WOW Y'ALL it's been a minute. So much has happened in the past few months that sewing has had to take a major backseat. After a couple months unemployed after finishing my Masters, I started a new job that I'm really enjoying and moved to San Francisco. I'm living in the Haight (hippie central—this is where the summer of love happened!) and now that I'm settled in, I'm finding myself overwhelmed with inspiration here. It's just bursting at the seams with color, energy, and turning the ordinary into something extraordinary. I am so pleased to be here in a community that is so art-centric.That being said—new job + moving has meant that I spent a month away from my sewing machine, which was torture! I had one pending knitting project (a throw blanket my little brother requested as a Christmas present like a week before Christmas 😳) that helped me keep my hands busy, but blankets are... not exciting, so I got sick of it and then had nothing to keep my creative juices flowing!
Anyways, I'm finally able to get back to sewing and celebrated by spending a Friday evening after a particularly grueling week to take my time and really enjoy the process. I usually try to limit my time at the machine to about an hour before taking a break so I don't get cranky when I start making little mistakes, but this time I put some music on and took mini dance breaks between steps that helped me avoid entering that sewing as self care turned stress danger zone.
The Driftless cardigan pattern by Grainline Studio has been in my queue for a while, and then when Hart's had their amazing sale recently, I snatched up some of this sweater knit fabric. It's definitely not my fave fabric because it's sweatery on the right side and like an athletic knit on the wrong side, but it's warm and was nice to work with so I'm still quite pleased. I wish it was sweatery on both sides though because that side is SO soft! Something I love about this fabric is that because of the heathering, the seamlines kind of disappear into it, so my not-so-exact seam matching is not even remotely noticeable.
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| Buttons? No buttons? I can't decide! |
Everyone and their mother who sews raves about the Driftless pattern and now I know why. It's amazing. It's super adaptable in length—I'm going to do a cropped version next—and is just so well drafted. The instructions are clear and simple so what looks like a really complicated project when you have all the pieces laid out is a complete snap. If you're relatively new to sewing, but know your way around the machine and maybe have some experience with knits, the Driftless is a great pattern for you. Yay for beginner-friendly patterns!
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| ~*~ Almost secret pockets ~*~ |
All in all, I spent probably 4.5 hours Friday evening (cutting fabric and constructing up to the hem bands) and another hour Saturday morning to finish it off. I am so pleased with this project. The pocket design really elevates this cardigan to something that's comfortable, versatile, and stylish.
This is my first *completely* finished project of my 2018 Make Nine (a couple other neeeearly done ones on my sewing table) so three cheers for returning to sewing, accomplishing a sewing/wardrobe goal, and loving the outcome! I call that a sewing WIN!
