Reversible Bolero Shrug

This post is somewhat picture-heavy compared to the amount of photos such a small, plain creation would usually require to be illustrated adequately. That is because this creation is REVERSIBLE!!!! Therefore, my thought process was clearly that it requires double the amount of photos to show it to you than most creations I blog about!

I've been sniffing around this pattern pictured above for a few months. It lives at work but I haven't figured out how it got there: if it was bought by my boss for herself or for TRAIDremade, or if it was donated to Traid by a member of the public. I was drawn to the shrug style (View A) but so revulsed by the other styles that it took a while for sensory adaptation to kick in and I could get over the hideousness of the rest enough for me to be able to pick the pattern up and work with it.

The pattern calls for a single layer of fabric, but my thoughts were that making it double layered would make it function far better as a cover-up. Finally finding a suitable use for some lovely greeny-turquoise synthetic double-knit stuff I've had in my stash for over a year, I was able to cut one layer's worth before running out of fabric. Although the garment is small and made from only one pattern piece, it is cut on the bias so actually uses more fabric than you'd expect.

I hunted around the studio for something that might work (hoping in vein to come across some of the crazy zebra print double-knit we were donated but evidently have used up) and found some black double-knit with a lovely silky texture that has a similar weight to the green. Considering the black double-knit didn't previously belong to me (though was part of a donation from a fabric producers, so still technically second hand) I guess it's a half-Stash Busted creation!

It was an easy garment to construct (as you'd hope from something created with only one pattern piece!) but I still managed a fluff-up when trying to work out how to attached the two layers together. See Laura? I do make mistakes! There was unpicking and everything.

The two fabrics together create a really nice weight that should provide a decent layer of clothing for the chilly studio. The only unavoidable issue is that, whatever side I wear, the other side peaks through at the edges. But if you pretend it's some sort of contrast piping-style effect (which I am choosing to), it could be viewed as a design feature!

Oh, and the tattoo-style Essex badge? I made that! Maybe I should do a separate blog post on that one day. Anyway, I have no idea why it happens, but even with some image editing, the colour of the greeny-turquoise fabric looks really wrong in these photos. It's actually way more emerald in real life.

I'm really pleased to have squeezed in the making of this garment into my present busyness, because it not only relieves the strain on my three now very ropey thrifted cardigans, but it also provides a viable solution to my continual 'knitwear problem'. My 'knitwear problem' is that I'd like to have an entirely self-made wardrobe, particularly for the Me-Made/Self-Stitched month challenges, but my inability to knit and my refusal to buy new fabric (in this case I'd buy cut-and-sew knit fabric) limit my options for creating viable layering garments that I need to keep warm enough.

The forthcoming Me-Made-May 2012 will be properly launched in a couple of weeks. During it this one, I am planning on upping the ante for my personal interpretation of the challenge and making it extra challenging for myself in a couple of ways. One of those ways is to go back to the original rules I set myself I started this whole thing in March 2010, which means ALL CLOTHING must be self-made. For a couple of the challenges since, I have allowed myself to wear thrifted knitwear throughout the month, but upped the ante in different ways, like by not repeating outfits. Well, I'm going back to my fully self-made clothing pledge, but plan to dress with more variety than the last time I didn't allow thrifted knits. The reversible genius of this bolero shrug means that hopefully you all won't get too bored of seeing it throughout May!!!