Simplicity 3758

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My version side:

My version back:

For those who are interested in such things, the jeans I'm wearing are unisex Proton shorts from Cyberdog.

Vogue 1225

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My version front (with belt):

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My version back:

Vogue 1052

Pattern Picture:

My version Front:

My version Side:

My version Back:

 

The Fabric:

I can't figure out how to comment on my own blog (cringe!), so to answer Shams's question about the fabric: I got it from a factory outlet shop in South Africa. It is called a factory overprint and basically they used it to clean their printing machines between runs, so you have layers and layers of incompletely printed patterns on top of each other. It frequently looks a muddy mess, and can be as stiff as card, but if you unroll the roll you'll always find sections that are soft enough to use and look amazing. It is dirt cheap, even by South African prices, but as you would expect, not the greatest quality fabric. You can have a lot of fun practicing layouts and experimenting with it, e.g. if you have dark ink on top of colourful ink a bit of bleach can produce amazing results.

Vogue 8679 - TEST GARMENT

Pattern Picture:

 My version:

This is a test version, with lots and lots of obvious fitting issues, but I thought folks might like to see some pictures of the jacket in a less-than-sober fabric. I intend to return to this pattern in 2013, so hopefully some pictures of a finished garment will go up here at some point.

My test garment side:

My test garment back:

My test garment front:

Onion 1041

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My version front:

My version back:

Inside:

On me:

Harris Tweed

A friend of mine recently took me to explore the Western Isles as a birthday treat. I had a marvelous time amid some truly spectacular scenery. Of course, I just had to go take look at the Harris tweeds made on the island of Lewis & Harris. The tweeds are handwoven by local residents during the winter months, using wool from the sheep that roam freely about the island. The wool is sent away for spinning, but aside from that, every step of production happens locally.

 There is a store at Tarbert on Harris, about 3 minutes walk away from the ferry terminal to Uig on Skye. Walking in there is like going to heaven. Here is a picture to give you a flavour of what is available (click to zoom in):

 The colours are muted for the most part, with speckles of bright colour visible on closer inspection. This reflects the colours that were possible to achieve using vegetable dyes in previous times. The fabric is not cheap (£12 pm for 75cm width and £30 pm for 120cm width), but well worth it - not just for the quality and beauty of the fabric, but because the proceeds support a local and sustainable island industry.

Of course I bought some, and this is what it looks like:

It was an end of roll piece, only enough for a waistcoat, but oh how I love it!

I can heartily recommend a visit to the Hebrides. Here are some pictures to give you a flavour of the scenery:

 

Indygo Junction IJ854

Garden Party Pullover – Pattern Picture

My version - front:

My version - back: