Good morning, everyone! I hope your AM is filled with lots of sunshine, like mine, and coffee, unlike mine (because, *ahem* someone forgot to mention we were out after he made a pot yesterday). Anyway, that’s neither here nor there – you came here to see finished dresses and sweaters, right? Let’s get to it!
Fair warning – this is a pretty picture-intensive post. I have two dresses to show plus a cardigan! (You’re so lucky that I don’t have two sweaters. I tried, but the second one is technically a vest right now soooo…). While I could theoretically stretch this out into 3 posts, I actually really hate it when people do that so I’m just dumping it all in one glorious picture-filled OAL extravaganza! Hope you don’t mind looking at my mug π
Speaking of which… you probably noticed the change in scenery, not to mention actual decent looking photos. That’s because I didn’t take them! Ha! All photo credit for this post goes to my lovely friend, Jenna, of Kitty Cat Stevens (you may recognize her photos from last year; she took those ace ones of my Lace trench). She really did an amazing job with these and I just love how they turned out!
Dress #1 was made with a lightweight cotton from Mood Fabrics (purchased at the NY location while I was there in March). The bodice is view C with cap sleeves, a softly pleated skirt and a lapped zipper.
LOOKS SO GOOD WITH MY HAIR.
Dress #2 was made with a gorgeous rayon challis from Grey’s Fabric. I used the same pattern, swapped out the bodice for view B with bias-faced arm holes, a softly gathered skirt and an invisible zipper.
The hem on this one is finished with rayon seam binding. So pretty!
Finally – here’s Myrna herself! I guess I can talk a little more about this part of the project since I haven’t really mentioned it much on my blog (unlike that entire OAL full of posts, ha).
Can I just say – I LOVE THIS CARDIGAN. It was super fun and super easy to knit, not to mention super fast (how many more times can I say super in this post?). According to my Ravelry, I finished it in just under a month.
I went with the size XS, getting gauge with size 6 needles (which is typical for me + worsted weight yarn + Andi’s patterns).
The yarn is (super?)AMAZING, isn’t it? Something I picked up from my local yarn store, Haus of Yarn– I knew I wanted neon yellow to go with the fabric for dress #1, so I took a swatch with me and went lurkin’. Maybe it’s just my yarn store (granted, we have more in this city – actually, a surprising number of really good yarn stores – but this particular store is less than two miles from my house, so obviously I like shopping here best haha), but they never seem to have the color I want in the weight/fiber I prefer! In this case, they only had a couple options for neon yellow worsted weight wool. Because I am an adult, I picked the most expensive option – this is Jill Draper Makes Stuff, and the color is Daffodil. At $26.50 per skein, it was definitely a splurge, but I only needed 2 skeins for this sweater so I figured it was worth it π Spoiler: It totally was! This yarn was a dream to work with – so soft and squishy, with a beautiful saturated color gradient. I don’t know if this particular yellow looks any good on me, but I also don’t give a fuck because it makes me happy.
I knit the pattern 100% as written, and had no issues. Blocked it with a bit of gentle shampoo (I keep meaning to get that special wool washing/no rinse shit they sell at my LYS, but since I went over budget with the yarn I had to put it back. Maybe next time. Maybe never lolz). True story: I forgot to finish the keyhole until after I’d blocked the whole thing, so I had to go back and keep knitting. I’m glad I did, though – I was on the fence about the keyhole because it looks kind of wonky at first, but once it’s finished it really does make a world of difference!
The button bands are stabilized with Petersham ribbon. Because this cardigan has a v-neck, I steamed the Petersham with a gentle curve to mimic the shape of the neckline, and stopped it a little above the top button hole (so, before you ask: no, it doesn’t go all the way around the neck). I used this tutorial from Sunni’s blog for guidance – she’s using it to hem a skirt, but it’s the same concept with the neckline, with a less aggressive curve. The vintage glass buttons are from my stash, previously purchased at the flea market.
I love how well the sweater goes with dress #2, because that was not planned at all! I didn’t decide to make a second dress until I’d already started the sewalong, and knit about half of the sweater. They do look good together, though. Yay for unintentional matching!
How are y’all doing with your OAL garments? Almost finished? Remember – the deadline to enter is this Thursday, July 31. Don’t forget to post your finished outfits in the Ravelry thread, which will give us all full lurking capabilities and also enter your ass to win some prizes. We also have the Offical Unoffical Flickr Group if you don’t use Ravelry/only finished a dress – but please be aware that your two pieces need to be uploaded to the Ravelry thread to be eligible for the contest π I’m loving all the dresses and sweaters I’ve seen so far, and I need to see MORE PLS.
Feeling inspired? Here’s a link to all the tutorials covered during the OAL:
1: Choosing Your Fabric and Size
2: Cutting and Marking Your Fabric
3: Sewing the Bodice
4: Sewing Sleeves or Bias Facing
5: Attaching the Skirt
6: Inserting a Lapped Zipper (see also: My Method for Invisible Zippers)
7: Hemming & Finishing
How to Stabilize a Buttonband with Petersham Ribbon (not part of the official OAL, but useful nonetheless!)
FINALLY, you can see my Myrna Ravelry notes here.
Whew! That’s a lotta post for a coffee-deprived Monday morning! π
The dresses are beautiful and the cardigan is super cute. Wonderful job all the way around.
Beautiful dresses and cardi, I especially like the buttons you used on Myrna! I just finished my dress this weekend (my Myrna was finished about 3 weeks ago and has already been worn several times, though only once – today – with my OAL dress!) and have yet to take some proper dress pictures. I’ve already uploaded one (not great, but I hope it’ll do!) OAL picture in the Official Unofficial FlickR and will post in the Ravelry thread tomorrow!
Love the finished result – I really gotta make one of Andi’s patterns eventually. The pics do look great!
Man, she has the BEST knitting patterns! Highly recommended π
The cardigan/hair combo is legit.
Looks great!! I really hope that one day I will feel confident enough with my choices and skill to buy yarn that expensive…
Well, expensive yarn is the quickest way to build skill π Because then you’re all “This HAS to be perfect – look at how much money I spent on the damn yarn!!” haha!
The dresses are beautiful !!!!
PS what’s an OAL ?
OAL is for Outfit Along, where we make a dress (or other sewn garment) to go with a cardigan (or other knitted garment) π
gorgeous! i’m mad in love with your dress fabric choices, and the yellow sweater is just perfect! and yes, the blue dress looks fantastic with your current hair color! great photos π
Your dresses and cardigan look brilliant! Sadly, I don’t think I’m going to get my knitted item finished on time, I am sooo slow at knitting! It’s been fun sewing/knitting along though!
All of your dresses look great Lauren. And yea… that photography and new backdrop just make you shine even more. π
I love both your dresses π My myrna took just under a month also it was lovely to knit. I haven’t had much luck with my dress though…. it hasn’t even been cut out yet. Lots of life things getting in the way. I’m looking at pattern pieces right now wondering if I can make it in time. ..wish me luck!
You can do it!!! π
What a great dress pattern. Both are super pretty versions and now I think I need that pattern.
Let me be your enabler – yes, yes you do π haha!
Your photos are so inspiring. I love the color combination of the dresses, cardigan, and your hair! You look great.
I love your Paisley dress and your Myrna is fabulous. It goes really well with the Paisley.
Looking good. I love the blue paisley!
The cardigan is awesome, love that color! Great dresses too π
The combo is great! Your myrna turned out fab, the eyelets have great definition. Gah I wish it was warm enough here for a short sleeve! π I better get my butt on ravelry and try to win prizes when I put marion up, thanks for the reminder! As always, your dresses are gorgeous too π
Aw, really lovely photos!
Love love love love love π»π»π»
I’m currently knitting my Myrna (brilliant pattern) but gutted I’m not taking part in OAL – I’m 2 weeks off giving birth so not really any point in making a dress that won’t fit me very soon! Fingers crossed I can take part properly in the next one next year…! π
I think you’ve got a good excuse for sitting this one out π Good luck!
I think the yellow cardi makes your eyes and hair super blue! Looks great!
I ended up putting my Myrna on hold. I made 1.5 dresses (attached the skirt to the second dress and don’t like it much), but as I was running out of yarn and know I can’t even make short sleeves on Myrna it has to wait until I can get back to the LYS and buy another $30 (ouch!) skein of yarn. As a replacement I am making a Pomme de Pin out of some Socrates fingering weight that I’ve had sitting around for a few years here, and as of Saturday the body is done and it just needs sleeves. That’s my goal for the next two days or so, to finish the sleeves up and get photos! I think I can do it!
That’s a bummer about the yarn shortage! I’m always terrified that’s going to happen to me hahaha. But hey, so Pomme de Pin is beauutiful and you can TOTALLY do it!
All your new garments look gorgeous – perfect fit and great colours for you – really bring out your eye colour!
1) that first dress goes so perfectly with your present hair color! 2) awesome job on both dresses. 3) Your Myrna turned out so lovely! I abso-have to try out one of Andi’s patterns. sooon.
Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous! I love both those prints, and your hair looks awesome. Great job on the sweater too.
Both dresses turned out so well. I think the second dress looks amazing with the cardigan.
Yay, Lauren!! Your dresses and Myrna are gorgeous+! I knew that they would be, from reading your instruction tutorials. The pictures are awesome, also. I enjoyed making my dress. I am surprised at how much I like the style for me. I’m also pleased with my construction. Even the lapped zipper is better than I’ve ever done. Unfortunately, it is my worse dress ever. I won’t show it on a public forum. I’m debating about a blog post, but then even wadders are helpful to some people. The problem is cheap fabric and not quite enough fabric to match the print properly. I should have stopped and started over with proper fabric. I got caught up with the fun construction process and thought the dress would be all right.The final photos don’t lie. I dunno – just part of sewing.Thanks so much for hosting this OAL.
That’s such a bummer about your dress! Oh well… at least you learn something from the wadders, yeah? I definitely encourage you to post it on your blog, since you’re right – people do find that sort of stuff helpful, and absolutely reassuring. But I’m glad to hear you at least had fun with the construction process! And I bet your next dress will be PERFECT π
Really cute! I love the print on the second dress, and rayon challis is seriously one of my favorite fabrics ever. Soooo comfy!
The dresses are so pretty but I have to say I am loving the shade of your new hair colour! It’s fabulous (I tried blue once it washed out so quickly so I went back to blonde and shades of pink).
Yummy sweater. I want. If I were to teach myself knitting would that be a good pattern for a beginner? I bought that same fabric from Grey’s and made a different but equally gorgeous dress from vogue 8997.
Yes, it’s a great beginner pattern! I’d practice for a couple months and make sure you really got the tension down and understand some basic pattern reading (maybe try a couple of scarves, or even a hat so you know how to knit in the round). It’ll teach you some new skills (like basic lace work and short row shaping), but it’s pretty quick for a sweater and it doesn’t use a lot of yarn. Plus, it’s fun π
Your Myrna goes so well with both dresses! I so wish I could have participated in this OAL, but I started knitting my first sweater in February and I’m only like halfway through, so I’d need like a year of lead time, haha!
Also, I LOVE the way your hair is looking in these photos! The color you chose gets more awesome with time!
Your post got me moving on finishing my OAL dress too. Remember mine morphed into a Lutterloh from the first FBA fail? Anyhoo…It came out looking like what my mother called a “hatchin’ jacket”. Can you say “When are you due?” Ugh. The bodice fit well on the sides and shoulders, but the front hangs out horribly – not nice and fitted like yours. The plan of attack is to remove the skirt from the bodice, deepen the darts under the girls or perhaps add another half as tall between the first dart and side seam (but still keep the side seam going down the side), and sew in the back waist dart that I overlooked the first time. Maybe I’ll do that one first and see how she hangs before touching the front darts. Oh, and my pleats are going the wrong direction on half of the skirt. Easy enough to fix since I’m removing the skirt anyway. That said, with all that is wrong, I certainly felt better about this dress than I ever have on any other I’ve tried. My MO is quilting and bag making so getting a fit right is something I definitely need to work on. BTW…LOVE the cardi! Absolutely gorgeous with the blue OAL. Hubs even remarked how well it went with your hair! I’m very impressed with your knitting skills.
PS. We were walking into Home Depot the other day and hubs remarked on the way out…”Did you see that chick with the blue hair?” It was funny because before your blog, I’d of been eye-popping too. But I said, “Yeah, but it didn’t phase me because of a blogger I follow with blue hair.” What? a new normal for this old dog? HA
HAHA omg hatchin’ jacket! I love it!! I totally think you can fix your dress – def start with that back dart, as I’ve forgotten to add those before and it’s crazy how much a world of difference that teeny dart makes to your fit.
I love that my hair is making you immune to all the other blue hair. Yes! My evil world domination plan is working π
Oooh, all so lovely!! I think the yellow looks nice on you, especially with your current hair colour π
Love both your dresses and the yellow cardi goes with them both – as well as your hair!
Looks so good, girl! Well done.
Gorgeous! Love the cardigan with both dresses, such a great match. This whole look suits you so incredibly well!
Bravo, Lauren! Two great looking dresses and a beautiful sweater. Not too many pictures. This was a great opportunity to show off your beautiful work, plus the excellent tutorials you provided.
Such beautiful outfits Lauren and photos! You look so much more relaxed when someone else is taking your pic! Sorry I’ve missed your posts lately, I’ve been slack keeping up with the .com feed now I’m .org but this was a lovely catch up!
holy mackerel, I love that sweater! Your glass buttons are perfect! jolly good job! π
Is there a colour, print, or silhouette I the world that you don’t look amazing in? Somehow I doubt it! The dresses and the cardigan are all, of course, superb! And your hair is so freaking perfect, I love that colour!