REinventing :: A Crochet Blanket

It started with colours 

too gorgeous to resist

at op shop prices 
too hard to walk away from

combined with a burning desire to create something 
other people do all the time 



my very own Granny Square Blanket
so I set myself up at the end of the couch
and at night [for nearly 2yrs -I'm a novice!] 
armed with bags, balls & cones of what I hoped was wool
I crocheted hundreds of squares
hand stitched them together
& threaded in the thousands of ends
before I decided I didn't like it 

turned out I enjoyed the process much more than I did the product 

it didn't take long to shake off the shock & disappointment of this realisation 
 when it dawned on me I could REinvent it! 

 after two cycles in the washing machine on the hottest setting  
she was felted 

some squares felted better than others
[it wasn't all wool] 



the felted squares were cut into square[ish] shapes

ready to join 
squares cut from an old green woolen blanket

the luscious green satin ribbon which bordered the blanket

 was salvaged

[just in case]

then on rainy days
and late into the night



the squares were united



by machine 
and by hand

with the satin ribbon frilled 
and added to either end



along with some homemade bias binding 
to cover exposed seams in the same fabric as the backing

 

when she was finished

with her wonky stitching 

and overall unevenness

I was delighted to discover

 I'd fallen in love

with the process as much as the product

and not surprisingly 
it turns out I'm a much better REinventor 
than a Crocheter...

Birthday Frock

Things are moving very slowly here 

and as another year ticks along
another birthday was celebrated
over the weekend
and I made a frock

the birthday frock

inspired by a random moment
when a hand towel was tossed over a chair next to a filed skirt

REinvented from a mens shirt 
and a too-big-skirt
using the Piece of Cake pattern
as a guide

worn out to celebrate

with a favourite felted collar & frippery combination

where vintage treasure was rescued

and too much food was eaten.

REinventing a REinvention Idea

I had an idea for a REinvention

it involved 
a vintage 
semi felted pure wool satin ribbon edged coconut-ice pink cot blanket  
and
tweed jacket sleeves

it did not involve flowers

after pulling out and pawing over every jacket & coat in my collection 
and then trawling every op shop within cooee
it became evident my idea of tweedy jacket sleeves 
wasn't going to happen

it was at this reluctant realisation 
I started looking through everything else I have filed with sleeves 
and settled on a woollen cardigan

with flowers



and made a start
by cutting armholes
in the cot blanket

and carefully separating the sleeves from the cardy

keeping the scraps
to create a Frippery




which once the sleeves were reshaped & attached
I pinned in place



and stood back to admire the blankey wrap 
that had emerged from an idea 
although it didn't seem to matter at which angle I stood 
I wasn't admiring 

there was no spark
no sense of satisfaction

as much as like to try and keep the intregrity of the original garment/item intact throughout a REinvent

this just looked like a cot blanket 
with sleeves

so I took some of my own advice
and walked away
slept on it
and in the morning
unpinned the Frippery
and set about
REinventing the REinvention



after REcutting, unpicking, stitching and trying on & off
I settled for a more cropped, better fitting
dare I say it slightly more funky version
of a blanky wrap

still not exactly the idea in my head

but a pretty good interpretation of it

and with plenty more woollen blankets to play with
knowing what I know now
I'm looking forward to next time...

REinvention Story - The Tablecloth Frock

As mentioned in the last post it all started with 3 skirts

I wasn't wearing

my middle age spread is spreading

and wardrobe staples are SO not skirts these days

I thought I'd end up with 

3 new frocks

from my 3 obsolete skirts

and isn't that the beauty of REinventing 

you just never know

what will happen

after dragging out every conceivable addition
I could think of

laying them up, pinning them together & trying them on

I finally decided 
2skirts were going to make 1frock
and a candy pink cotton apron was going to play a major role in the transformation  

but
after 30+yrs of doing this
I know beyond a shadow of a doubt 
that if you have the slightest inclining of a doubt
don't do it

put the scissors down
walk away, have a holiday, make a cuppa, sleep on it

so I walked away & returned to the Studio the next morning
with fresh eyes & a clear head
and remembered this old favourite
which seemed to have 'shrunk' recently
rendering it the perfect missing link 

It was always about the Roses
I'd loved the free-embroidered appliqued bit of tablecloth on the skirt
and was determined to love it on the frock
so by adding the ladybird panel from the other skirt
I killed 2-birds
gained the extra length I needed
and added another quirky bit of interest



a length of the linen frock was sacrificed to give me extra width




and by retaining the collar 



& the frilly bit off the original linen frock
the bodice issue was solved



with the addition of shoulder straps
 completing the look







Not a Tea Towel Tunic
more a Tablecloth Frock
which I'm looking forward to sharing 
with the girls this weekend for the last
 series of
Sew-What-You-Like Workshops 
at the Studio for 2013.

I Made Something....you might like it.

I loved creating my latest REinvention

as soon as I slid the rose crusted linen skirt off the op-shop rack,
 regardless of the too-small size, 

I knew it was coming home with me



initially I thought a skirt REfashion
however I would have lost the gorgeous weighty feel & fall of the fabric
along with a row or two of the roses 
which would have been tragic

 so instead I opted for an Apron Frock

 

and by folding 



manipulating



cutting 

and stitching

I combined
a too-small linen skirt
with a too-big linen top
& edged using contrasting continuous cotton apron ties
while retaining & highlighting existing raw edges

to create 

a garment I would love to keep

but can't fit in the wardrobe

so I'm letting this one go

and because I have no idea if anyone would even be interested in owning one of my pieces

 I am offering it up to the highest bidder.

Bidding starts at
$30 
[to cover postage & material costs]

you can bid over on 
 facebook 

bidding is open to everyone
for 3 & a bit days

until 
8pm Wednesday 28th August

When placing your bid please include your email address
highest bidder will be contacted at 8:15pm on the 28th
payment to be made via Paypal or Direct Deposit 
pretty much straight away
or the garment will be offered to the next highest bidder.

Apron Frock specifications:

Fabric - linen & cotton [extra roses come with frock]

Description - loose fitting apron/pinafore styled frock ideal for layering or worn on it's own.

Size - 14-16+
Bust - 112cm

Length from shoulder strap to fr.hem - 97cm

Good luck. x