I do love about these movies are the sets and the clothing. Both men and women wear the most amazing kimono. The architecture is stunning in it’s simplicity.Purple-Batwing-BMwebThe sweater is knit from the free Berrocco pattern, Blish. Being a fairly simple top down, knit in the round sweater, it only took 3 weeks of movies to knit! I went shopping for the yarn with girlfriends who talked my into this smoky purple color in Dream in Color Cashmere Blend Worsted. I’m glad they did! I wear purple, but usually knit in my classic fall colors of oranges and browns. This will add a little color to my winter wardrobe.

Not just another sweatshirt

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Lauren-Sweatshirt-FMwI wear my first sweatshirt refashion so much I decided to tackle another. I started with a very small Ralph Lauren sweatshirt with an awesome military collar. I took the back off again and added it to the front. This time there wasn’t enough fabric in the original sweatshirt to allow for princess seams, but I cut the sweatshirt in a triangle with the smallest part aligning with the collar shape. I think it still has a slimming line on top.

Lauren-Sweatshirt-OMwWhen I tried it on it was still too small on top. Aha, a GDO! (good design opportunity). I took the fabric from the sleeves and added a triangular gusset under the arms. I like the detail it adds to the garment.

Lauren-Sweatshirt-DBwA triangle in the back finishes the line and concept. Overall this tunic is slimmer than the last one and I may even like it better!

Mind the Gap Sweatshirt Tunic

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I love the feeling of a sweatshirt, but the boxy shape is so unflattering on me.  Anything that hangs straight down from the “top shelf” ends up too big at my waist. This orange Gap sweatshirt caught my eye at the local thrift store because of the color. The contrasting color is purchased fabric.Gap-Sweatshirt2-FMwSince I don’t know how to draft a pattern from scratch, I used 3 different patterns to come up with the basic lines of the tunic including the princess seam on the front. Basically there is just a touch from each pattern and then I went to work fitting on my dress form.Gap-Sweatshirt-OMw

I cut the back of the original sweatshirt a few inches down from the neck leaving a back yoke. This piece is then added to the front to give the tunic a long line of orange. I also cut off all of the banding from the sleeves and hem to reuse as the band for the final silhouette.

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The back seemed too large around the waist so I made some little pleats.

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Since black skinny knit pants have become my go to bottom, I stenciled the front kangaroo pocket with a few numbers in black.

It’s so comfy, but just a little bit dressier than your average sweatshirt!