Showing posts with label vintage Shetland knit. Show all posts
Showing posts with label vintage Shetland knit. Show all posts

Wednesday, 29 August 2012

Sports vest

As much as I may lack talent for any sports - and sadly I do  - this slight inadvertence doesn't stop me from coveting the amazing sportswear of the 20's and 30's. Can't even legitimate my love for this gear through attending sports events as a spectator, I'm that disinterested.
Luckily, the modern ways of wearing sports clothing as casual wear are for once in favour of my inclinations. It is still tough to push through an equestrian outfit when missing the horse, but I reckon this cricket looking little number won't have to face the same challenges.


As you can see it was inspired by the beautiful fair isle example above. Unfortunately mother doesn't do fair isle, but what I wanted was to replicate the shape, which went pretty well. 
It's also done in a coarser Shetland type wool, which means the overall effect is somewhat bulkier and rougher. I love very textured yarns that cry out loud their provenance. 
I've been wearing this the other day when it started raining, and the wool immediately gave that typical sheep whiff. I was instantly transported back into my childhood to those moments when I was helping my grandmother wash the sheared wool at the river. In fact, the natural, undyed wool in this vest still comes from that village. And that feels pretty good..





Wednesday, 14 March 2012

Lollipop


Each year the same story: I find winter OK in December, try to be reasonable about it in January - after all it is only mid season -, somehow bear through February, and by March I am at the end of my tether. Simply can't take the cold and greyness any more. As much as I love spring, this isn't exactly it. So far we had 2 or 3 sunny days in March, and for the rest what I call "cement weather". 
Today started pretty much along those lines, but for some shy rays making a weak statement mid day, however the afternoon turned out positively sunny. So I pretended it was warm enough for short sleeve (it wasn't, my sore throat is the proof of that) and took some photos of the latest knit projects completed by mum. 


Here is one of them, in a lovely pink and cream Shetland wool. 
The idea of this project dates a while back, and but the time it was finished I had forgotten how the original pattern looked like. 
I notice now I didn't do my collar up like in the original image - I shall try that next time I wear the blouse, to see how it sits. 




I am pleased with this, it's a sweet little blouse, if anything I would have liked the waist band tighter - mine just hangs there, as opposed to really hugging the waist, but hey, I think I'll live with that. I believe it was a happy choice of colour too, and if anyone thinks I look like a lollipop, so be it. At least I said it first :)




Monday, 5 December 2011

The cardigan that changes all - falling for Fair Isle


As you can see, it's versatility that preoccupies me at the moment, the chameleon-ing of one outfit into something else with the add of a piece or two. In this case, what I wore in my last post to channel a Katherine Hepburn look, steps now further back in time for a whiff of late 20s /early 30s sportswear.

I don't know how you like my take on Fair Isle, but I'm telling you, this little thing does take me places. 
It certainly took me to work 3 days in a row as pictured above...and little thing it isn't, in fact it seems more like three sizes bigger than I normally wear. So big in fact that I've been wearing it on top of a small fitted jacket too, as an outer layer! Yeah, baby, this is looove... Can't take the damn thing off! 

In fact, it sparked an interest with Fair Isle that I had not yet experienced, in spite of this thing being very fashionable lately (outside the vintage circles) from what I can gather.
I suppose it  all spurred naturally - if rather slowly - for me out the growing obsession with 20s and 30s casual and sportswear that I've been entertaining for the last year or two.
So there you have it: I'm officially a Fair Isle convert!

Photo from Barbara's blog Re Knitting



The 3 images above are part of the Textiles Collection in the Shetland Museum and Archives
Photo via the wonderful A Polar Bear's Tale blog, see article here
Pattern available at The Vintage Knitting Lady