Bobbles!

I actually set up my photo corner again, so I'm hopeful that I can keep up with documenting my makes from here on out - at least until I decide to make the spare room a giant mess for months again. :)

Looking back at Instagram (which I use way too much to tell time these days), I made this sweater back on February 9th, having purchased the fabric from Emma One Sock on January 23rd - this has to be a speed record for me in terms of fabric purchase to documented make!

I had been eyeing this wool fleece blend for a while, but was trying to be good and not add to my stash.  I finally gave in though, without a clear picture of what I wanted to make, beyond some kind of sweater.

My original thought was to make a Toaster sweater #2 (on left below) to replicate this sweater from Man Repeller (on right below):

 

The fabric is a wool-blend, and I'm thinking it is heavy on the wool though, as it's a bit scratchy and I was concerned with having it so high up on my neck.  I switched gears, and went instead with the free Hemlock pattern from Grainline Studios.

The only adjustments I made to the pattern itself was to narrow the neckline a bit (I find it a bit wide on me) and to lengthen the sleeves a tad, both of which I usually do when I make the pattern.  I also had to think about how to finish the hems, as the thick knit is a little different than the lighter-weight knit the pattern calls for.  The fabric had this amazing selvedge edge, which was striped red and black, which I immediately thought about using for the hems.  One side was more bold than the other, so I decided to use what I could of the bolder side for the hem and neck, and use the thinner version on the sleeves.

The bobbles are quite three-dimensional, so I spent a decent amount of time cutting them off in all the seam allowances - probably more time than actually sewing!

All in all, I'm pretty pleased with how it came out!  It's definitely an over-sized, slouchy sweater, which is perfect for cozy chilly days.  Unfortunately, it's just started to warm up towards spring here, so I'm not sure how much more wear it will get until next winter, but it's all ready for me!