Experimenting With Upcycling

As you know from my older posts I have recently moved and what this has made me realise is that I own way too many clothes! I used to make a decent amount of money whilst I was a student buying from charity shops and jumble sales and then re-selling on Ebay. Of course this means that you get left over with a load of unwanted clothing. So i was sorting through trying to cram it all in my little studio when I found a grey jersey maxi dress I used to wear but for some reason just abandoned it. I started thinking and came to the conclusion that I could incorporate my goal of using up my oddments of yarn and create new products for my shop quickly and easily!

So I started simple and cut along the waist seam instantly creating a crop top, it was then I decided to make a grey and yellow colour scheme. I took a ball of yellow cotton yarn I think I bought about 3 years ago and did a cute little blanket stitch around the hem. This covered any bad patches in my cutting and added something a little special I think.

Then out of the skirt of the maxi dress I tried my hand at making t-shirt yarn, I found an awesome illustrated tutorial by FUCK YEAH CRAFT! a blogger and Huddersfield crafter and got cracking with my own t-shirt yarn. It only took about 20 minutes to have a ball of yarn ready to use. I started by crocheting a waist band and hem then knitting a marl of some remnant yarn I had that was a really weird mix but I think it looks good. I ended up using a grey wool then yellow silk and kevlar. The knit forms 2 panels front and back and comes together at the seams to create tassels. Then a quick i-cord to make a drawstring waist.

Fuck yeah craft blog

So I had my outfit I just needed a little extra, so I carried on with the i-cord and made a cool multi stranded necklace that I think really finishes the outfit off. All three pieces I made for this item last week are now available from Etsy and Folksy. I think It definitely worked out a success! Let me know what you think.

Buy this on Etsy:  https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/GraceCookKnitwear?ref=si_shop

Buy this on Folksy: https://folksy.com/shops/GraceKnitwear

Moving in- My Yarn Stash

Finally I have moved all my yarn over to my new little studio room. It is still not finished and I only have one of my machines and some of my books but it's really coming together. Really love my organisation this time. To stop myself from completely messing the place up (like normal) I have colour coordinated all my cones on a bookcase and put all my balls of wool into cardboard boxes then made a thread lattice on the open side of the box. This means I can easily find and see all my yarns without them falling all over me! And it compacts them down!

(Ew crappy phone photography)

Mm lovely fabric wardrobe

I also found my old patchwork blanket and cushion that my Godmother made for me when I was young, I actually think it ties in pretty well with the colour hodgepodge! You can see a little sneak peak of my bargain £3 charity shop curtains that are actually really nice hung in there. 

I have so much to update on I think I am going to need to get cracking with the blog posts. And hopefully learn how to take better pictures!

Vintage And Bargain Shopping

There's a lovely charity/vintage shop at the strait in Lincoln called The Attic, It has some well chosen donated items and some great vintage picks too. I popped in last month and picked up a couple of things.

New Etsy Packaging and Items

I had my first UK buyer on Etsy this weekend who purchased one of my snoods, I really want to focus on my UK sales and get a really base here that could lead me into maybe doing fairs or craft markets. So I made and pressed the snood pretty quickly and decided to knit and include a little freebie to help the impression on the buyer, I just made a little wrap around bracelet/necklace. It was cute but it felt a little unexplained so I decided to make packaging for both the snood and the bracelet. I think it turned out really well! I just printed the design onto an a4 piece of card, cut out and stuck in place! I think it makes them look so much more professional and worth a bit more too. I think I'll keep experimenting with it and maybe come up with a free printable or something!

Christopher Kane Fall 2014 Knit Faves

I've always looked forward to when Christopher Kane went back to knitwear, he always used to do such strong knitwear. Don't get me wrong I do love his collections but as a knitter I always want new inspiration! So this collection is a bit frou but i think it would translate into some really nice knit pieces as well as socks. I think the yellow and grey colour palette really gives it an edge. Well done Mr. Kane!

Pringle Of Scotland Fall 2014 Knit Faves

I definitely think that funnel/turtle neck jumpers are going to be all over the shops this winter. And I love Pringle's versions of traditional jumpers but with gorgeous laddering in-between the textured cabling. This is totally the way I want to move forward with chunky knitwear, I've never been mad about chunky knitwear but this is something I could really get excited about.

Mark Fast Fall 2014 Details

So i've already done a post on Mark Fast's 2014 Fall collection. I already thought it was gorgeous but then these detail shots crop up and they are just absolutely gorgeous! The texture and the movement on the back of this dress is just awesome!

 Then this cute asymmetric number, I normally don't go for asymmetric clothing but this with the holes reminds me of some designs I did for graduate fashion week but just improved!

NYFW 2014 Knit Faves: Marc by Marc Jacobs

I really need an oversized waffle knit t-shirt jumper paired with a turtle neck and pleated skirt! Okay so maybe not but this collection of Marc By Marc Jacobs Is sooo cute. I would never have thought of this styling its incredible. The first look with the khaki green makes me think of the british army jumpers and the beauty and hair is also quite harsh and masculine but with the pleated chiffon skirt and pointed courts it looks amazing! The grey version is my favourite though, there is something about the black tie that reminds me of John Galliano's work for Dior. I absolutely love this look and I like the idea of a short sleeved jumper!

Double Point Needle Socks Challenge

So my fiancee is making a massive point that his beloved slipper socks have two massive holes in. I'm sure he either wants me to darn the holes on them or knit him new ones. Especially since I have finally learnt how to knit socks on the machine (shouldn't have told him!) As it's valentines this friday I'm setting myself a challenge to learn double pointed needles and knit him a nice pair of slipper socks! I realise how mad that sounds but I'm learning on quite big needles and with a 4 ply yarn rather than a sock weight. So If it doesn't work I can still jump on the machine and knit some quickly haha! So here are the needles and yarns I'm using and this is the printable basic DPN sock pattern from cometosilver.

Free Printable Valentines "I Love You More Than Knitting"

I thought I would just sit down and illustrate a little valentines card for my other half for valentines this friday. This is my "I love you more than knitting" free printable valentines card or and e-card. Just right click and download or print!

NYFW Knit Faves: MM6 Maison Martin Margeila

I love how Maison Martin Margeila and it's offshoot lines such as MM6 are such a cult "cool" designer yet still always play with knitwear and they always have. Know of course most fashion lines will have a couple of pieces of knitwear but they were doing it way back, which i love! There were only a few bits I really likes from this show but they were inspiring, from the styling and colour paring just to the patterns. lets seeeee.

 First up is this cute but edgy 90's throwback crop jumper. At first look I was a bit disappointed because it just looked like a cute but plain black knit. I looked closer and saw the wrap around the neck that leaves just a peak of the collar from below. Then going onto the sleeves there is a great built in fingerless glove which just looks so edgy and different.

 I love how MMM can take such a crazy colour and pair it with monochrome, it just makes it better. I would normally stay away from this colour because it crops up too much in knitting and always looks awful! But the wide off the shoulder neckline along with this chunky oversized cable belted looks amazing. I think its great that it is paired with masculine black boots it makes this look so punch but also brings out the femininity in the knit that would normally be overlooked because of its in your face colour.

 I really never wear bright colours but I would so wear this outfit (project on the way maybe?) Basic pieces but given an edge. Traditional cable jumper but in a bright, almost neon, orange. Mini skirt in a brilliant white with black double jointed boots. Its just the question of weather I could pull it off!

NYFW Knit Faves: J Crew

Now I'm not normally a fluffy knit fan especially with the rise of tacky acrylic eyelash sequin yarns stuffed inside Topshop and every other high street shop. But this new collection from J Crew is gorgeous! More like a fur than a knit really but I would love to translate it to a hand made super wide scarf and jumper.

Today I'm Ill… Hand knitting

So I keep meaning to get more familiar with hand knitting, since I spend a lot of my time on public transport/stuck in places with nothing to do and always wish I could crochet and hand knit better so I can actually be productive in the hour it takes me to get to work which is silly. Also I have loads of hand knitting weight yarns and need to put them to good use before I move out. So today I have been using a chocolate brown super chunky weight yarn I bought from John Lewis about 2 years ago, I initially bought it because it had a broken label and was reduced from like £5 to £2.50 so I thought why not! Unfortunately I don't know what brand it is but it's been lovely to use and really makes plain knit stitches look defined and interesting. I'm making a chunky snood since the weather is going to be cold for a while and I'm going to Scarborough next week for my birthday so I'm going to want some nice warm accessories to warm up my leather jacket. So here it is, I've been sat in bed ill today so I thought I would seize the chance to knit. (No judging allowed from you hand knitters)

New Etsy Items: Blue Scarf Collection

Fresh new batch of textured infinity scarves/snoods. Personally I find infinity scarf a bit of a mouth full but I still haven't worked out how to pronounce snood…snoooood?….snud? Help me out :/