Batwing Sweater

Erika Patberg's Cobble Hill Pullover, Cascade 128 in Denim Blue

I thought the shape of the back was a bit weird and wasn't sure how it would look on me...

Turned out that it makes me look thin :)  

I think "drapy yarn" is the key to this pattern...

Top-down knitting: Green dress

I love the top-down technique! Even a beginner knitter like me can modify a pattern! (well, but not so easily…)

I started knitting shoulders & neckline of this dress using the "feather dress" pattern from "Modern Top-down Knitting" by Kristina McGowan.  And then, I took it from there... trying the dress on every half an hour to check the progress, fixing the fit and design as I went.  I probably knitted enough to make two dresses, considering how many times I re-did every part of the dress.  CREATING A KNITTING PATTERN IS NOT EASY.  At least I learned that…

Because I’m relatively new to knitting, I made many mistakes along the way… and okay, I confess: my final tweak to the dress involved a sewing machine and a serger (probably a sinful act).  I wasn’t going to wear an ill-fitting garment, nor was I going to re-do the armholes for the seventh time…

 with my bow-tie blouse

I knitted and crocheted A LOT this winter, and it was a very educational journey.  I’m grateful that I had this wonderful opportunity to improve my skills in the yarn department.  There are many more projects I completed but had not shown here; more photos to come (maybe)!

I’m ready to start sewing again! With Spring approaching, I’m excited to start sewing light & colorful spring clothes :)

1950's Style Cardigan for My Husband from "Men's Knits"

Fortunate to have the kind of time I never had before, I’ve been avidly knitting all kinds of things this winter.  I knitted & crocheted hats, room shoes and socks for my parents and my brother in Japan, sending them via air mail as they complete. 

Then my husband complained that I never knitted for him… which is NOT true because I knitted a striped scarf for him (also from “Men’s Knits”) a couple of winters ago.  He only wore it like three times, and that is exactly why he doesn’t remember the fact I knitted for him, and the same reason why I never knitted anything for him after that (yes, I’m a grudge holder..).

My husband went shopping for a knit cardigan and came back empty handed.  At this point he begged me to knit him a new sweater cardigan.  OK, everyone deserves a second chance… so I knitted this 1950’s Style Cardigan from “Men’s Knits” by Erika Knight in extra-large.

This sweater cardigan requires gigantic knitting needles (size 17) which is a bit awkward to knit with.  But after I got the hang of it, it knitted up pretty quickly considering the size of the garment (Men’s XL).  

 I used Lion Brand’s Wool Ease Thick & Quick in charcoal instead of the expensive yarn suggested in the book… because I was still skeptical if he would wear the cardigan often enough to justify spending $150+ for the yarn…

I love this book!

 

It’s been almost 2 weeks since I completed this project, and he only wore it once.  He claims that he is saving it for more special occasions…

Well, at least he looks happy wearing it...

Top-down Knitting: Baby Alpaca 100% Sweater Dress

This is my second knit garment from the book “Modern Top- down Knitting” by Kristina McGowan.    

I used the “Feather Dress” pattern, but made some changes so the shape was more flattering on me.

At first, I followed the original pattern, but the empire shape was not doing anything for my figure, in fact, I think it was doing exactly the opposite of flattering… it looked like this:

The model is looking perfectly pretty and thin in the book, but I guess this shape isn't for me.

I knew I had spent too much money on the expensive alpaca yarn to knit something I wouldn’t wear, so I decided to fix the problem…

In the original pattern, the top bodice and the skirt pieces are joined at the under bust line and an elastic cord is attached to the joining.  I undid this joining and picked up stitches from the bodice, then knitted further down to the waist line.  I decreased stitches a bit so it gets smaller toward the waist.  I skipped the elastic cord, and re-attached the bodice and the skirt.  I undid the skirt hem about 5 inches to make it mini-length.  

I think I could have made the waist circumference even smaller for the better fit, but I am not about to undo this garment again.  I’m pretty satisfied with the sweater for now.

I also made the chiffon blouse (previous post) to wear it with… Together, it’s a cozy and super warm outfit!! 

 Thanks for visiting my blog! Happy Sewing/Knitting!! 

Sachi

Top-down Knitting: Cafe Tunic / Dress



In this previous post about my crochet cardigan, I mentioned that I was going to try "top-down" knitting---and here it is! My first KNITTED garment!!

 

 

 

I followed the instruction in the book: "Modern Top-down Knitting" by Kristina McGowan.

 

 

 

It's her "Cafe Tunic" design. Since I wanted to wear this mainly as a dress, I picked x-small size(with some negative ease) and added 1'' to the hem.

A thin elastic code is enclosed in a row of crochet in each armhole.

 

 

I got yarns on sale at a local Joann , and they were under $25 in total! It's quite a bargain for 100% wool, no??



 

 

 

I've already ordered some more yarn to knit another project from the same book...I'm quite hooked ;)