Fashion

Super Quick Stash-Buster Scarf

November 29, 2018 sewawaycindyLeave a comment

I had just finished cutting out a cute new top (coming soon) out of a lightweight floral sweater knit. When I was done, I still had a wide length of fabric. It wasn’t enough to use for any garments though.

Regular readers will know that I like to find ways of using every little bit of leftover fabric. Because my scrap was basically a wide rectangle, it was perfect for a scarf.

I smoothed out the piece on my large cutting mat, aligning the grain as best as I could. Like many stretch fabrics, it was somewhat pulled out of shape near the selvedge. I cut that part away. Then I used the gridlines on my cutting mat and a long ruler to cut the largest rectangle I could, resulting in a 50 x 15 inch piece.

floral_scarf_2 — The scarf fully extended

The cutting doesn’t have to be perfect. This project is very forgiving of mistakes.

While still at the cutting table, I folded the rectangle lengthwise, right sides together. This sweater knit stuck to itself very well, so I didn’t bother pinning it. Then I serged the long raw edges together using a 4 thread overlock.

I turned the tube so the right side was facing out, then serged the openings to each other. I had to hand stitch the last little opening, then done!

Instant gratification projects are so fun, don’t you think? Now excuse me while I rummage through all of my sweater scraps.

SUPPLIES

1/3 yard (or so) lightweight sweater knit – Mine was from Sincerely Rylee
Nice, sharp rotary cutter – Mine is Olfa’s 45mm
Self-healing cutting mat (as big as you can)

I had fun trying out some styling ideas….

Lots more coming soon!

Until then, happy sewing!

Red Garter Stitch Scarf

November 20, 2018November 23, 2018 sewawaycindy3 Comments

I made another scarf! This one was a special request. The assignment: use a specific yarn to make a simple, long, lightweight scarf. No embellishments or fancy stitching desired.

I think the finished object fit the brief. With one skein of Cascade Heritage Quatro (400 meters), I went back and forth in garter stitch, slipping one stitch at the beginning of each row. The quatro is a sock weight yarn, so the entire project was done on tiny size 2 needles. It’s a very nice merino/nylon blend yarn made from plies of four different colors twisted together. When knitted together, they make a nice blended effect. Unfotunately, I think I may have bought the last one in existence, because I can’t find any more anywhere. I think you could approximate the effect by holding four different strands of a laceweight yarn together though.

That’s the last bit of knitting for a little while.

More sewing coming soon!

redgarterscarf_1 — Scarf as work in progress. You can clearly see the twisted strands in the sock yarn.

Fashion

Easiest Skirt Ever

August 12, 2018 sewawaycindyLeave a comment

I know I can draft a circle skirt pattern. There is even a nifty calculator to help. I used this one from Mood Fabrics to make the Run for the Roses knit skirt. But sometimes it’s just easier to buy an inexpensive pattern and let someone else do the heavy lifting. Butterick’s See&Sew pattern B6578 is just a plain pull-on knit circle skirt in two lengths. This is the longer of the two.

pull_on_skirt_5 — The cased waistband up close

I’m pretty sure it took longer to prepare and cut the fabric than it did to assemble. I’m kind of bummed that the knit I picked up at a certain chain store did not hold up to machine washing. It faded quite a bit and pilled. So this is a skirt just to wear around the house. It is soft and comfortable but doesn’t really hold up to close inspection.

The directions include a cased elastic waistband. It’s easy to do, but doesn’t look as sharp as other possible waistband finishes. Next time I will try a serger technique where you sew the elastic in place and fold it inside.

The seams are sewn with a four thread overcast, and the hem and casing is done with a two needle coverstitch.

pull_on_skirt_6 — Inside skirt showing coverstitch hem

I think this is a good basic pattern. It could serve as a base for any knit circle skirt. I can see adding on pockets, embellishments, different finishes and other enhancements.

Did you know that if you buy See & Sew patterns from the Butterick website, that shipping is free? I bought several the last time they had a sale. This one was only a few dollars!

More coming soon – stay tuned!

I reviewed this pattern on PatternReview.com. Click here to read it.