Assinboine Cowl

Wearing my new assinboine cowl

Last April, home sick for a few days, I decided to start knitting something ‘tricky’. I wanted to use some beautiful yarn I’d bought on holidays in Hobart. So it had to be suitable for DK weight. I wanted a project with challenges and I wanted to find the pattern for free on Ravelry. Enter the Assinboine Cowl.

I found that knitting cables wasn’t as hard as I’d expected. I could follow the chart and that was fine. I didn’t swatch it first, because I was sick and tired and mostly couldn’t bring myself to wait – so in the end I did many more repeats than the pattern required!

The work in progress – nearly finished!

What was hard, I discovered, was trying to figure out what I was looking at from row to row and working out whether I’d made mistakes. With the cables and decreases and yarn overs, there were a decent share of dropped stitches and picked up stitches. Which I consciously decided to ignore, mostly. I found unpicking the cable rows so hard that for the most part I fudged it whenever I could and knit on. This I think is the real test of being a beginner – not knowing what the hell you’re looking at. Consequently, this cowl might be described as ‘charming’ because of the errors I can see throughout it.

Wearing my new assinboine cowl

One final note – the provisional cast on and three needle bind off, creating an invisible seam, was really interesting. Again, my beginner skillz weren’t really up to the task and when unravelling the provisional cast on to put it back on the sticks I just about chucked the whole thing in. But the result is ok! Close enough for jazz.

Here you can see the not-quite-invisible-seam

Showing the seam from the inside

Finished cowl, pre-blocking

Blocking

Blocking

I finished it over the summer holidays, knitting at a lovely spot in Aireys Inlet, watching the birds and the ocean. It’s taken this long to put it on and take a photo! Thank goodness Melbourne has brought the #ausumn weather.

Gratuitous Aireys Inlet photo!

Here are the details:

Sublime baby cashmere merino silk dk
75% extra fine merino
20% silk
5% cashmere
$14 for 50g
4mm bamboo sticks

Bought in Tassie, at Tassie Wool Co

Chevron Chenille Baby Blanket

This was a gift to a marvellous couple who are imminently due to give birth.

I’d been dreaming of it for a while. Ever since I first saw this blog post, probably a couple of years ago.

I followed all of the steps in Aesthetic Nest’s tutorial, basically to the letter. My sewing is, regrettably, not as neat as hers, but I’m very pleased with the final quilt. I hope that the darker orange flannel will show through a bit more after a few washes. But it’s very snuggly.

I hope M, Y and Chooky enjoy it. x

Cutting into the felt layers

Quilting in Zig Zags

Zig Zags – Visible on the Reverse Side

Both sides shown after quilting

Ta da! Chenille chevron side post-wash

Both sides complete – stitched and cut

 

 

Tension

From this:

 

to this:

thanks to this:

High waisted work pants

I decided some time ago that I needed new black pants. My other black work pants had seen their end and I wanted some a little more in my style.

Last summer I made these shorts.

Red Sailor Shorts

 

The pattern is from Thread Den and also comes in pants.

Summer Sweet Shorts – Image courtesy Thread Den

High Waisted Pants – Image courtesy Thread Den

I love high waisted pants. Who doesn’t? Picture women like these:

Katharine Hepburn – in pants (image courtesy suckitmartha.wordpress.com)

Audrey Hepburn in sailor pants (image courtesy tomboystyle.blogspot.com.au)

Lix from The Hour

I decided to use the pattern I already had from Thread Den, but wanted to modify the front to remove the button closures and make them a little more formal in style. I changed the button placket and turned it into self-drafted pockets, relying on Tasia’s wonderful tutorial on slash pockets, designed for her crescent skirt. Sew-along-post here: http://sewaholic.net/crescent-sew-along-11-sewing-slash-pockets/

I had to modify the waistband so that it wrapped right around the waist and added a side closure with a zip. I was a bit worried about the waistband, because it meant that the band would curve right across the grain of the fabric. It turned out ok and I sewed the waistband on by ‘stitching in the ditch’.

Here’s some shots of the work in progress – which was last November!!

Pictures of the finished pants to come!

This video changed my life

Gertie’s Tiki Sundress – Shirring & Boning

I am in the midst of making Gertie’s tiki sundress, from Gertie’s Book for Better Sewing:

Gerti’es Tiki Sundress

I did a quick muslin yesterday, explored about 6 fabric shops looking for suitable printed cotton (hoping for hawaiian barkcloth, but no cigar), washed the fabric, left it to dry while we ate tacos, then embarked on the bodice work.

So far, it’s involved shirring and boning in the bodice, both of which are new to me. I remain skeptical about whether the boning will sit right and won’t stab me, but I think it will be easier to tell once the bodice pieces are together.

The shirring worked really well and I’m looking forward to seeing it in the dress. It’s like magic, the part at the end where you apply steam and watch it shrink! Some dark arts at work.

Putting the bodice together doesn’t now seem too difficult – however the thought of creating the side draped pencil skirt (today) to attach to the bodice is sort of terrifying. Fingers crossed.

Colette Sorbetto for Christmas

I finally made a Colette Sorbetto. But after toying around with one for myself, cutting and checking the fit of the pattern, I cast it aside so as to make one for my sister for Christmas.

I made a straight US8, without any adjustments. I think the finish was pretty good in the end, with a couple of exceptions. Namely, I think more gentle steaming is required to ease in the bias binding around the neckline and secondly I think I should’ve done the bound finish on the armholes after sewing the side seams, to allow the  binding to sit a little more naturally. Hopefully a couple of washes will soften it up. Perhaps not cutting it truly on the bias is also a problem? Probably should’ve thought of that.

Fabric is a lovely 100% cotton from The Fabric Store. $20/m. I used less than one metre. Hope she likes it!

 

PS. I swear I pressed *every* seam and ironed the bejeezus out of it…cotton…

 

More wedding invitation fun

 

 

 

 

 

Musings on a blouse

I bought this remnant piece from The Fabric Store a few weeks ago.

I wanted it for a semi-fitted cap sleeve blouse, with a back opening. I currently feel it is destined to become a variation on Gertie’s bow-tie blouse. No bow tie, no peter pan collar and no shirring. Possible peep hole in front. Somewhere between the first and third pictures below I think. Button closures down the back.

Bow Tie Blouse and Variations – Image courtesy coutureacademic.wordpress.com, taken from Gerties New Book for Better Sewing

Making progress with the Assinboine cowl

I think I’ve been knitting this forever. But I really do love it. I’m currently paying for not knitting a guage swatch – have finished the repeats dictated by the pattern, but it doesn’t seem the right length so far, so I’ll keep knitting a bit longer.