The Year Long Cardi

Break out the champagne, I have finally finished knitting the cardigan I started just over a year ago - phew! This make was from a Craftsy class run by Myra Wood called the Crazy Lace Cardigan and I have to say it was excellent.

Myra is really clear with her instructions and explains everything down to the smallest detail which is great for a beginner knitter. I had never knitted an item of clothing before so this was a perfect way to learn.

The original pattern is actually for a short sleeved bolero but I wanted long sleeves and I also lengthened the waist. I used the Get Knitting Magic Formula Calculator to figure out how to lengthen the sleeves and though they turned out a little baggier than I was hoping, I can live with them.

The idea of the course is to teach you the basic construction of the cardigan with a couple of different necklines which you can then vary any way you like with your own choice of lace patterns which I think is a great idea.

It wasn't really very difficult but it did take me a long time to knit. I put it aside for a few months over the summer (and to knit my Myrna for the OAL) but watching the class obviously takes quite a bit of time. It was worth it though, because I learnt so many new skills.

I found working with such a dark colour bit tricky as it's really hard to see, especially if you have to frog back (which I did a couple of times, of course!). It does have it's advantages though - I confess that I discovered a couple of holes in it after I'd finished but I just darned them as best I could and they're pretty well disguised :)

I really enjoyed knitting this cardigan and following the class - but boy, am I pleased to have finally finished it!

Polka Dots and Bows - Outfit Along 2014

I did it - I made the deadline for the 2014 Outfit Along! I can't quite believe I knitted a cardigan in 2 months - OK, it does only have short sleeves BUT I was on holidays for 3 weeks without much knitting time so technically it only took me 7 weeks to complete :) Considering I still haven't finished a cardi I started over a year ago, that's pretty good going for me.

Let's start with the knitting part - I made Andi Satterlund's Myrna. For a beginner knitter I thought it would be a great help to do the knit along part with blog posts from the actual designer of the pattern, for instance I would not have had a clue how to join the front and back sections had it not been for Andi's post. There were other new to me skills that Andi did posts on such as short rows and picking up stitches which explained the concept really well and for the details on how to do these, I referred to You Tube or my good old fashioned knitting books (Knit Step by Step by Vikki Haffenden & Frederica Patmore and Debbie Stoller's Stitch 'N Bitch books - great instructions with pictures for knitting newbies). Also the Ravelry forum is a great source of help and inspiration - some of those knitters are amazing and always happy to offer advice.

I made the Small size and pretty much stuck with the pattern except that I didn't do the keyhole at the back. The only thing that didn't quite work out for me was the waist - my binding off was a bit too tight, I need to find a more stretchy bind off in the future or make sure I do it really loosely.

To complete my outfit I made a pencil skirt using New Look 6003 which is a pattern I've made before so I based the measurements on a skirt I made previously. Unfortunately I didn't take into account that the previous skirt had a bit more give in the fabric so my waist band has turned out a bit tighter than I would have liked. Good incentive to lose those extra holiday pounds - ha ha. The fabric was a border print with large bows and I used the smaller bows which were on the other edge of the fabric to make the button band. And yes, my shoes have bows too!

Big thanks to Andi of Untangling Knots and Lladybird's Lauren for hosting this Outfit Along, it's been a really fun challenge. Lauren did some really detailed posts on sewing Simplicity 1803. I didn't make it this time around but this pattern is in my stash and I'll definitely be referring to her blog posts when I do get around to making it. 

All in all I'm really pleased with how my outfit turned out. Despite the tight waist band I love the skirt fabric and the cardigan goes with it perfectly. Be sure to check out some of the great finished outfits on the Ravelry thread.

A Birthday Surprise and Outfit Along Plans

I have such a cool husband. I drag him along to fabric shops, he actually listens and doesn't stare blankly at me when I talk to him about my sewing projects, he puts up with all my swearing when I have no choice but to get the seam ripper out AND he knows how to choose the perfect birthday present!

He got me an overlocker (or serger if you prefer) - Yay! - I had a little play on it today. Thank goodness it comes already threaded as I watched the instructional dvd and I'm none the wiser. I've yet to have my free lesson at Janome to learn how to use it properly. It's a little bit scary, but I'm very excited!

I'm also getting all excited about the Outfit Along co-hosted by Lauren (Lladybird) and Andi (Untangling Knots). It's a sewalong and a knitalong combined to create a complete outfit. I'm going with Andi's Myrna cardigan which is really cute and I'm hoping not too difficult as I'm not really much of an experienced knitter.

I also really like the dress chosen by Lauren for the sewalong but I haven't been able to find the right fabric for it so have decided to make a skirt with some fabric from my stash.

I'm not sure I'll be able to finish the cardi in time (end of July is the deadline) and I probably should be knitting a less summery outfit seeing as we're just moving into winter here but hey, I can't resist a sewalong - it's gonna be fun.