Tag Archives: #summerofbasics

Hot patterns and last-month ideas from the Summer of Basics

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Hot patterns and last-month ideas from the Summer of Basics

Happy August! There’s still a whole month left for the Summer of Basics Make-along — plenty of time to whip up a nice trio of garments, even if you haven’t started anything yet. I’ve seen a lot of people lamenting not having jumped in, so I’m here today to offer encouragement and pattern suggestions!

Obviously, at this point, simplicity may be of the essence (depending on your free-time ratio). But if you think about 3 quick sewing projects, or 2 simple sews + 1 more complicated sew, or 2 simple sews + 1 worsted or chunky sweater or knitted tank even, it’s super doable. You can Knit a Sloper in a weekend, sew a tank or shell in an afternoon. Where there’s a will, there are 31 days!

Some of the most popular patterns in the #summerofbasics feed so far are also (understandably) some of the simplest. Drawing on what’s been showing up on repeat, here’s an array of possibilities to consider, loosely organized by type and complexity. So you can mix and match!

TANKS AND TEES
The Willow Tank (1) and Ogden Cami are the clear champions of the feed — many people having even made multiples of one or both. And with good reason: They’re perfect on their own for summer, and go great with a cardigan or jacket when it cools off. There are also quite a few Lark and other tees, although not as many as I imagined there would be. And Grainline also has a new cute and simple top pattern out today (sleeves or sleeveless), the elegant little pleat-backed Hadley, so check that out. Still plenty of time to make any of these comparatively quick little gems.

BOX TOPS AND DRESSES
There are also so many Shirt No.1’s, Maya and Fen (2) tops, and the like, as well as Fen dresses. The boxy tops are even easier and faster to make than the tanks above (just two pieces and some trim), while the Fen dress is more involved but still on the simple side, with no closures or anything. Also making numerous appearances is the breezy new Charlie Caftan in its assorted forms, which does have some detailing but, again, no closures.

SKIRTS AND PULL-ONS
Simple skirts — such as Brumby and Cleo — have been very popular. As have even simpler pull-on shorts — particularly the Parkside Shorts and City Gym Shorts (3, free pattern) — and super-cute pull-on dungarees, the Burnside Bibs (which also offer a hidden-zip version).

BUTTON-DOWNS
Getting a bit more involved, there are tons of Archer Button-ups and Kalle Shirtdresses (4) in the feed, all of them inspiring!

PANTS AND JEANS
On the far right of the complicated spectrum are pants with all the parts: fly, pockets, waistband, the whole nine yards. There are tons of jeans turning up — mostly Ginger and a few Morgan — and a few people have also used those and other jeans patterns to make shorts (denim or otherwise). I think the most popular pants pattern in the feed is the adorable Emerson Crop (5).

KNITS
There are boatloads of sweaters underway (I’m hoping we’ll start seeing more of them completed!) but surprisingly not a lot of overlap as far as patterns. I think Cline (6.) might be the only one to come up more than once. Some other pretty simple beauties in there are Bedford, Harlowe and Veronika. And at the quicker end, there’s the Slope tank.

That’s far from comprehensive, but hopefully gets your wheels turning if you need it! For more ideas, of course, check the full #summerofbasics feed. And I’ll have further info on how to submit for the prizes a little bit later this month.

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PREVIOUSLY in Summer of Basics: Great scenes from the Summer of Basics so far

Queue Check — July 2017 (Summer of Basics)

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Queue Check — July 2017 (Summer of Basics)

Ummmm … grey cardigan? What grey cardigan? That poor thing has definitely not seen the light of day since my last Queue Check. No, it’s been all about the Summer of Basics dynamic duo up there, my vintage fisherman sweater and my first button-up.

I can’t believe it, looking at where it was a month ago, but the sweater currently sits at 4 parts all now at underarm height, so it’s time to start the yoke decreases. Thank heaven! Even knitting the parts round-robin style like this, the stitch pattern has gotten monotonous — as amazing and simple but oh-so-repetitive as it is — and I’ve been dying to get to the shaping. It will speed up from here, but I’m still nervous about getting it blocked and seamed and neckbanded by the end of August since I’m only working on it in the late evenings and allocating any weekend time to sewing.

The lovely Archer button-up is proving to be way more fun than I could have expected … so far. I’ve got the front/bands, pocket (made up my own), back/yoke all assembled, sleeve plackets sewn (ok, that part wasn’t so fun) and one sleeve basted on. My goal for yesterday was to have both sleeves attached and the seams serged. (I’ve decided to serge them, because I want to use my serger!) So I’m slightly behind schedule and gonna have to pick up the pace. The hardest parts are all still ahead of me — the collar and cuffs — and I don’t know how long to expect them to take, but I still need to fit SoB piece #3 in here, so I need to get this one wrapped up!

Speaking of which, you were all immensely helpful with the pants suggestions last week, and then on Saturday morning I totally scored at Elizabeth Suzann’s garage sale — the most exciting bit of which was some light army-green cotton canvas (garment weight) which I’m hoping will become my pants for piece 3 — I just need to commit to a pattern purchase. But all of that said, I’m still reserving the right to claim one or both of last week’s tops/tees as my third SoB if it comes to that! I sewed them in the time frame and they are definitely basics (and were under original consideration, even) but I don’t want to let that fall-back prevent me from trying to get the pants done. I can do it!

And for the moment I’m trying to not even think about what comes after any of that.

• Sweater is a 1967 pattern, Bernat 536-145, in Arranmore
• Shirt is Archer Button-up in sold-out fabric

(Porter Bin from Fringe Supply Co.)

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PREVIOUSLY in Queue Check: June 2017

Great scenes from the Summer of Basics so far

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Great scenes from the Summer of Basics

You guys realize next week is August? And you know what comes after August? SEPTEMBER! We’re almost through summer, and already 2/3 of the way through the Summer of Basics Make-along. There have been so many great garments and moments and photos on the #summerofbasics feed so far, and I thought today would be a good time to share just a few:

TOP ROW: From @ashleybennett88, this is such a clever way of solving the tricky problem of shooting pattern+fabric choices, while also spelling out her three-part plan for SoB. (NOTE: She’s just getting started — you can, too!)

SECOND: Likewise, this is such a gorgeous photo and sweet scene by @paddleboatstudio, which also happens to be a killer idea for showing off finished garments. Hannah appears to have been something of an SoB overachiever in June!

THIRD ROW: The “look at my new PANTS!” twins, @bethtais (her intro post here) and @sv_azimuth (her original plan here)

FOURTH ROW: Such a great, summery WIP scene by @hi.hilde, who is knitting her first-ever socks (her full plan here)

BELOW: And proving that “basic” doesn’t have to mean either boring or neutral, there’s this amazing shot of @callmedwj in her rainbow cardigan, which clearly not only thrills her but will work with everything in her closet and get a ton of wear. Basic at its finest. ;)

What are some of your favorites so far, and how are your projects going?

Great scenes from the Summer of Basics

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Sunday Funday: Fitting my Archer muslin

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Sunday Funday: Fitting my Archer muslin

You know how sometimes the thing you’re dreading turns out to be BIG FUN? Such was the case yesterday, when I finally started on the Archer button-down shirt that drove me to propose the Summer of Basics Make-along. A shirt like this is the hardest thing for me to fit — any woven, set-in-sleeve shirt that suits my big shoulders will inevitably be too big in the body and in the upper sleeves as a result. Which is why I want to make my own, and also why I’ve been dreading it. This is also a garment that involves cutting out and assembling 19 pattern pieces. (My average is more like 3.) So never have I been more committed to the traditional muslin process. Meaning, after tracing them off onto my beloved Swedish tracing paper, I cut the five key pieces (left front, right front, back, yoke and sleeve x2) out of muslin so I could assess and adjust the fit. As a starting point, I cut a straight size 14 after comparing the shoulder measurements to my favorite flannel shirt.

Sunday Funday: Fitting my Archer muslin

Upon stitching together the yoke/back and front pieces, and setting in the right sleeve, I was thrilled that — ta da! — it actually fits, with very little fiddling. I’m ok with the ease through the body; my only issues were that the sleeve was a little big (not terribly, but why not tweak while I can?) and too long: It hit perfectly at my wrist before a cuff was factored in. So I laid the left sleeve back on the pattern, sloped the sides down from a 14 at the underarm to a 10 at the cuff, and shortened it by 2.5″, then sewed it on. The difference in the upper arm is subtle but meaningful, but it’s a much better width at the cuff than the 14 was. To make sure I’ve got the length just right, I cut out the cuff and pinned it on, and I’m officially good to go.

That was surprisingly painless. So now it’s time to cut all 19 pieces out of my beautiful blue cotton-linen chambray. The thing is, I’m so excited about this shirt now, and know I’ll want to make several, so I almost want to cut them all at once and have them waiting in the wings for gradual future production.

Sunday Funday: Fitting my Archer muslin

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Summer of Basics: A feed full of well-laid plans

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Summer of Basics: A feed full of well-laid plans

We’re already a month into the Summer of Basics Make-along and the #summerofbasics feed is beyond amazing. You all are beyond amazing. All I have to show for myself so far is half of a sleeve (and a damn fine half-sleeve it is) whereas some people have already finished a couple of garments and others are still mulling their plans. All of which is perfectly dandy! This is meant to be casual — jump in any time. Before we get any further from the official start line, though, I had the urge to highlight a few standout planning posts and the people behind them—

Clockwise from top left; click through for the full images and to read all about them: @rachelbeckman, @shedabbles, @jennaashburn, @thestoryclubpdx, @valishungry, @a.klat, @kirsten_weis, @cutikula.

I particularly love the sentiment behind this remark from Jenna Ashburn: “Less than a year ago I would have said [making jeans] is something I could never do, but no one ever got a perfect pair of low rise skinny jeans with that attitude.” Perfect of not, I’m saying amen! to everyone who’s doing something they once thought unthinkable, whether that’s sewing a straight line or knitting a first garment or whatever the case may be.

PLEASE NOTE: None of the above has anything to do with any of the prize selection at the end — each of the sponsors will be making their own prize selections and mine is a random drawing. (Prize details are here.) As I said, these are just some of the many plans that jumped off the screen at me and that I wanted to share, especially for those who might not be following every post to the feed.

What are some of your favorites? And how are you own plans going so far?

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PREVIOUSLY in Summer of Basics: Charting a course for my fisherman sweater

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Queue Check — June 2017

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Queue Check — June 2017

I’m in Kansas right now — I came for a family reunion and have stayed for a funeral.* My eldest aunt, who had been ill for a very long time, succumbed just at the moment when eighty-something of us had already come from near and far to be together, which was characteristically polite and organized of her. May she rest in peace. So I’m about one-third of the way into the first sleeve of my Bernat fisherman sweater (in Arranmore) for the Summer of Basics and already there’s Squam dock time and this precious family visit knitted into it. And if that weren’t enough, this is the most joy I’ve ever gotten from two sticks and a ball of string. I crave it when it’s not in my hands and love working every stitch. (My top three Joy of Knitting projects — pure pleasure in the stitch patterns and the yarn in my hands — are this, Gentian and Channel.) Having charted out the vintage written-instructions pattern and seen what is happening, which is quite straightforward, I have no need to look at either the pattern or the chart and can just knit away at this happily, with just the right amount of brain detachment and engagement, watching the textures develop. It’s true love in every way.

I even made a tiny mistake in the very first cable cross, and left it, so that’s out of the way!

I did make some more progress on my so-called Summer Cardigan (in Balance) before casting on for the fisherman, but at this point it’s going to be impossible for it to get my attention. Hopefully the same won’t be true of my Archer shirt for #summerofbasics, which I plan to cut the muslin of this coming weekend.

*Hence the lack of response from me on Friday’s Q for You answers, but I have read them all and hope to respond when I have a chance — great conversation as usual.

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PREVIOUSLY in Queue Check: May 2017

Charting a course for my fisherman sweater

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Charting a course for my fisherman sweater

I began the first of my Summer of Basics garments on the plane last Tuesday — in this case, not with a ball of yarn and knitting needles but with a Knitters Graph Paper Journal and a freshly sharpened Blackwing pencil. This is for the 1967 Bernat fisherman sweater — my choice for the sweater I’ve wanted for decades — and Step 1 was/is to convert the written instructions to a chart, so I can actually see what’s happening and make any necessary adjustments thereto. After an hour or two of converting words and abbreviations to marks on graph paper, I could see that the sleeve is just panels of raspberry stitch, one repeating cable motif, and what I believe will become broken rib with the underarm increases. What I haven’t puzzled out yet is why they took what became clear is a 12-row repeat and wrote it out as 36 rows, but I’m guessing it’s because the front/back center panel will prove to be a 36-row repeat and perhaps they meant to make sure you kept them aligned in some way that the pattern never ultimately specifies? I may never know. But anyway, I began with the simpler sleeve chart so I could have it to swatch with.

I’ve been thinking Arranmore might be the perfect yarn for me and this sweater. I do want it to be a classic ivory fisherman, but feel like the slight tweediness of the Arranmore (it has little flecks of tan and light blue) might be my friend in terms of long-term spots or discoloration. Plus I just really love this yarn, which I previously used for my black yoke sweater. So one morning, chart in hand, I sat on the dock at Squam and began to swatch.

The first swatch was on US8/5mm and the fabric was too loose for my liking, so I began again on US7/4.5mm, which is the swatch pictured above. As I knitted it, I thought the yarn might not be right for these stitches, as the fabric felt stiff and the cables looked underwhelming. (It’s such a weird cable.) I took it to class to show my students and we talked about how I plan to take my time, swatching with as many yarns and needles as it takes to find the right thing, given all I’ll be putting into this sweater and how long I’ve wanted it. Then I decided I might as well take the time to dunk the swatch and make sure I didn’t like it any better after blocking, and guess what: it’s pretty dreamy. This photo was taken while it was still damp, and I really should have taken a dry one to show you, but you’ll have to take my word for it — I can’t stop draping it around my arm.

That meant trying to sort out size and gauge as compared to the vintage pattern, which is rather short on the sort of details we’re used to these days. There’s no schematic, and the gauge is simply given as “11 stitches = 2 inches.” Eleven stitches of which of the many stitch patterns, we can’t know. Is it an average across the whole sweater? If anyone out there is an expert on the way things used to be done, I’d love to hear from you, but meanwhile that will have to be my assumption. If true, my gauge is slightly more compact at 6 stitches per inch, which means I’ll need to knit the XL and still come out with a sweater slightly smaller than intended — or figure out some tweaks to the patterning to compensate.

[UPDATE: A couple of commenters have said it would have been implied in those days that the stated gauge was for stockinette stitch — which tells a very different story than cables! But looking at the pattern’s stitch counts and finished circumference, that doesn’t seem to be the case here. For example, the XL (44-46″) calls for a 122-st CO for the back, which divided by 22″ is 5.5. (I.e., their “11 sts = 2 inches.”) Same for the other sizes. So it does seem to be the average gauge of the finished fabric and not taken from stockinette.]

On the flight home, I was too brain dead to do anything but stare at the swatch, my chart, and the photos I’d snapped of the pattern photo so that I could zoom in on them and try to sort out the details that aren’t present in the pattern itself. The swatch had me thinking even the smallest sleeve would be too big, and I was toying with the idea of eliminating two of the cables from the sleeve, leaving just one down the center of the arm. But as usual, it’s a good thing I was prevented from rushing in, since while staring at it all, I realized that would necessitate the same change along the sides of the body — a change I don’t want to make — AND the fully dry swatch is actually totally fine. Patience does pay off, even if it’s imposed.

So all that’s left is to commit to the investment it will be to do a yarn-eater like this in this particular yarn, but I feel like it will be more than worth it.

Charting a course for my fisherman sweater

ARMY PORTER NOTE: What remains from our starter batch of the army green Porter Bin, launched at the Squam Art Fair, will go into the webshop this Friday morning, June 16, at 9am Central Time — set your alarms!

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PREVIOUSLY  in Summer of Basics: My plan

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