I guess writing down goals really does work… The Self-Made Wardrobe Week 32
The Self-Made Wardrobe is a project where I only wear garments I’ve made.
It’s a year long experiment in getting dressed without clothing labels –
it’s a year about noticing patterns, trying things, and observing what happens.
Day 218 – Friday, March 6th
purple sweater // black tank // black maxi skirt // bead crochet bracelets
black scarf // black tights // brown boots // various rings
Day 219 – Saturday, March 7th
archer button up shirt // black tank top // cascading flowers skirt
bead crochet bracelets // various rings
Day 220 – Sunday, March 8th
purple sweater // black tank top // graphic silk circle skirt
bead crochet bracelets // various rings // black tights // brown boots
Day 221 – Monday, March 9th
archer button up shirt // black tank // black maxi // bead crochet bracelets
black scarf // black tights // brown boots // various rings
Day 222 – Tuesday, March 10th
boring black sweater // black tank top // graphic silk circle skirt
black tights // black shoes
bead crochet bracelets // various rings // robot clock necklace
Day 223 – Wednesday, March 11th
handknit sweater dress // black tank top // black tights
Day 224 – Thursday, March 12th
archer button up shirt // black tank top // graphic silk circle skirt
black scarf // black tights // brown boots
bead crochet bracelets // various ring
When I started the self-made wardrobe I had a few loose goals in the back of my mind, but I intentionally didn’t set any super specific goals.*
*because my wardrobe & I are grand adventuresses!
I knew at some point I’d need jeans, a winter coat, and some sweaters. But other than that I wanted to keep things loose.
And 7 months in, with no specific plan, I’ve accomplished 2 of those things. Yay!
Having said that, I’m setting a couple loose flexible goals for the last 5 months of the self-made wardrobe. I talked a briefly about most of these goals in the January wrap up over on the selfmadewardrobe.com blog, but I wanted to expand on them and add a couple more here.
Goal 1: another chunky sweater. Kind of like my deconstructed sweater, I want something chunky, warm and cozy – that will work over other sweaters for the rest of the winter, but that will also act as a spring jacket once it gets warm enough to put my alpaca coat away (soon, I hope.)
In the interest of time, I want to sew this instead of knitting it and in the interest of versatility I want it to be a cardigan. (This could also be a straight up spring jacket – but in the long run, I think I’ll get more wear out of the sweater.)
Goal 2: another light, thin, long sleeved pullover. The purple sweater I’m finishing now will fit this bill quite nicely.
Goal 3: another 3 − 4 quick, easy, simple, wonderful skirts. I haven’t felt the desire to sew anything for awhile, this winter has made me want to curl up and knit more than anything else. But with the promise of spring I’ve started sitting down at my sewing machine again.
Goal 4: jeans. I know – damn bloody record over here. But I have the pattern. I have the fabric. I just need to sit down at the machine…
Goal 5: looking forward to summer. Skirts. Dresses. Tank tops. Yes please! (This isn’t really a goal, it’s more like a “yay summer!” thought.)
It’s funny. I originally wrote out these goals a couple weeks ago, and since then have made substantial progress on both my purple sweater (it’s ready have the ends woven in!) and my jeans (they’re constructed! so now they just need a waistband & finishing!)
I guess writing down goals (when they’re thoughtful, aligned, centered goals) really does work…
around here there’s been…
Each Wednesday, I post little snippets about the projects I’m working on.
: knitting – I finished the neckline of my purple sweater. And then ripped it out and finished it again. And then ripped it out and finished it yet again.
: spinning – I started spinning a yak/merino blend of fiber.
: sewing – I started sewing my first pair of jeans!!!
Finished: handspun yarn – a red & purple, 3 ply, worsted weight yarn
Yarn!
This particular yarn has been a long time in the making. I originally spun the Redfish DyeWorks (bright red) fiber with the intention of making my standard 2ply – upon finishing the singles I realized that would be a damn intense yarn.
So the singles then sat on my desk for months* waiting for something.
*not a good spinning practice – but they didn’t end up too much the worse for it.
Turns out they were waiting for these 2 ounces of fiber from Wooliebullie (the darker purple-ier) – I originally thought about spinning this up on it’s own but that wouldn’t have yielded as much yardage as I would have wanted, and then when I held it with the bright red it seemed like the perfect match.
Fiber A (bright red): 4oz Redfish DyeWorks’s in an intense bright red
Fiber B (darker purple-ier): 2oz “Beaujolais” on Velvet from wooliebullie.etsy.com
(Both fibers are a 50/50 silk/merino blend.)
Yardage: 260 yards & 165 grams
Weight: somewhere around a worsted weight yarn
Spinning details: I spun the fibers worsted* and did a traditional 3 ply. The singles are spun with a Z twist, and plyed with an S twist. I also ended up with 15 or so yards of 2 ply from the singles that were left after the first bobbin ran out.
*for the non spinners – this is a spinning method and (just to be confusing) has nothing to do with producing a yarn worsted weight yarn.
Knitting plans: I don’t have any exact plans for this – but it’ll be something beautiful.
