sew knit me

marshmallow lace free knitting pattern

2012-01-29T17:59:00.000-08:00

Here is the pattern for the lace pullover that I made, aspromised. It's a very loose fittingpullover, as you can see in the picture. Be warned, this is my first sweater pattern that I am posting, so I'mnot sure if the grading is quite right. Be sure to look carefully at the finished measurements and the diagram,and also keep in mind if you do want to alter the width of the pattern that youcan do that just by adding or subtracting 6 stitches to the underarm section,which is equal to a pattern repeat. Hopeyou like it!

Diamond lace pullover

Sizes: S/M, M/L, L/XL

Materials:

approx. 600 (700, 800) yards bulky weight wool/wool blend yarn (I used recycled yarn, so the amount is not for sure, but this should be way more than you need)
size US 17 circular and double-pointed needles
size US 10.5 circular and double-pointed needles

Gauge: 7 stitches, 13rows to four inches in stockinette on larger needles

Finished measurements: bust, 40” (46, 52); length, 24”

terms:

yo—yarn over
k2t—knit two together
k2tbl—slip two stitches knitwise, insert left needle, knit
k3t—slip one stitch, knit next two stitches together, pass slip stitch over

Using the smaller needles, loosely cast on 74 stitches. Joinfor knitting in the round. Place marker.

k2, p2 around for 8 to 10 rounds.

decrease round—with larger needles, *k2, k2t* until youreach the last four stitches before marker, k4.

Now we start the lace. The neckline has short row shaping, as well as the raglan shaping, sowe'll separate the neckline portion of the lace into three sections: back,front shoulder a, front shoulder b. These are worked and then the piece is worked in the round.

Note: every time thepattern says to turn, start by passing yarn to other side, then slip onestitch, pass yarn back, slip stitch back, and then turn. This wraps a loop of yarn around one stitch,which prevents a hole from forming where you turn the work.

Turn work. Removemarker. The type of increases that we'redoing doesn't allow for a regular marker, but you can tie a contrast bit ofyarn a row down to mark the beginning round. You may have to untie it and move it up as you go. We'll call the yarn overs that are done overthe markers “yom” to distinguish them.

Row 1 (wrongside): Purl 15 stitches. Turn.

Row 2 (rightside): knit 2, yo (yom), tie a marker below, k5, yo, k2t, k4, yom, k3, pickingup one. Turn.

Row 3 and allwrong side rows: *purl to marker, k1 p1 into that yom*, p 3. Turn.

Row 4: k1,k2tbl, yo, k1, yom, *k1, yo, k2t, k1, k2tbl, yo* 2 times, k1, yom, k1, yo, k2t,k2. Turn

Row 6: k1,k2tbl, yo, k3, yom, *k3, yo, k3t, yo* 2 times, k3, yom, k3, yo, k2t, k2. Turn.

Row 8: k1,k2tbl, yo, k5, yom, k5, *yo, k2t, k 4* 2 times, yom, k5, yo, k2t, k2. Turn.

Row 10: k1,k2tbl, yo, k1, yo, k2t, k1, k2tbl, yo, k1, yom, *k1, yo, k2t, k1, k2tbl, yo* 3times, k1, yom, k1, k2tbl, yo, k1, yo, k2t, k2. Turn.

There are now42 stitches.

Shoulder A:

Row 1: *purlto m, k1p1 into yom* two times, p 20. Now we're doing shoulder a.

Row 2: k2,yom, tie marker below, k2. Turn.

Row 3: p2,k1p1 into yom, p3. Turn.

Row 4: k1,k2tbl, yo, k1, yom, k1, yo, k2t, k2. Turn.

There are now58 stitches.

Shoulder B:Repeat shoulder A exactly, starting with p20, etc.

We're nowready to start working in the round. Youmay notice that the beginning of the round is now in the middle of the sleeve,which is not a good place, but we're going to move it to the front shoulderraglan, where you won't be able to tell. Here's what we do:

So we areready to do a worked row in theround. Go ahead and work in pattern (seecharts) around until you get to the front shoulder seam that is just before thebeginning of the round. This is going tobe our new beginning of round. Untie themarker and tie a new one on that is a different color to distinguish thisshoulder. When you do the increase, do the yom at the end of the worked round,then switch to just knitting, so the change is really just after theincrease. You can't tell at all thatthere is anything different here once it's all finished.

Work inpattern until you have almost three full diamonds along the front shaping. End with row 13 (worked round is next). The last stitch we did is the p1 into theyom; slip it to the other needle. Slipall of the shoulder stitches onto a holder—that means to the spot where we woulddo the yom, in between the k1 and the p1 into the yom before. With the working strand of yarn, CO 3 (9, 15)stitches, and continue in pattern until you get to the next marker. Do the same as with the first shoulder. Continue working until you come to the otherunderarm.

The beginningof the round will now be 2 (5, 7) stitches into the cast on stitches. Continue working until you have finished atotal of three diamonds from center front, and then one more repeat up to round11—or you can slip the stitches onto a piece of yarn and try it on to see ifyou like the length.

Switching tosmaller needles, *k1, k1p1 into next stitch, p1* around. K2, p2 ten to twelve rounds.

Bind off.

Congratulations! You have now successfully finished the body!

Sleeves:

Tie a stranddown at the beginning of the shoulder section. Work in pattern across. CO 3 (9,15) stitches, join for working in round. The beginning of the round will be 2 (5, 7) stitches into the cast onstitches. Do the next round; tie a pieceof string around the center stitch in the underarm. Tie it like we did for the othermarkers. Work the next two rounds, butstop at one stitch away from the center stitch. At the end of every non-worked round, we're going to k3t—that decreasesone stitch from each side of the center stitch. Continue like this until you have 18 (24) stitches, then work straightuntil there are 4 and a half diamonds, or again you can try it on to see if youlike the length.

Changing tosmaller needles, *k1, k1p1 into next stitch, p1* around. Continue for 10-12 rounds.

Bind offloosely.

Here are the charts. Yep, real high tech images lol! But that's how I make patterns.

wool competition

2012-01-23T20:05:00.000-08:00

Wow, it's been a long time. Sorry folks. Things get busy. Funny thing though is that I've got a lot of stuff that is just starting now, so I'm not really getting less busy, but for all that I am determined to stick with blogging!

So, yeah, a couple weeks ago I entered into a competition and won first place in my category! =D I had a blast. The competition is designed to help promote the beauty and versatility of wool products and stuff like that. This time, I made a pair of shorts out of some herringbone wool that have details similar to this pair, and I also knit a sweater from some bulky recycled wool yarn that I love.

Sorry for the bad pic! You know, lighting. I love the outfit, but as far as it goes, the shorts weren't the best thing I ever sewed. They might not take me to nationals, anyway. But life goes on, and I adore the sweater.

And, I wrote the pattern! Right now I'm working on writing it out so that I can put it up for you all. I figured out the lace and everything! I'm not sure how long it will take before I can post it, hopefully within the next week.

some art

2011-09-27T14:09:00.000-07:00

I thought it might be cool to share some of my artwork. I've actually been drawing for much, much longer than I've been sewing or knitting, and in my personal life that is more what people know me for. So these are some of my more successful drawings that I have done:

This is one of few that came out of my head, but it's sort of inspired by some Eischer art that I've been forever fascinated by. My perspective looks off because of the camera angle and then trying to crop it, but it's not too bad in real life.

Here is one that is a copy of a photo from an old nat geo magazine. The sky in the photo was not so unrealistically bright looking, though! This one is in oil pastels. I love the heavy, heavy contrast that the pastels give, which is definitely missing in this next one:

This one is done in crayons, just your eight basic crayola colors. They didn't have the sharpness and softness to give the sharp edges and deep shadows, and it doesn't quite capture the gloominess of the photo (this is also from the same magazine). I added some edges with a marker, but it didn't quite do it.

These two drawings are from a phase when I was copying a bunch of cool photos from this one magazine. There are a few more, actually. Another time!

drawstring cami tutorial

2011-09-24T18:07:00.000-07:00

Here is a tutorial for this top:

It is super easy and it only took me maybe twenty minutes to put together. So, here's what you need:

A big tee shirt. For this one, it should be a good deal bigger than your bust measurement, but exact measurements are not that important.

First, cut it across under the arms, for a large tube. Cut a one inch strip from the top. This is for the drawstring straps, which should be long enough. I had to cut excess off myself. But, if you're working with a shirt that is closer to your size and not so big as this one, you may need to cut some extra length from the top of the shirt.

Cut the underarms. For me, this is a 3" deep, 3" wide curve in the fabric when it is folded. You can use another shirt as a guide if you think this is not the right size.

cut a curve out of the front. mine is 2" deep, just a gentle curve from the center front to the top of the underarm.

So you see this is the blue version, but that doesn't matter. Fold and sew the edges of the underarms. Maybe there are more professional ways to finish an underarm of a knit garment, but this works, and it's good not to have too much bulk since the drawstring has to pass through.

Ignoring the zipper in the picture, fold both front and back top edges 3/4" under. It's not important to be exact, it just needs to be big enough for the drawstring. Sew 5/8" in.

Sew the drawstring. You'll have to cut it, since it is a big loop. turn it. It's a lot easier to turn it if you use a safety pin and crochet hook. If the fabric is stretchy or if the stitches tore while turning, you can stitch down the center to reinforce it. Thread through the front and back casings. This is easier with a safety pin and crochet hook, too. Fit it to yourself and sew the two ends of the drawstring together. you can arrange it so that the sewn part is inside the back casing, not showing.

I added a pocket to mine, which you can do if you like. I cut it from the sleeve so that the stitching would match. I was not exact with any of it, I just cut and pinned till I liked how it looked, and tapered it in 1/4" at the bottom so that it was slightly drapy on the top.

So yeah, there you have it! Enjoy!

three easy refashions

2011-09-23T15:11:00.000-07:00

So I got this dress thing from the thrift store. It was just this giant square that had been sewn into a triangle, with slits for the arms, legs and neck and birds printed on the front. Some people may think that I ruined a perfectly good piece of clothing, because I mean it was hip and all and not like totally outdated or anything. It just wasn't my style, and hey, it was five bucks! Anyway, this is the first top I made out of it.

Just two squares, you know, using the birds on the front. It is definitely a whole lot more useable for me than the triangle thing.

I also had a good deal of fabric left, so I made this:

I wore this outfit to Six Flags Magic Mountain last week (except with pants), and it was very comfortable, you know, just a comfy cami over a tank (Yes, I am wearing a tank!). I like how nice it looks in the drapy fabric, which isn't something you get to work with too much when you sew. At least not me. I'm usually stuck with pretty stiff jersey like you get from old tees. Not that that's bad! Here's a similar top out of my dad's old tee:

I liked the blue one so much I decided use the tee for another zipperless one. This thing took like twenty minutes. A tutorial is in the works, so stay tuned! So, yeah, love this top, wear it constantly now. I love the look that the fading from the original tee gives this top. Kinda rugged, you know, how you would think it should look, being made out of a guy's old shirt. Like boyfriend jeans.

The backpack was something I threw together for a trip. It's in need of some finishing touches, so I'll show it to you in time, maybe. The same fabric as those darned skinnies! I forgot about those skinnies. Maybe now that it's going to cool off (not today, we've got triple digits!) I can fix them up, tighten them.

lace insert tutorial

2011-09-05T15:19:00.000-07:00

Wow! it's been a long time. I've been having computer troubles. >:( Oh well...Anyway, I've finally made a tutorial for you guys! I think you'll like this one because you could use basically any lightweight woven for the main body. I have it here in a crazy vintage fabric that I rescued from the reject pile.

What you need is a piece of fabric that when folded is half your bust plus 10-12" wide and the length of which is what you want the finished length of the top to be, plus 1.5" for shoulder seams and hem. You also need a small piece of lace for the insert. If you had one, one of those pre-made vintage lace inserts would be great, but sewing it in would be a little different. You would probably applique it onto the front and cut the main body out on the inside or something. Anyway, here's the tutorial.

I have my piece sideways as you can see, which doesn't matter as long as patterns go the right direction.

you need two measurements: Half your bust, and the length from the shoulder to the underarm. I just measured another shirt from the shoulder seam to across from the underarm, and added a couple inches. You want to add 2-3 inches.

So here is a diagram for the measurements. on the bottom, "a" stands for half your bust. "b" stands for the measurement from the shoulder to the underarm. The neckline is a smooth curve starting four inches from the center, cutting off maybe two inches in the middle. The lace section is completely up to you, but here I show what I did. The rest is pretty self-explanatory. You need to add width to the bottom, for ease (especially with a woven) and SA. Cut the bottom of the sleeve 2.5" in, and make the curve.

When you cut out the place where the lace goes, lay it over the lace to get the right size. you need 1.5" around the sides.

On the body, baste around the part where the lace goes, and clop corners.

Fold over and press.

Pin the lace under the folded part, and topstitch close to the edge.

Sew the top of the sleeve, ending just before the curve starts for the neckline. Press open, and extend the pressing to the neckline, opening it up. Pin it, and using thread that matches your lace, stitch 3/8" or so around the neck.

Sew the side seams, clip curved part, and press open.

Fold the sleeve part 1.5" or so under, and stitch. On right side, fold 1" and press. Stitch right in the seam of both the top shoulder and bottom side seam to secure.

Hem bottom.

So there you have it! I hope it will work out well for whoever wants to try it, since it's really pretty basic and can be tweaked easily. Good luck to you!

octopus tee

2011-08-19T10:32:00.000-07:00

a refashion made from two old tees:

Chloe was all excited! The time these pics were taken was when I normally take her and Crosby for their walk. Seeing me standing next to a door was more than she could handle. She sort of messed me up though, cuz there's no really good picture of the octo.

Basically, I like the way it looks, but the neckline gathers it in a way I don't like. It's hard to find the right length for the neckband! If it's too long, it'll that bacon collar thing going on, if it's too short, you gather the fabric it's sewn to. I'm thinking I'll try some different methods for attaching them...we'll see.

dress refashion

2011-07-10T21:04:00.000-07:00

Before:

It's weird looking, very long, but free so I had it sitting around for a while.

After:

There was a lot of funky things going on with those sleeves. It was going to just have spaghetti straps, but I wanted to try and do something with the original sleeves. I don't even remember how I got those things on! They're not very comfortable, either, and I had to put little straps in back to keep them on my arms.

But, for all that, I think it looks cute! And you have to love that it was free! lol

backpack attempt

2011-06-25T14:26:00.000-07:00

yeah, I know that it's been a while. I went on a semi-long trip and haven't quite gotten back in the groove of things. Anyway, here is a backpack that I tried to make, but am not too thrilled with the way it turned out:

This bag is made from some of a huge men's wool coat and a leather jacket. This is my first time sewing with leather, and though I absolutely love leather, and want to sew with it more often, I don't think I will any time soon because my sewing machines don't like it too well. If I were to show you the inside where the flap was sewn to the back, you would understand. Sigh!

In the pictures, it doesn't actually look too bad. But in person, or rather, on my body, you can see that it doesn't sit very well. Personally, I think it's a flop.

But, never to be deterred, studying this adorable bag from Target (if you ever see someone studying one bag for ages and not buying it, that's me) has shown me the changes I need to make in the shape and construction.

I would love to make it in a vintage floral too, but the fabric I would have used went to those pants. But anyway, you should see another attempt at some point, when I can buy the hardware and cotton webbing 'n stuff. We'll have to see what fabric I'll use...

linen top refashion

2011-05-24T20:25:00.000-07:00

This is made from a thrifted linen top that I picked up for fifty cents. It had some holes and stains, but the front was so cool and there was just enough to make a cropped top.

I had a lot of trouble with the sleeves. I wanted plain cap sleeves, but I had to redo them because of a silly mistake, and then I redid them too small and I couldn't lift my arms up without making them stand up all weird. I ended up having to use an old doily to make the little inserts, but I think the lace really looks nice!

first jeans ever

2011-05-09T18:14:00.000-07:00

It's been a little while, but I can blame the heat! It's finally come upon us! The hot weather totally zaps my energy when it first starts coming.

But, there's been a little break in the heat, so I've finished these pants that I've been working on.

They are sort of jeans, with the fit and the back yoke and the five pockets, but they're made of some vintage corduroy from a yard sale. I don't know if that disqualifies them from being called jeans or what. They're cords, anyway.

This is my first attempt at jeans, and my first successful attempt at pants from scratch. I guess they look okay!

This pattern is killing me. There is still way too much fabric in the seat, even after modifying the original twice then adding the back yoke (which is supposed to help with that). I also took it in a size from when I used it for these shorts, and then again while sewing, but they still look a little baggy, as you can see. My goal for this pattern is to eventually have the perfect go-to base pattern for any shorts, slim trousers, and skinny pants, tailored to me, but it is slow in coming!

Easter outfit

2011-04-25T17:06:00.000-07:00

sweater/blazer: Thrifted

scarf: made from thrifted fabric

dress: Target, $13

lace skirt: Target, around $6

boots: stole 'em from my mom, she got them from Zappos

You've seen this dress before, with teal tights, which brought out one of the colors in the print. The boots that I borrowed from my mom bring out a different color, and with the gray and yellow, I think it worked out a lot better this time! I have a thing for boots, and I'm so jealous of these!

some knit tops

2011-04-20T20:17:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's been a while since I last posted, but I promise I've been working on things! Here's some knit tops that I've just made.

First is a top made from a men's turtleneck shirt. I did the anchor in reverse applique from another shirt, a men's tee shirt. This is one of my favorite refashions ever! I love the anchor.

This was made from the rest of the tee shirt, plus some fabric from a shirt I bought that I sewed too small the first time I tried to refashion it. The neck was the original, cut off and sewed here.

This is from a knit floral pillowcase. I did the neckline a little different this time, twisting it before I sewed it on.

This is from a size 22 women's shirt from a yard sale. It was almost one of my best sewn knit things ever; I can't tell the difference between the binding on the armholes (which I sewed on) and the binding on the neck (which in from the original). Sadly, I cut a hole while trimming the extra seam allowance by the armhole, and had to patch it up. Not so great...

This one I just took in the sides. Big deal. Liked the navy and white, though!

So, yes, I've been working on things! I got a few things that have been sitting around taken care of, finally!

gingham shorts

2011-04-10T21:45:00.000-07:00

I made these shorts out of a Ralph Lauren new, unused top sheet, which someone gave to me knowing that I like to sew. They are a modification of these shorts, with front pleats, cuffs, actual back pockets (the pattern had like fake pockets), and shaped carriers. These have got to be my very best project, how they are finished and detailed and everything. I am so happy with them!

The jacket is a hand-me-down from my little brother, a boy's size 10 jacket which looks great but is a little tight in my broad shoulders. The next project that I am working on is a jacket that has the same shape as this, but will actually fit my shoulders. Can't wait to show you!

gaucho refashion

2011-04-06T20:34:00.000-07:00

So here we have the other piece of the liz claiborne set:

And here is what I made.

I've been so excited about this pattern for a long time, because I could see the potential for modifying it. This is my first attempt at it. There are no modifications to the pattern for these shorts outside of eliminating the facing on the pockets, though the fit needs to be worked on a little.

I used the inside of the fabric for the outside, so that it wasn't quite so bright...I'm really glad I did, or they might have looked like pajamas. They're just as comfy as pajamas, though!

vintage liz claiborne refashion

2011-03-23T14:46:00.000-07:00

this is a vintage liz claiborne set, thrown into a five-dollar basket at the thrift store just because I had more space:

I thought the print was cute, and I'm pretty into florals right now. I just finished making the top into a little tank.

I switched the front and back around, as you can see. I had wanted the buttons to be in back, and the front just worked out the way it did - I was originally going to have the front plain, but decided that I liked the idea of having the pleat there. I didn't have to mess with the shoulder seam, either.

This type of rayon, sort of a cotton-like weave, is becoming one of my favorite fabrics. It has the stability of a cotton, but the flowyness of something much more challenging to sew. This tank will probably be one of my favorites in the upcoming summer - it is so comfortable!

The armholes are just a little too low to wear without a cami, but I'm thinking of adding a fake cami thing to each side, like what some people do to shirts that are too low. It's not that big of a deal, but our summers are hot, and fewer layers is GOOD!

I still have the gauchos and sleeves, which I'm not sure about what to do with yet. Hopefully you'll see soon!

2011-03-21T18:41:00.000-07:00

This is something I made from a large shirt that had a mandarin collar and some interesting neck detailing. The mandarin collar worked really well for my neckline - I carefully removed the collar, and topstitched it to the top. Not too hard, and it makes for a pretty cool detail!

three finished projects

2011-03-20T13:30:00.000-07:00

I'm wearing three clothing items - the white blazer was a sort of muslin for a VERY lightweight summer blazer. This is the pattern that I used:

I shortened it and removed the front darts. There were pleats somewhere by the shoulder that I didn't notice till it was too late to put them in (I'm pretty bad about following pattern instructions) and I think that is why the shape of mine is so boxy in the shoulders. Otherwise, I'm pretty happy with it, and another in a striped seersucker may be on the way this summer...I say may, because striped seersucker isn't in my enormous collection of fabrics yet!

The skinnies were not skinny when I bought them - they were flares. I had bought them because I was looking for a job at the time and didn't have black pants, and they were practically free. I just recently turned them into skinnies, and they are much more wearable!

The top was a refashion from an old rayon skirt that I thrifted because I really liked the print. It was going to be a dress with an accordion-pleated white hem, but things happened - it was too flared, I cut off the pleats, took it in, didn't feel like un-hemming the pleats to take those in, and in the end I decided that it looked a little too costumy with them on. Sigh... I'm saving the pleats, though, because they were so hard that I'm thinking of puting them on something else. Something that isn't navy and white.

You can't see it too well in the pics, but I did something new with the white yoke - I put some piping on the edges that I made myself with red gingham. It ended up looking like ric rac. But I guess that's okay!

What happened?

2011-03-12T16:41:00.000-08:00

A while back, I went to Joann's to get some Simplicity patterns, which were on sale for a dollar. I was going to get the same patterns online for eight dollars a piece (on sale, too) but it didn't work out, and I'm glad it didn't because one buck a piece is much better. But instead of spending only a few dollars, I went home with $35 worth of fabric. What happened?

The clearance. Every clearance fabric was 50% off. Coat-weight wool for eight dollars a yard...I mean, that's a score! I hadn't been inside a fabric store in ages. I wasn't prepared mentally for the clearance section at all, and I had some spending cash on me. This is what I bought:

for a coat

to line a coat

for pants

I made a tank with this fabric, a stretch cotton blend. This fabric was like $2 a yard.

All I have to say is, those ruffles on the neckline were a pain! That's part of the reason the ruffle on the bottom was left raw...

Finally!!

2011-03-10T21:00:00.000-08:00

Well, I got my casts off, which was nice. Then we went camping, and I couldn't do too much there! But here I am now, finally.

In the first outfit, everything I'm wearing is from the thrift store except for the trapper hat, from Marshall's for $20. Those boots are some men's work boots, and I have to say the grip on those things is amazing for climbing on the rocks!

I know that the dress looks super weird in that picture, I promise it was the wind! Usually I take my own pics and can check and see how they look, but the battery was running low. The dress I've had for a little while, the scarf and hat I had just bought at a thrift store in the area where we were staying.

My sister took the pic of Chloe, and it was too cute not to put on here! She loved camping. She had been a breeding dog, and she's now in a sort of retirement, and she probably never got to go camping before. We had so much fun with our doggy!

cast ON!!!

2011-01-30T17:03:00.000-08:00

So I went snowboarding for the first time this season and within the first hour I hit some ice and it sort of tripped me backwards, and I had enough force that when I reached out both my hands behind me, I ended up with two broken wrists. And I had to sit around with them for twelve hours till I could get to the emergency room. So what is a girl supposed to do with two casts? I am not the type to sit around and watch TV all the time. I usually knit while I watch TV. Besides, even What Not to Wear can get old. So what am I supposed to do?

Cast on!

My fingers were very cold when I went outside, and the casts are so bulky that I can't even put my hands into my pockets. I asked my mom to make me some fingers only gloves, but by that evening she hadn't and I just cast on myself. Maybe the first day wasn't such a good idea, because my fingers swelled up and I had to stop. But I finished them fine soon enough!

I actually used this pattern, because the gauge was more what I was looking for. I cast on 34 sts on size US 4 needles and followed the instructions for the fingers in the pattern. They're nice and warm, just what I needed!

stylish burglar stocking cap - free pattern

2011-01-30T15:56:00.000-08:00

This is a really, really easy cap to knit, and is very warm and very cute! When my sissy saw me put it on without the pompom, she told me I looked like a burglar, and the name stuck. With the pompom, though, it's too cute to be a bad guy's hat!

skill level:

beginner

materials:

one skein Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick and Quick, in Charcoal

3
.inch pompom form

stitch marker

one US 10.5 circular needle

one set US 10.5 or less dpn

Gauge: ten sts 14 rnds 4", laying flat, unstretched in 1x1 rib. Stretched should be about 8 sts 4".

Pattern

CO 50 sts. Join in round, careful not to twist stitches. Place marker for beginning of round.

*k1, p1* till piece measures 9" from beginning.

Crown shaping:

*Work 8 sts in patt, last st was knit. K2t*

K 1 rnd.

*work 7 sts in patt, k2t* 1 rnd.

K 1 rnd.

*work 6 sts in patt, k2t* 1 round.

*work 5 sts in patt, k2t*

*work 4 in patt, k2t*

*work 3 in patt, k2t*

*work 2 in patt, k2t*

*Work 1 in patt, k2t*

K2t around.

Pull yarn through remaining sts, pull tight, tie off.

Make the pompom, tie to top, weave in ends, ans enjoy!

my most versatile - teal tights

2011-01-28T15:30:00.000-08:00

Teal is not exactly my favorite color, so I doubt I would have bought these for myself. I got them for Christmas. But there is something about the color that makes nearly anything I put with these cooler and more edgy. Even fabrics that I never would have thought to put with teal, like the navy and white print skirt, look totally cool!

They look a little bit more navy in these pictures than they actually are. I was able to adjust the color a little bit, but I couldn't get it just right without making them look blotchy. Oh well, you get the idea.

This is Chloe. She likes to follow me around and give me fashion advice.

You can see that she is picking out the skirt I should wear with her paw, and the tail wagging definitely means she likes it!

So, yes, teal tights are surprisingly versatile, and make almost anything look edgy and hip.

Chloe says so too!

my most versatile - fitted blazer

2011-01-27T02:30:00.000-08:00

I like boxy blazers - the boyfriend blazer trend is like totally my thing - but there are certain rules you have to follow if you want your outfit to be flattering. In other words, boxy or larger blazers shouldn't be worn with wide pants. Fitted blazers can go over anything, both wide and fitted pants. This may sound pretty basic, but where I live, "most versatile" means an oversized hoodie. I actually have a hoodie that I wear a lot, but I definitely wear this a lot more! The Nautica sweater that used to be my brother's (well, he says it's still his) is not exactly what you call stylish, although it looks cute with my plaid scarf and my gray knit hat, and shorts with tights - that's not the point, though.

This is a velveteen blazer, Gap, thrifted, and is actually a very dark purple color. It looked brand new when I bought it, but I've worn it so much that the elbows are starting to become worn down, but if it ever gets too noticeable leather patches would look cute!

Hat: I made it myself
Scarf: little brother made it for me
sweater: Lauren Conrad, Kohl's
The boots are Banana Republic, from Ross a while back

what do you do with an ugly dress?!

2011-01-21T20:46:00.000-08:00

My mom bought this thing, because I like plaid. When I saw it, I think that there was a mental block - I can usually see something cute in an old-fashioned piece of clothing like this, but this one took me a while!

It had detachable sleeves and silly pleats that make the one side much wider than the other. First I carefully cut the stitching in the pleats to open them up. Because I wanted to keep the side pockets, I had to remove the button bands instead of take in the sides. And for the back, since I didn't want a center seam, I made a long pleat. Actually, I really like the fit that I ended up with!

I think it must have been the color that did it, but now I think it looks great! A point for Mom!

ruffle tank

2011-01-20T19:47:00.000-08:00

This was made from, well, something, maybe a curtain - the label on it when I bought it from the thrift store said linen, and that's all I know. Bet the sheer woven fabric was so cool and fluttery that I decided to get it. It was going to be for a masquerade ball costume, but I went as the Invisible Man (no one knew who I was!) so I ended up with this in my stash for a while. I made this tank instead!

I like to wear it with a striped tank tank underneath, and the shorts (another refashion) are something that I wear with it a lot too. I guess I'm glad that I didn't do that masquerade costume!

peplum top refashion

2011-01-19T21:36:00.000-08:00

I saw this top at a thrift store a while back, and even though pink is not really my color, the interesting construction of the top and the dip-dying really caught my attention, so I got it anyway. I can do pink if the rest of the details are cool enough!

The original top was much larger with puffy sleeves. I first cut the sleeves off, following the edge of the raglan sleeve shaping. Then I took in the sides, stopping the seam just before the peplum thing, and then topstitched over the box-pleat that I just made. The original top had a peplum, but the pleat made it a lot fuller. The last thing I did was stitched down what was the seam allowance from the raglan to finish the armholes.

Jeans: City Streets, JCPenny
Sweater: Kohl's, Simply Vera Vera Wang
Hat: Target, Christmas gift
Watch: Target, Christmas gift
Boots: Ross, Banana Republic, birthday gift, from a few years ago

This is my own necklace, made from polymer clay. He's my own little jellyfish!

me in the Target Dress

2011-01-19T20:09:00.000-08:00

As often as I go to thrift stores, and as much of my wardrobe is from thrift stores, I still buy clothes. This dress is an example, from the sales rack in Target. I really really love the fabric! The colors are all in my favorite palette, and floral prints are something I am loving right now. The fit of the dress is not great, and I had to take the shoulder seam in. When I cut the straps open, I could tell this was not the greatest quality, so the hefty $13 clearance price tag was for the look only! Sad, yes, but it does look cute.

Dress: Target, $13
Sweater: had-me-down (I don't mind!) from Mums, free
Tights: Kohl's, Simply Vera Vera Wang, Christmas gift
Shoes: thrift store, maybe $3 or $4
Bag: gift, originally from thrift store, $5
Hat: made it, this pattern, which is a free Ravelry download
Belt: Thrift store, Levi's, 10 cents (I'm not kidding!)

The jewelry is two necklaces. One is made of the kind of chain that has the square gem things, in this case black, which I got at a yard sale, like, years ago. The heart on the chain I made myself; the heart is of polymer clay, and the chain is from a spool of chain that I got at Michael's.

And that's it!

Christmas Gifts

2011-01-09T16:04:00.000-08:00

I did a lot of knitting this Christmas. Like, I think I must have been crazy. Here's a couple of things.

This vest for my Gramps was knit from recycled cotton/wool blend yarn, and I happened to get lucky with it because I had two thrifted sweaters that were both from Old Navy originally and both had the same content. This was my first try at intarsia knitting - pretty happy with it!

This vest for sissy was my own pattern that had the bobble stitch from this pattern. It is cotton recycled yarn, a thrifted sweater, and there was so much of it (I had 2 of the originals) that with this and a sweater for my brother, I still have enough to make something for myself...haven't decided what, though, and I hate being matchy matchy.

It's a little baggy, especially for my sister's taste, but the thing took so long to knit that there's no exchanges - sorry sis. But she's been wearing it all day which is a great success with her!

This is me, in an old picture, but I pulled this sweater and reknit it in a different size for my mom. Unfortunately it came out too big, and she has an IOU for a smaller size - that makes four IOUs leftover from Christmas. Luckily this one is a very fast knit with the big yarn and needles. Yeah, some can be exchanged.

Happy new year!

Bicycle Wheels - Free Pattern

2011-01-09T15:36:00.000-08:00

A simple, cute, extremely warm hat for winter weather, which will only take a couple of hours to knit!

There is an optional short row shaping that can be applied to whatever hat you want that has a ribbing band, and the thick yarn and simple pattern make learning this technique with this hat simple and easy. Many hats that have wide ribbing that looks cute in front, but in the back it stands up and I don't like the way it looks. The short row shaping helps eliminate it by making the back narrower than the front. You can easily skip this step.

There is also a little trick at the top of the ribbing to help get rid of that funky thing that the purled stitches do, how they seem to widen out on the top. The bulky yarn would have made this even more noticeable.

Skill level:

beginner

Supplies:

One skein Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick & Quick

One 10.5 circular needle, or size to obtain gauge

One set four dpns, a smaller size than the circular (I happened to have US 8 and nothing larger, which worked out fine, but pretty much any size between 8 and the size you use would be okay)

stitch marker

largish crochet hook (exact size not important)

3" pompom form or cardboard to make pompom form

Gauge:

11 sts 17 rows 5"

Pattern

CO 44 sts. join round, don't twist stitches. Pm. k2, p2 for 3 rounds.

(This is the short row shaping, you can skip it and work 2 rounds instead) Work in patt to 7 sts before marker. The last stitch you worked was a knit, and the next one is a knit, right in the middle of the knit rib. Move the strand of yarn to the front, and then slip the next knit stitch purlwise. Put yarn in back. Slip the same stitch back to the other needle. Now the yarn is wrapped around the stitch that you slipped. Turn work.

purl one stitch, k2 , p2 around to 9 stitches before marker. Do the short row shaping again, but this time it's with purl stitches, so instead of bringing the yarn in front, you put it from the front to the back, then do the slip, wrap, slip, and then turn.

You are back on the right side. work in pattern (knit 1, then p2, k2 around) to marker. work 2 rounds.

Now is the little trick to keep your purl ribs from being too wide on the top. The next rib is knit: k1, then pick up one stitch from yarn between the stitch you just knit and the next one, and knit into the back of the loop you just picked up (this is m1). K1. So you just did the rib, and put an extra stitch in between the two regular ones. Now is the purl rib: p2t. You should have 4 sts from marker.

k1, m1, k1, p2t around. No change in stitch number - 44 sts.

Now you work the body. *k 6 rounds, p 3 rounds* 3 times, making three purl ridges.

K 2 rounds.

Crown shaping

k3, k2t. *k4, k2t* 6 times. K3.

k 1 round.

K2t. *k3, k2t* 6 times. K5.

k 1 round

p 2 rounds.

*p3, p2t* around.

k 1 round.

This section is knit on the dpns. If your needles are the same size as or only one size smaller than your circular needle, than skip these two rounds. If they are two or three sizes smaller, then k 1 round, with the needles, which puts all of the stitches onto the dpns. K 1 round.

Basically, changing to a smaller needle counts as a decrease round. If the needles are not significantly smaller, you don't need to knit the two rounds.

K2t 1 round.

K ! round.

Repeat these 2 rounds till there is only 6 stitches. Pull yarn through loops with crochet hook, and tie off.

make a pompom with a 3" form, and tie to the top.

There is one last step besides weaving in the ends that you don't have to do, but it makes the top of the hat sit closer to the back of your neck, instead of up on your head. take a 6" or so piece of yarn and tie to the inside of the hat right between the ribbing and the first knit section, in the back where the rounds start, and pull through so that the yarn is sticking out to the front. now, weave in and out at each section, so that every knit section has the yarn on the outside and every purl section has the yarn on the inside. When you reach the top knit crown section, bring out as usual, but bring back in only one or two rows away, so that the yarn on top is only like a half an inch. Turn inside out, pull the yarn tight, and tie end to one of the ends used to tie the pompom on.

Weave in ends.

chilly morning

2010-12-03T20:25:00.000-08:00

No, it's not morning anymore, but it was earlier when I was wearing this and took this picture.

I am wearing: a Boston Proper wool jacket from the thrift store, Anne Taylor Loft trousers from the thrift store, and a shirt that I sewed quite a while ago - back when I actually bought fabric new on a regular basis. And a scarf that I knit last winter from recycled yarn.

That was a lot of yarn! The sweater that I pulled for it was a long cardigan/coat thing, and there was no yarn left at all once I had put on the fringe. Actually, when I first knit it, I didn't like it very much. But that was last winter at least and now I think it goes pretty well with my style. I really like the look of it with the navy and stripes.

I am also wearing some navy Keds, but you can't see them in the picture...oops.

a sleeved poncho

2010-11-19T19:20:00.000-08:00

As a rule, I usually don't go for the poncho look. But when I saw this pattern on Ravelry, I actually thought it was kinda cute. The sleeves and vine pattern give it a much different look.

This is actually my first knitting project that I didn't modify, at least for the most part. There is one thing with the bobbles that I think I did do wrong, and something funky with the neckline, but that's a whole lot of technical knitting mumbo jumbo, and I won't get into that.

Even though I like the result, I'm actually considering pulling and making a pullover version of it. I can't help but think of how much more convenient it would be like that. But that won't be for a long time.

the size 14 to size 6 shorts

2010-11-18T11:23:00.000-08:00

This is a pair of shorts that I resized, once a 14, now my size. Just a pair of shorts from a thrift store.
I took them in on the sides and center back seam, ripping the waistband enough to take it in from the inside, and then top stitching it in place. This is a little tricky, trying to turn it around enough to keep the taking-in even and strait - but it's doable, anyway.

There's a couple of options to where you can take them in - the sides are the simplest place, which is good if you have a pair of pants that are just a couple of inches too big. The biggest problem with this is that if you take them in too much, you'll make the pockets too tight for your hands.

This isn't so good (trust me, I've done it more than once!), so if you need to take it in more, you can slide the back out so that there is a bigger seam allowance in the back than in the front, which you can use to control how much you want to take in without taking too much from the pockets.

Or, you can take in the back seam too. You have to make sure that the new seam has a nice, smooth curve down to the inseam, meeting the old seam before you reach the inseam.

Since my shorts were so much bigger, and I like big pockets, I had to do both the slidy thing a lot and the back seam thing a lot - the end result is shorts that are kinda baggy with wide legs, which I think I like better than if they had been my size to begin with!

The jumper is from the thrift store too, a vintage lambswool sweater for a dollar - It's like my favorite sweater.

skirt refashion

2010-11-16T19:12:00.000-08:00

The original skirt was large and very long, and had waist darts for shaping. All I did was cut it short from the bottom to reuse the hem and added the casing and elastic. I was pretty stupid and didn't line it, so it rides up with tights. For summer that's fine, but I wear tights and leggings all the time right now, and a slip would be so nice! It's one of those things that I really need to make (my mom has a ton of slip fabric) but isn't exciting enough to make instead of a cute top or something. Oh well, I'll get to it eventually!

thanks jason!

2010-09-02T22:23:00.000-07:00

Hi! My name's tori.

After a few months of posting on Wardrobe Refashion, and all of my teen life sewing and knitting whatever my fashion-loving heart desired, I figured it was high time to start my own blog. This is my very first post!

This is one of my favorite refashions, made from a military jacket with the name Jason written in marker on the tag. It's also basically the only bag I use (crazy as it seams, I am not really a bag and shoe girl - I admit it! I'm sorry!).

the front

the back

and the inside

I used the strap from my sister's old ballet bag for this bag's strap and some thin black cotton for the lining.

I really like the military styling, which is something I try to work into a lot of my outfits. My favorite shoes are some black suede Converse boots. Don't let this scare you! It's not like I walk around wearing all camo or anything.

I have another similar project planned, using a tweed or herringbone men's coat or blazer or something. When I do, I will be sure to take pictures of what I did, and make a tutorial. Unfortunately, when I was working on this, I didn't really think about having a blog so I didn't take any pictures. I don't really even remember exactly what I did...