In which I knit and plot

So I finished my very first knitting project! Wrist warmers with cables!

I paired them with a nice pink t-shirt and I'm really loving the color combo!

The pattern I used was from Vampire Knits by Genevieve Miller. There's also a matching neck warmer but I haven't gotten that far.

They were pretty simple to knit up once I got the hang of the cable directions. The second one, however, ended up mysteriously larger than the other.....

I've also had a bit of an upset with my circle skirt embellishment for the sew along. The tutorial I used was for a skirt with a flat hem that was gathered at the top. I didn't think about how that would work with a circle skirt which has a round hem.

After freaking out a bit, I settled on embroidery and was inspired by the beautiful atomic designs from the 1950s. Here are some of my sketches of what I've been thinking about doing.

I was inspired by this fabric I stumbled upon at JoAnn's last night.


I am a bit nervous about this skirt being an orphan if I do go this route. I may go a bit simpler and do just little white "stars" like the ones on the fabric. It would go with a lot more things. I need to hem the skirt first anyways so I have some time to think about it.

I'm also a chemist so I love the idea of little embroidered atoms too.

Do you have a favorite atomic pattern? Any thoughts about how I could embellish this skirt?

UFO - U = FO

Today, I finished a long standing UFO! I actually started this blouse back in March for Colette's spring palette challenge. It was my first go with knits and I blazed fearlessly on... until I got to the button hole part. Then I froze.

I ended up doing bound button holes for the first four buttons. The fifth button was at the waist bit and it had a nice pretty facing I'd sewn down back in March, so I just used a snap and sewed the button on top. I love the little collar detail but I think it'd go over better in a solid or less busy print.

Fabric: 2 yds of purple knit with bows grabbed off of the sale rack for something cheap
Pattern: Simplicity 2501 view C (although I think I used sleeves from something else....)
Year: contemporary
Notions: buttons, snaps
Time to complete: Can't remember
First worn: September 2011
Wear again? Yeah. It's definitely not perfect. It was my first time using a knit and I had construction issues plus fit issues plus fabric choice issues. It does have a bit of that lettuce leaf look on the hem, but I'll get over it. It is really great for work since I won't be completely crushed if it is ruined.

Total cost: something cheap

In other news, I dyed my hair a dark brown so that odd reddish streak is mostly gone. It still looks reddish depending on how the light hits it but it looks much less fake.

I also picked up this fab 1930s millinery reprint book. It looks awesome so far! This publisher also has an Edwardian millinery book which looks good too. Hopefully, I'll learn how to make some cute hats! Don't expect to see any too soon since I'm pretty busy with school and other things I need to do plus I think I need one of those millinery heads. (I can't think of what they are called at the moment and I'm too lazy to get off the couch and check in my book.)

Oh, and this is my SSS for today as well as a project for FESA and FPC.

FESA and FPC Sewing Plan

So, I have had a general idea of what I wanted to sew and knit for fall but with both the FESA and FPC in full swing, it's probably past time for me to actually peg down my plans.

1. Sailor Playsuit Pants

I've already completed one pair of these lovelies drafted from Wearing History's 1940s Sailor Girl Playsuit shorts and am planning another in the leftover monk fabric.

Colors: #1 grey #2 brown

2. Librarian Circle Skirt

I'm planning a librarian themed circle skirt for Casey's Circle Skirt Sew Along.

Colors: brown

3. Candice Sweater

This will be my first sweater! :)

Colors: Purple (though quite a bit darker than the one in my palette)

4. 1950s style Jumper a la Audrey Hepburn

Inspired by this photo:

I've tracked down some suitable fabric and a 1950s retro pattern to create this little lovely.

Colors: grey

5. Fingerless gloves and Neck warmer

I've already finished knitting one of the cabled fingerless gloves! Should be great for those chilly walks to school

Colors: sea green

6. 1940s skirt suit

I'm whipping up the skirt and jacket from this pattern:

in the same microhoundstooth as my completed pants.

Colors: grey

Bonus projects:

These are only if I have time projects.

7. Mary's blouse

I'm planning on reproducing the blouse Lady Mary is wearing in this photo:

using this pattern:

Colors: ivory and mauve

8. Suit blouse

The suit pattern above comes with a blouse pattern that I may try.

Colors: sea green or purple or mauve

9. Hats

If I'm really inspired, I'll take another crack at millinery.

Triple Play

So here's my SSS day 7, and my first project for FESA and FPC:

Pants! Woot! My first really successful pair!

Fabric: 2 yds of microhoundstooth in some kind of cotton ($7/yd)
Pattern: Wearing History Sailor Playsuit shorts drafted into pants
Year: 1940s
Notions: zipper ($2), bias tape (from stash)
Time to complete: 3 hours
First worn: September 2011
Wear again? Yups! These pants are so comfy! I've dubbed them my retro sweat pants because they are warm and comfy like sweat pants but oh so much more stylish. I am going to add belt loops since they look so awesome with a belt.

Total cost: $16

The best thing about these pants-facing finished with bright pink bias tape! I used this color partly because it's awesome but also partly because that's what I had on hand.

After I bought this fabric, I realized that almost all of my neutral shoes are brown. So I just had to have a grey pair. ;)

I love this blouse because it closes with a zipper! I really want to try a zipper closure on a blouse. I never have to worry about gaping with this blouse.

And because I know you all were just dying to see my butt, here it is. And these pants make it look pretty good if I say so myself.

Fall Color Palette Take 2

So, I've decided to update my fall color palette. This is for a couple of reasons. 1) I've decided to focus on stash/pattern busting so I cut projects that required new fabric and new patterns. 2) I want to incorporate my knitting. 3) I also want to UFO bust! So my old fall color palette will probably get bumped to my winter palette and here's my new colors.


I just adore Downton Abbey so I decided to pull my color palette from the show. Right now I don't have any Edwardian projects planned but I'm going to buy myself this pattern as a reward for finishing my fall projects!

Theses are some of my fashion inspirations! I'll be in a more 30s/40s/50s + modern in my actual projects.

Stuff going on in September

Look a head to the rest of the month and it's a lot! So here's a round up of things you can expect to see on my blog this month. (The aka abbreviation corresponds to the tag for this event on my blog posts.)

I missed out on MMJune but I'm all geared up for Self-Stitched September! (aka SSS). I won't be posting outfits daily, but rather in groups every 3-4 days. If I'm a good blogger, there will be a picture of me in what I actually wore. If not, they'll be an old picture of whatever I wore.

'I, Stephanie Lynn, sign up as a participant of Self-Stitched-September. I endeavour to wear at least 1 handmade or refashioned item of clothing or accessory every day for the duration of September 2010'.

The Fall Essentials Sew-Along is going on too! (aka FESA) Hopefully this will help out with SSS!

In addition, I'm joining in Colette Patterns Fall Palette Challenge! (aka FPC) I think these two are going to work really well together. I already posted a fall palette and some sewing plans, but I'll do an updated post of FESA and FPC soon.

Casey's Circle Skirt Sew Along (aka CSSA) is also going on. Again, will fit in with FESA and FPC.

Yummy knitting! The Newbie and the Knitter knit along (aka NandK) is also just starting! I'm also planning on having some other knitting projects to go along with FESA and FPC.

Plus, the Renaissance festival starts this weekend! So I'll be finishing up my dress! I still have a lot of little details to finish up, like hemming and closures, and some fitting issues to address.