FW '15 Wardrobe Progress, Part 01
I'm doing things a little differently with my handmade wardrobe posts this time around. Rather than work behind the scenes and then do a post once a thing has been completed like I usually do, I want to share a bit more of my process and progress. I feel like this method has the potential to let me to slow down a bit and enjoy the act of making my wardrobe instead of getting stressed out and focusing only on the finished photo. I'm also going to be changing up how I do my finished garment photos, going from a photo of one thing to talking more about how I pair it with other things I've made as well as my RTW clothes. Thinking about it fully as a wardrobe rather than just one more thing I've made that will go into my closet. So, with that info out of the way, lets get chatting about projects! In case you missed my original post outlining my FW '15 wardrobe plans, you can find it here.
One thing on my wardrobe list that I really need to get done is a new pair of gloves, or mitts, whatever the kind with the mitten cap is called. I was using this pair (which apparently I made back in 2010!) until last winter when they died a sad death digging our car out of 15" of snow. I knit that pair without a pattern and for some unknown reason didn't write down what I was doing. My goal now is to make my perfect mitt pattern that I can reference any time I need a new pair. I'm making up my own pattern because due to my super small hands I haven't had a single glove pattern I've tried come close to fitting. My thought is if I'm going to have to rewrite the pattern anyway, I might as well just start from nothing.
Above is my first attempt at the mitt pattern as well as the start of the second. The first mitt was really close but not quite right, it was a tiny bit wide through the palm and fingers. I'm starting the second pair with 8 stitches less than the first attempt and I hope that should take care of things. The fingers were about 2 stitches too loose so the loss of 8 stitches should work to take care of the palm and fingers. The thumb gusset and thumb were perfect so this second mitt shouldn't require too much math.
The yarn I'm using for these mitts is Madelinetosh Tosh Sock in Optic and you can view my Ravelry link here for more info regarding needle size, etc. 
1. Hemp/Cotton blend Hemlock Tee: Finishing will be done on the coverstitch machine.
2. Silk/Rayon blend jersey sleeveless Hemlock Tee (inspired by Kelly's many versions). This one is cropped a bit and also will be finished on the coverstitch machine.
3. Hemp/Coton bland cropped Linden in a size up from my normal size for extra ease and a wider neck. I'm getting back on the yoga bandwagon and last time I was on that train I wore my one oversized Linden constantly. I'm considering stitching around the edges to prevent any raveling and leaving them raw for a more activewear look. We'll see, I'm not great at not finishing things, even when it's intended.
I had a few Lindens & Hemlocks in my plan, so I've been cutting and sewing here and there stealing time between projects. Christine has an amazing post on finding time to sew, which I highly recommend you read. I've been trying to put this into practice and as a result I've now got 3 shirts that are almost complete with just hemming left to do. It's been hard for me to find time to sew because all of my equipment is at work and it's not my natural inclination to come into work in my free time on nights & weekends, but the trick is finding what works for you.
My first step towards productivity was actually planning out what fabrics and silhouettes I was going to make, this stopped the paralysis of staring at my fabric stash, totally overwhelmed by the fact that any one piece could become one of a million things. I am now looking at my wardrobe plan post, then pulling the fabric and pattern based on the amount of time I have to cut or sew. So far so good, we'll see how far this carries me through the sewn portion of my wardrobe!
The final in progress part of my wardrobe plan is my Brooklyn Tweed Hawser. I feel like I should be further on this considering I started it a while ago, but I've been traveling so much and this isn't exactly the most portable project so it's been doing a fair amount of languishing in its project bag on a shelf. For those of you familiar with this pattern you'll notice that I'm not knitting it in the round. I was inspired by Erica and decided to knit it flat with a side split after seeing her beautiful sweater, though I also hate working on something this large in the round, it just gets so heavy. Not my jam. I've made my back ribbing a bit longer than my front which is another mod I'm pumped about. I'm knitting my Hawser in Brooklyn Tweed Shelter in Cast Iron. I'm excited to see this sweater take shape and should have a lot more time to work on it soon, this weekend in Nashville is my last teaching trip for a while so I'll get a little relaxing time on the weekends. Can't wait!
So, that's where my wardrobe is currently at! I'll be checking back in next month, hopefully with more projects in progress!
