Wickford Love

Hi!

This make is about as wintery as they get, and I apologize to all of you out there who are already basking in the spring sun, ready to forget winter was ever even here. Here in Finland though we still have snow and I'm wearing my recently finished cardigan every day for as long as I can.

This is the Wickford by Alison Green and for me it was love at first sight. Obviously it took me months to complete, especially since I knitted some socks in between bursts of sweater inspiration. The difficult thing is I really should start my knitted cardigans in the summer (or even spring!) to have them ready for when the sweater weather begins. But who has that kind of self discipline?

I knitted the smallest size with smaller needles than suggested, but it still turned out bigger than I anticipated. I omitted some of the cables for a more sleek silhouette, and now I think that that might have had something to do with it. I also now suspect that my gauge gets looser when I'm knitting a large piece while watching TV, which renders my swatch unreliable. These are all just speculations though, but too big sweaters are a reoccurring theme around here.

By the way, you can find me on Instagram now too, @nillapurplepleats!

Do your sweaters turn out the way you planned? What am I doing wrong?

My first Winter Skirt

Hi everybody!

I haven't felt this excited about a make in quite awhile. I'm actually not a skirt-person, which makes a successful skirt even more awesome!

This is #105 from Burdastyle 12/2016. The fabric is a wool blend that was on sale, so I couldn't resist. I have almost no experience sewing with plaid, but it wasn't as bad as I expected.

When tracing the pattern I added 12 cm to the length, you know, just in case the "mini" length ended up too mini. I machine basted the skirt together, tried it on and immediately chopped the extra 12 cm off. It was bad.

The fabric is thicker than I realized, so there are some bulk happening. My plan was to sew a warm skirt to lounge around in at home, but I'm not yet sure if this will fit the bill. After sewing on the lining, the waist is not as flexible and forgiving anymore, but time will tell if it's still comfortable enough for lounging around in.

I'm happy I reached my goal of finishing this skirt before it got too warm outside to wear it. What to sew next? I think I'll get back to my mission to create some pant-TNTs. It feels a bit like a chore, but I really shouldn't allow myself to get distracted just yet.

What are you guys up to?