Day 29: Short-Sleeved Diamond Stitch Sweater by Sarah Dallas
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/short-sleeved-diamond-stitch-sweater
When we knit clothes with the intention of wearing them, a certain amount of accessorizing is required. The right belt, pin, or scarf, paired with the right sweater, makes a smashing outfit. And what about those sweaters that did not turn out exactly as we planned? Can we improve these imperfect projects with the right accessory? This week, as I dug some of my less-worn sweaters from the wardrobe, I reflected on what other pieces I could pair them with in order to transform them into every-day sweaters.
My diamond stitch pullover, by Sarah Dallas, falls into a common problem category—that knitted pullover that is just too short. I don’t know why knitwear designers have been making pullovers so scanty recently. Few of us dare to bare our navels any more, and those that do might want to reconsider. I know I’m not alone in this, as my Ravelry friends complain about disappointment with pullover patterns that looked perfect in the design photo but knit up so short that they are un-wearable. Even though I usually add one or two inches to the bottom of cropped cardigans and sweaters, still in the end I’ve found some of them don’t quite cover the waistband on my jeans. Wow, I think, if I’m having this problem after adding two inches in length, I wonder what is happening to everyone else! The worst part about these almost-long-enough sweaters is that after all that labor, it is too easy to fool yourself that it is wearable. So you throw the pullover on over some jeans and go to work. Once there, you discover that every time you raise your arms, the sweater rides up, and a delightful flesh belt appears.
Well, I have found the perfect solution for this—a peplum blouse!
Especially if the color of the blouse harmonizes with the color of your sweater, you can wear them together as an ensemble. Voilà, you create a flattering shape on your body and you get to wear your sweater too. The sweater ends at your waist, emphasizing the smallest part of your body, and then the peplum flows out from there over your hips, giving you a perfect hour-glass shape.
Day 30: The Cincilla Coat by Filatura di Crosa
http://tahkistacycharles.com/t/yarn_single?products_id=188
Bulky knits are always tricky to wear because they can swallow up your figure. Whenever you wear something bulky on your upper half it is essential to pair it with something tightly fitted on the bottom. Here I am wearing faux-leather pants, which I bought for my last trip to Europe, where women tend to show off the lower half of their bodies more. It is not about winter cleavage. Instead, tight, skinny jeans, leggings or sheer tights worn under shorts even in the winter time were staples in Paris last December. These fitted pants prevent the faux fur jacket, knitted in Filatura di Crosa Cincilla yarn, from making me look larger than I really am. The jacket is knitted sideways, and secured with a brown leather belt, a style suggested by the pattern photo.
I wonder, is this just laziness on the designer’s part, that they expect you to buy a belt that will do all the work of holding the knitted piece together?
Day 31: Wisdom by Kim Hargreaves
http://www.kimhargreaves.co.uk/acatalog/Wisdom.html
Sorry about the terrible selfie pic! Yes, I am wearing Wisdom again, the sweater I reach for nine times out of ten when I need to hastily get ready for work. It is a classic, elegant cardigan that goes with everything. But it has a tiny flaw. Because of the thinness of the edging stitches at the neck and button band, the top corners of the cardigan tend to droop down. It is like a page in a novel that you often read so it becomes dog-eared over time. I am reluctant to reinforce this area with bias tape or ribbon because it would show when it falls open, and for that same reason I cannot knit a thin band of interfacing—if I were to reinforce it, I would have to reinforce almost the whole thing with a second layer, and that would make it substantially heavier, perhaps increasing the problem of the cardigan fronts drooping down. I am still seeking a good solution to this problem, but in the meantime, I wear a thin silk scarf which takes attention completely away from that problem area. Violà!
Day 32: Bold Stripe Scarf by Sarah Hatton
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/bold-stripe-scarf
Next time I need to cover up a problem area with my collar, I will wear my Bold Stripe Scarf. There are so many ingenious ways of typing this scarf, that it can cover up a multitude of sins!
Day 33: Edda by Kim Hargreaves
http://www.kimhargreaves.co.uk/acatalog/EDDA.html
Kim Hargreaves introduced me to an ingenious way of defining a waist in the design photo of Edda, which is styled using a thin leather cord:
I alternate wearing Edda with the thin leather tie, which I purchased at Michael’s, or a thick black ribbon, depending on how modern or feminine my outfit is. I love the versatility of this cardigan, which can be fastened in different ways that allow me to express my personal sense of style. But Edda is fitted so beautifully, in spite of having no closures, that even if it were not belted at all, I would not have to worry about it drooping or hanging oddly on the body, in the way I would with my faux fur jacket by Filatura di Crosa.
Day 34: Longline Tunic by Kim Hargreaves
This bulky sweater is from one of the early Rowan magazines, when I was just learning to knit, and when sweaters were styled large enough for two. Without a belt this is like wearing a giant bag. Not flattering, girl! This is one of those sweaters that, the more it is accessorized, the better it looks. I don't even know what magazine this is from, it's so old that the front cover tore off, but it is late eighties/early nineties era. I keep the sweater because the color is beautiful, and because the yarn was bought with birthday money from my grandfather right before he died, so it reminds me of him. But what a huge sweater is was! I tell you, it was such an ordeal making a cabled tunic this size on such small needles that I ran out of steam after I finished the front and back, and my mother-in-law generously knitted the sleeves. Because of her kindness in helping me finish the garment, I was empowered to knit another sweater, and so I made Salina by Kim Hargreaves.
Day 35: Salina by Kim Hargreaves
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/salina
My Salina was not a great success. Being a beginning knitter, I did not make a guage swatch before I started, and as a result, my Salina was much too big. My mother-in-law, who is truly a lovely, generous soul, unraveled my entire sweater and re-knitted it in a smaller size. Once again, I was given the opportunity to experience a knitting success, and so I kept on with my knitting instead of giving up in despair. After this lesson, I learned to knit a guage swatch and the accuracy of my knitting started to improve. But as you can see, without someone to hold my hand the whole way, my knitting hobby might have died a sad death before it really began. Using accessories is one of the tips and tricks I have learned since then to fix mistakes, but without my dear Maxi to guide and support me, I would likely not be a successful knitter at all. So I find myself at the end of another week of wearing my handknits reliving a little personal history. It really is opening a time-capsule, the wearing of my knitwear, and it reminds me to be grateful for what I have. In particular, I am grateful to Maxi for her unfailing kindness and encouragement!
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