We have had a very chilly spring here is Wisconsin this year. Thank goodness too, because this sweater dress has been on the to sew list since the fall! You know how it is: all the new, exciting projects always budge in line.

the pattern: Rae’s Flashback Skinny Tee , size 7. Obviously, I lengthened it. I also created more of an A-line shape by drawing an angled line from the armpit to the hem. Kristin explained how to transform the pattern into a summer dress for last spring’s KCW. Speaking of, did you see we kicked off a week of guest post-ers on the new kcw blog?

the fabric: an odd bit of sweater-y fabric I found in a thrift store in northern Wisconsin + a bit of a purple sweater (the one I used to make this cardigan).

the sewing: The main part of the dress came together super quick. The neckline tripped me up a bit. Mostly because I tried to use the neckline from the purple sweater. I had to rip it up and start again over. I also used the cuffs from the purple sweater, which I don’t like, but they aren’t awful so I skipped redoing them.

the fit: spot on! The last flashback skinny dress I made, I sized it up myself. It worked, but it wasn’t perfect. Rae has since sized the pattern up for bigger kids. The skinny tee is such a wardrobe staple, I know this pattern will get used for a long time.

The dress is getting worn–caught on film a few times, too! Paired with a polka dot tights, wellies, and a stocking cap one time. Another time she even matched her mama!

I have been on a bit of a crocheting kick recently. After all the sewing for kcwc I got rather sick of looking at my sewing machine. And I got sick of certain little people poo-pooing things I made for them. So I went to the yarn store and bought some beautiful, soft, and squishy yarn to make something just for me.

I’m not usually a fan of things trying desperately to be something they are not–think tofu dogs. Crochet is not knitting, even though they both use yarn. Crochet is its own art and has its own strengths that I try to showcase. But I wanted so badly to make the bandana cowl pattern by Purl Bee.  Looking at it was painful, because it is so perfect, but I can’t knit to save my life.

Thankfully someone made an equally awesome crochet bandana cowl–no tofu dogs in sight. The cowl is the same shape as the knitted version, but I think the stitches were chosen by someone who loves crochet and knows how to show of its strengths.  It worked up super fast in the gorgeous wool/silk blend yarn I bought. All the cowl details are on ravelry if you are interested.

ooo! looks like there’s a little crochet on crochet action going on in this last picture.