Monday, November 21, 2016

... and done!


The skirt was done and blocked and once again I had the cardigan on a dress form. I kept turning and turning it to look at it from all different angles to see, what should be the next step. There was not much to do any more, but the final steps, of which, the button bands were the most important.
 
 
More stability, but not too much. I took some quilting weight cotton (it is not heavy), cut my strips diagonally (fabric that is cut diagonally is very stretchy) and I hand sewed those strips to their places. I did shrink the fabric first by getting it thoroughly wet and then ironing it. The strips were quite wide and I needed to add stitching to make them act together with the cardigan fabric. I hand sewed short running stitches randomly all over the pieces. I tried to catch as little of the knitted fabric as possible, that is, I did not go through the fabric, but caught only a thin layer with the needle. The feel of the fabric is lovely. I think I will use this technique to line some of my knitted garments later. (This resembles the way the Chanel coats are lined.)
 
When the button bands were done, it was time to sew on the buttons. I had to follow the original button holes and I sewed my buttons on top of them. My new buttons were so huge that instead of making the button holes bigger, I sewed snaps on the wrong side. I found dark brown ones and they are not too noticeable. And snaps to the other side too.
With all this stretching and steaming the waist shaping of the cardigan was gone. I wanted to bring it back. The length of the garment is little bit odd, it should have been longer, but now the widest part of the cardigan falls onto the widest part of my body and to balance that, I added some gathers to the back piece, something to make sure, that the shaping would not be lost during wear. Also, the garment needed to have a point that would appear slender and nice and neat and would make the appearance lighter. I am not sure if I managed to do that, but that was the only way, I could think of; I crocheted 5 rows with slip stitches following the garter-stitch stitch lines with small hook and I skipped a stitch every now and then. I did skip evenly, but I cannot remember if it was every fourth or fifth that I skipped. Now there is the slight gathering above the waistline, not too noticeable but hopefully will add stability.
All that done, final steaming, the red button and the pictures!
Donedonedone!
 
 
(You can see the gathers in this picture.)
 
New life for Charm.

I am happy that so many of you have took the time to encourage me by sending comments; thank you! xx 
And there is no need to worry, I have already started my next upcycling project; it is a huge, old sweater and it needs lots of work…

Hope you have a good week,
Wool with you,
Lene

28 comments:

  1. Very pretty. Love the colors. And the mix of buttons.

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  2. Oh I like it! Very beautiful!

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  3. Very, very pretty. I like the look of the back gathers and skirt.

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  4. So clever! It turned out gorgeous and looks beautiful on you!

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  5. Anonymous16:38

    I am loving, loving, loving your upcycling projects! Keep them coming! So inspiring... Gaidjin

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  6. Anonymous16:48

    so lovely! So smart!

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  7. You have such an elegant eye. I love reading about your projects:)

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  8. This is realy an inspriring project! I will go look at some of my sweaters now!

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  9. This came out quite lovely! Very, very clever using the diagonal bias grain in the fabric strips. And I like the way the gathers look at the back waist... I might have to do that to improve fit in a sweater sometime!

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  10. Wow-wow-wow! This is so beautiful. Love the fabric you used - goes so well with the brown and blue. The gathers are perfect and it looks lovely on you. Can't wait to see your next project!

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  11. Anonymous18:16

    Absolutely gorgeous, Lene. I am very impressed! And thank you for taking us on your journey.
    Liesbeth

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  12. The waist shaping is quite successful! What a transformation this sweater has had.

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  13. You really breathed new life into this sweater! It looks fantastic!

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  14. I love this one as much as the coat. The waist shaping is very effective - a really lovely garment.

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  15. Oh my gosh! You are so creative! Love seeing how your upcycling brings new life to old garments.

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  16. Anonymous23:35

    You really did a beautiful job, Lene. All of your solutions and ideas were quite original and together form/reform a lovely "new" garment. RCD

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  17. Love everything but the buttons. It is not the differing buttons but there is something about the buttons that is not meshing perfectly with the rest of the sweater. I drive myself crazy trying to match buttons with the project.

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  18. I love the skirt

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  19. I agree with Mary Jane about the buttons, but also about the rest: and that high-low skirt-peplum is SO on-trend! Happy snow from Ellen in Connecticut, New England.

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  20. Priscilla in London14:56

    Dear Lene,
    Wow! You've done it again. The little red button signature is a lovely touch, but your true trademark is the combination of creativity and meticulous skill that you bring to every project. I'm full of admiration.

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  21. I love it! I love the buttons, the skirt, the gathers, everything. It suits you, and it is a gorgeous revamp. I think mismatched buttons are in the air right now, I just did them on a sweater I finished...the photos aren't perfect but here's a link:
    http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/plum-ribbed-cardigan

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  22. sandra19:41

    Lovely! I adore the little skirt.

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  23. Anonymous20:19

    Dear Lene, it is indeed charming and a work of genius. The raglan re-seaming for stability with the design touch of color, Short-rowing the skirt so that the length shortens and matches the front ruffle. The bias cut button band lining for stability that is also gorgeous. Who knew that's how Chanel coats are done? Only one with a discerning eye. Nipping in the back waist for fit and shape. This would be a great Master's thesis!

    The end result is beautiful and will serve you well for a long time. Perfect upcycling and design. Thank you Lene for showing us what is possible.

    annie

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  24. Anonymous20:21

    PS - I love the buttons!

    annie

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  25. Oh, this project turned out so well! I especially love the visible seaming and the subtle gathering at the back waist. You have a very good handle on when the modifications are enough, so that the designing is interesting and different, but the pieces come together in a unified way.

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    Microdermabrasion treatment

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  27. I am very impressed with all the work you have put into this sweater. It looks so pretty!

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