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Sunday, February 16, 2014

Asymmetric Sweater in Blue


Happy President's Day (and hopefully a long weekend), for those of you in the U.S.!
Happy weekend to everyone else. :)

First, I want to thank Carolyn of Diary of a Sewing Fanatic. On Friday, she listed her top 10 sewing blogs. She included a second list of her favorite "Art to Wear Stitchers" and I was included in that list.

Welcome to the new followers I have, as a result!

The funny thing is, I don't really think of myself as an "art to wear" sewist, but I know what she means. There are so many of us who like our clothing a bit "off the beam", whether it's Lagenlook, steampunk, retro, or vintage, that it doesn't feel so unusual to me.

And I am happy to report I have some sewing to show you. Since I have so little time to sew these days, I haven't been able to attempt big projects and, when I do have some time and energy, I work on appeals to me in that moment.

Recently Gayle, a creative force herself, gifted me with a pattern that she had traced off from RTW. I decided to test the pattern using an inexpensive sweater knit, so I used the blue knit leftover from a cocoon sweater I had made.

This was a very quick sew!

For the drawstring, I used a strip of the selvedge from the knit.

Twirling

Closeup of the sweater knit, though this phone pic looks a bit washed out - the other pics are taken with my Canon. (By the way, I sewed the hems and the drawstring channels by hand.)

I love this bracelet made of old rubber tires and bike parts, but I quickly realized that it doesn't really work with a sweater knit.

I definitely like this top well enough to make it again! I do plan to wear this to work, so that makes it career-wear, right? Carolyn? :)

Oh, and you should check out Gayle's striped version that she made last November. Thanks again, Gayle!

(And this post just goes to show what an amazing community we have of online sewists. I am grateful to each of you!)

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43 comments:

  1. KathyFebruary 16, 2014 at 10:31 AM

    Looks great Shams!

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  2. RhondaBussFebruary 16, 2014 at 10:44 AM

    Fabulous...as always :)

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  3. AndreaFebruary 16, 2014 at 11:51 AM

    Shams, this is fantastic. I love it.

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  4. Sharon G NicholsFebruary 16, 2014 at 12:04 PM

    Awesome! Love the color on you. It rocks with you hair.

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    Replies
    1. shamsFebruary 16, 2014 at 4:53 PM

      Thanks, Sharon, though it's hard to see my hair under the hat. :)

      Delete
  5. MarkFebruary 16, 2014 at 12:22 PM

    What a fun top! I'm glad you found time to sew.

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    1. badmomgoodmomFebruary 16, 2014 at 12:30 PM

      Oops, accidentally used Mark's Chrome window instead of mine.

      Delete
    2. shamsFebruary 16, 2014 at 4:54 PM

      Thanks, badmomgoodmom! I am determined to get some sewing in. :)

      Delete
  6. DillianderFebruary 16, 2014 at 2:37 PM

    Appealingly edgy :) it looks great and will be a stylish fun top to wear! So glad you have been able to sneak in some sewing time and what a fabulous result.

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  7. Nancy KFebruary 16, 2014 at 3:05 PM

    It's a pattern worth making again. It's perfect on you and of course it perfect for your workplace! Love your boots.
    My nephew just started at Google, I don't know what department but he was head hunted and he's very happy.

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    Replies
    1. shamsFebruary 16, 2014 at 4:54 PM

      Thanks, Nancy! Very cool about your nephew. :)

      Delete
  8. Merche MartinezFebruary 16, 2014 at 3:27 PM

    I love that knit, such a bright colour. And the pattern is very stylish.
    And the bracelet is so cool!

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  9. LyndleFebruary 16, 2014 at 5:43 PM

    Love the top - when this showed up on my blogger list thing it looked nice but a touch more ordinary than your usual style- then I opened the post and saw the whole picture rather than just the neckline. You rock the hem and the drawstring (how do you stop yourself from pulling on it jst for fun?)
    And I love the bracelet. Did you make it or can you tell us who did? (I laughed about the combo with the sweater knit!)

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    Replies
    1. shamsFebruary 16, 2014 at 5:51 PM

      Thanks, Lyndle! The bracelet is by Kathleen Nowak Tucci, and I got it at a discount. :)

      Delete
  10. MargyFebruary 16, 2014 at 8:21 PM

    Great sweater! How fun to have patterns passed down from friends! I hope you sew your little fingers off this weekend!

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  11. twotoastFebruary 16, 2014 at 9:01 PM

    Fabulous top - it looks great layered!

    It is funny, when I read that Carolyn had you under the 'art to wear' list it took a moment or two for me absorb that - but I think that she is absolutely right. I think that your garments have a definite feel, that is most certainly you (yep, I know, we have not met . . . but . . . . !)

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  12. Mary GlennFebruary 16, 2014 at 9:37 PM

    I love your whole outfit, well put together and looks very comfortable?

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    Replies
    1. shamsFebruary 17, 2014 at 4:46 PM

      Thanks, Mary Glenn! It is very comfortable. I try to only wear clothes that look good but feel like lounge-wear. :)

      Delete
  13. poppykettleFebruary 16, 2014 at 10:10 PM

    Love this top - very flattering and fabulous lines. What more could a sewist want?

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  14. VickiFebruary 17, 2014 at 2:39 AM

    Love it! Looks very cosy.

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  15. UnknownFebruary 17, 2014 at 8:23 AM

    I LOVE that top and it looks very nice on you...all your clothes do, but I like this one the best.

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  16. Gayle OrtizFebruary 17, 2014 at 8:24 AM

    You're welcome, Shams. I'm glad it worked so well for you. I love it in the sweater knit, I have a couple that will work well for this. I also thought about a lightweight fleece.
    Thanks for the nice things you said!

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    Replies
    1. shamsFebruary 17, 2014 at 4:47 PM

      Yes, Gayle, I can see making this in a variety of fabrications. Thanks again!

      Delete
    2. shamsFebruary 17, 2014 at 4:47 PM

      By the way, I had to make mine bigger in the bust than yours. :)

      Delete
  17. belleFebruary 17, 2014 at 10:33 AM

    I always look forward to a post from you! Glad you are finding some free time...and the knit top is cool!

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  18. LouisaFebruary 17, 2014 at 11:21 AM

    I saw Gayle's original piece and filed it away for future consideration. But you've actually done a great Shams-ified version that looks quite different from the original! (Now I really want to make one too...) Totally love the boots, BTW.

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    1. shamsFebruary 17, 2014 at 4:48 PM

      Thanks, Louisa! Yes, I can see making this up in different fabrics.

      Delete
  19. KarlaBFebruary 17, 2014 at 1:48 PM

    I definitely think of you as an "art-to-wear" person. And I agree with others, this color is great on you. I bet you have some kind of long necklace artware that you could pair with this, too. Another lovely, artistic creation, and amazing "trial run"!!

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    Replies
    1. shamsFebruary 17, 2014 at 4:48 PM

      Thanks, Karla! I guess I do think of myself as arty, but I know lots of people who are artier than I am. ;)

      Delete
    2. shamsFebruary 17, 2014 at 5:03 PM

      By the way, I do have a perfect necklace for this - I forgot to put it on for the pics, but I did put it on when I wore this out for the day.

      Delete
  20. Diane SwettFebruary 18, 2014 at 4:37 AM

    This sweater looks great on you.

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  21. BunnyFebruary 19, 2014 at 12:09 PM

    Looks so good on you and the blue is a really good color for you. Love how the print skirt peeks out.

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