A Tried & True Review, where I look back at old project and discuss how it's held up since I made it, both successes and closet rejects, in an attempt to show how my projects have stood the test of time and/or to learn from the mistakes of my yesterdays.
The Original: Waltz in Grey and School House Tunic
Made: June 2011 (4.25 years old) and September 2011 (4 years old) (you'd also think my hair doesn't change much either...)
Update: If you follow along in the sewing or knitting social media worlds, you've probably heard of Slow Fashion October by now. If not, the short version is that it's taking the month of October to think consciously about our wardrobes, how do we add to them?, what is enough?, how does making your own clothes influence that? etc.
I've been thinking about a lot of these topics for a while both in these Tried & True Reviews and in my post on Ethical Fashion and why I started making my own underthings.
It's week three of Slow Fashion October now, with the theme of LOVED: proudest accomplishment / most loved item / most frequently worn item / thing you saved up for / investment pieces / thing you worked a long time on / oldest thing that’s still in rotation. And I thought it would be as good a time as any to feature my two most frequently worn makes in a Tried and True Review.
If it's fall or winter and that top is clean, there's a good chance I'm wearing it and even if it's not clean, I'm probably still wearing the cardigan anyway.
Fit: In truth, I really should have knit the next size of the cardigan up, so the collar doesn't really fold back as far as it should, but I just give it a firm blocking whenever I wash it and it's an open cardigan anyway, so it doesn't matter too much. The tunic fits well, though sometimes the armband elastic feels a bit snug.
Style/Materials: The cardigan was knit out of an undyed alpaca/nylon sock yarn. It takes a licking and keep on ticking (as they say). It's a bit itchy on bare arms, but the beautiful natural grey color goes with pretty much anything, which is why is gets worn so very much. The fabric for the tunic is in gingham (my favorite) and is a thick cotton that feel almost like a dish towel, it's just ridiculously cozy. As for style, I still feel like the tunic looks vaguely like maternity wear (and I made a bunch during my pregnancy), but if I throw a more fitted cardigan over it, it doesn't matter as much.
Construction: The tunic was a simple sew, but the cardigan took forever to knit. I've had to replace the thread button loop on the tunic once and the yarn is starting to pill a bit, but both these pieces have survived four years of hard wear and will last for many more. Well worth the effort.
Lesson(s) Learned: Positive ease is a good thing in a cardigan.
Final Verdict: Something doesn't have to be perfect to be your favorite.
