wip wednesday: cocoa

One yarn you won't be seeing in my stash posts is the Cascade 220 I picked up at the beginning of last month, because I've already started a sweater with it!  Cocoa has turned into something much dressier than the lounging sweater I first imagined; my inspiration sweater is the Cozy V-Neck Pullover with Deep Ribbing from Fitted Knits, though I'm modding a different pattern.  There's not much to show yet (I haven't even separated the sleeves), but it has been a nice relaxing knit so far.

saroyan

Saroyan on Ravelry

Hallo, after having a big birthday bash last night for myself, I thought I'd show you some more knitting I've done for other people's birthdays.  It's not all me, me, me around here.  Only for the month of June.  Luckily this was knit for an April birthday!

The pattern is the free Saroyan pattern from Feministy.  When I first saw the pattern I knew it would make a perfect birthday present for one of my best friends since childhood, the other manager of Pure Joy Farm.  It's knit in a very soft thrifted acrylic yarn (Gala Festival, obviously not the eyelash version though the yarn I used is absolutely not bulky weight).  I had originally planned on adding beads but the beads I bought for the project were too small.  I'll just have to try beaded knitting some other time.

I also used this mod for pointed tips.  I don't have any pictures of the recipient wearing my work of art because she lives on the other side of the state, but she does like it!

wip wednesday: girly grandfather

Girly Grandfather Vest on Ravelry

It doesn't look like much yet, but I'm working on a heavily modified version of the Grandfather Vest from Knitting 24/7.  It's definitely coming along with no snags yet, but I'm a bit worried it might be an exercise in over-fitting.

first sweater (kind of)

Shawl Collar on Ravelry

Well, I'll come back in with a bang after that month long unintentional blogging break: I finally finished my (kind of) first sweater!  I want to call it a labor of love but there's really no reason to.  Miles and miles of stockinette takes time, but is not taxing at all.

This is how I felt about the sweater at first.  It definitely has its issues: the gauge is wonky (which I only started adjusting for part way through the sweater), and THE YARN.  It's Valley Yarns Sheffield and this stuff sheds!  I bought a Gleener on the suggestion of the folks at Webs and it pulled this much extra fluff just from the outside of the sweater:

Here I am playing with tufts of fluff before using the Gleener on the sweater.

In the end I'm pretty sure I can call the sweater a success.  The yarn may shed but it's incredibly cozy and warm.  Should shed less when I use the Gleener on the inside too.  And it looks nice!  So hey!  I knit a sweater!

If anyone is curious my belt, shirt, skirt, and shoes (not pictured) are all thrifted.  Go me!

now i just need a slip

Dress worn as shirt: thrifted
Locket: thrifted
Belt: thrifted
Skirt: made by me
Sandals: thrifted

So remember when I wanted a skirt that was a jeans equivalent and posted this link to a shirt to skirt sewing project? That's fine, I don't expect you to remember all of my ramblings. However, I remember this, so when I found a good shirt candidate for the project it was full sails ahead!


I felt almost guilty cutting into this shirt because it was a nice old Union made thing, but the finishings weren't great and I don't force Don to wear things just because I like them. So a skirt this shirt became.


I'm probably the most proud of my belt loops, even thought they were a huge hassle. I ended up sewing them with tissue paper under them because they kept getting jammed in the feed dogs (I love this term). So no super close ups of them, because they are messy but I love them.

All I need now is a good slip or two because this baby is see through! I'm wearing a dress-as-shirt here because it also worked as a make shift slip. I haven't worn it since these pictures were taken a couple weeks ago because I don't have/haven't made a slip that works well.

lace and polka dots

Lace top: thrifted
Belt: thrifted
Skirt: thrifted
Wedges: thrifted

Yesterday one of my co-workers asked me as I came into work how I look so adorable everyday. It was a really sweet thing for her to say. And a huge ego boost.


If I ever had anything remotely resembling a "go to" outfit this would be it. White shirt, high waisted skirt and belt. Done. Maybe shoes too.

ice cream date

Shirt: swapped
Skirt: thrifted and altered by me
Shoes: thrifted

I love warm weather. I love being able to wear minimal clothing and still be dressed. And I love ice cream and cows.


As a treat to keep ourselves from going crazy from packingcleaningpackingcleaning last week, me and Don went to our favorite ice cream place: Flayvors. The window is located right on the farm so you can wander around with the cows who provided the milk for the ice cream as you're eating it.

And they have great flavors. The ice cream I got was called the "Elvis," banana ice cream with peanut butter and chocolate chunks. I'm not quite sure what this has to do with Elvis but it was so delicious that it doesn't really matter.



Funny story: we got ice cream here on my twentieth birthday and I got so excited about petting a cow that I walked into an electric fence. The thing is I was well aware of the fence, and as I walked into it Don was telling me to watch out, but the only thought going through my mind was, "Cows are SO BIG."

The cow who's laying down was giving birth. She was at the beginning of her labor so we didn't stay to watch the whole thing.

inspiration monday no. 2

Jean jacket: thrifted Forever Twenty One
Pin: thrifted
Romper: thrifted
Belt: thrifted
Shoes: thrifted Etienne Aigner

Inspiration Monday again? Yup! I don't have any kids to take to the park, not even any borrowed ones, so I went to a book sale in my romper instead. The only book I came away with was "The Cosmo Girl's Guide to Etiquette" from sometime around 1970. I read it before bed last night, maybe now I'll be more tactful. Probably not though.


And the inspiration! Again, my "interpretation" is pretty spot on, but I only have so many rompers (one) and so many jean jackets (one) in my closet; there aren't too many ways to mix and match them.


I've also had this jacket for years and I can honestly say that I haven't worn it once. Not because I don't like it but just because I never know how to. Most of the time I'm worried about jeans on jeans outfits or even just blue on blue. A while ago I put a patch on the back thinking I'd wear it more but then I just got anxious about matching the patch to whatever else I was wearing (I don't think I'm punk enough for patches), so I took the patch off recently.

Maybe one of my summer goals should be to get more comfortable wearing this jacket. I shoot high with my goals.




I also thrifted this pin recently for my fantasy etsy business. Don only has to finish up some finals (and graduate this weekend!) and then the fun of putting it all together and hopefully sending things off to new homes will begin!

short cut

Shirt: thrifted Target; sweater: Gap, "adopted" from an ex; necklace: Cape Cod charm from a yardsale

Guess what I did?!

If you guessed "got sick of having so much hair on my head and cut it all off" you would be absolutely correct! I feel a lot better with shorter hair. Long hair is fun to play with but I only like how it looks when it's pulled back, which makes it look short. So, short hair it is!

This was taken sneakily at a potluck I was at this evening when everyone else was in a different room. I only wish that awesome shelf I'm standing next to was mine.

overall retirement party

Shirt: thrifted Talbots; overall shorts: thrifted; boots: swapped

It's amazing that looking at a picture can make you realize things about clothing that looking in a mirror can't. I love my body, and I think it's beautiful. However, I think I've just fallen out of love with these overall shorts.

I thrifted them almost two years ago and knew that they didn't fit then. They were too short lengthwise, too wide at the waist, AND they were seriously faded. They just weren't built to flatter my body type. But I wanted them really, really bad.


I took them home, lovingly dyed them which took care of the fading, and hardly wore them. When I did they wedgied really easily, and did nothing in the way of figure flattery. They make me look very bottom-of-the-tum plump, and not in a sexy-full-hips way.

All this I never really thought about until looking at these pictures. I still think they're adorable shorts, and still love them dearly, but I don't think they're for me. They are now destined for the hand me downs for my sister for her birthday bag, and maybe they'll fit her better.

Looking at these pictures doesn't make me feel bad about my body. Maybe that sentence makes you jump and say, "But you just completely bashed yourself, how can you say this?"

If you look back over this post you'll see that my criticisms are of the fit of the overalls, not my body, and I think that's a really important distinction. Asking "How do I look" when looking in the mirror puts the focues on how your body looks, even if you love your body dearly and love how it looks. "How does this [shirt, pair of pants, dress] look on my body" seems very different to me. Every piece of clothing is not going to look good on every person, but that's not a reason to feel bad about the shape of your body. But it's really hard to unlearn negative thinking when it comes to your own body.


However, what looking at these pictures makes me remember is what I really wanted when I bought these overalls. My dream was a piece of clothing with a vintage play suit feeling. Shorts that fit closely at the waist, nipping in where I curve to accentuate and flatter that curve, and a fitted bib that was more like the bodice of a dress that could be worn with or without a shirt underneath.

I have a sewing machine. I may not have the skills to make exactly this right now, but I think it's a great goal for this summer.

What do you do when you feel down about clothing that doesn't make you feel fabulous?

P.S. While goofing around on the internet this morning after writing this post I found a link through Casey's Elegant Musings (this post! More body love!) to a post on Style Trumps Fashion about yesterday being a day for shameless blogging. A day for celebrating your body the way it is? Yes please! Let's do this everyday.

blue suede shoes

Sweater: thrifted; dress: thrifted; belt: thrifted; tights: gifted Hue; shoes: thrifted

Today I started a new job! I've been jobless for the past few months, and it is so stressful. I'm just working as a cashier in a small grocery store, but when I got home I was seriously giddy. Just from finding any work.

(Another way to deal with awkward facial expressions is to include blurry dancing pictures. This is how I dance.)


So after work I went to the Goodwill (celebratory thrifting) and found these shoes. Then I came home and changed into something that matched, just so I could wear them. They really are blue suede shoes. The dress is a muumuu that someone else chopped the bottom off of. It's a much better length than floor length but the chop is messy and unhemmed. I don't want it any shorter, so I've never bothered to hem it and it doesn't unravel.

The blue dots on the dress look like a 7th grade diagram of a mitochondria, but they match the shoes pretty well.

try, try again

Shirt: thrifted, trouser jeans: thrifted, shoes: thrifted

Over the past few months I've been dipping my toes into two clothing choices.

One: Leopard print. When I was maybe 16 my mom got a set of leopard print sheets and I told her leopard print was only for women going through mid-life crises (oof, I was such a brat). Well, she wins this one! I really, really like leopard print now. This shirt is so comfy; it's an acrylic sweater/blouse, perfect for weather that's just starting to warm up. Hopefully I'm not going through a mid-life crisis because that would make for one very short life.

Two: Red. Another story. When I was 13 me and my sister were back to school shopping and I tried on a red shirt. She told me, in all her 11 year old fashion savvy, that I should never wear red because it makes my skin look blotchy. Ouch. It's taken me almost ten years to try wearing red again. When you're an awkward 13 year old these things really stick I guess.

Also I found one way to combat my fantastic picture face. Looking down!

about me

dress: thrifted Gap, sweater: thrifted Gap, belt: thrifted, tights: CVS, boots: thrifted

So. I've had this "blog" for well over a year, wrote some posts with bad pictures, took those posts down, and now I want to try again.

My name is Amelia. I'm a twenty-something year old trying to figure out how to live in this world without a college degree. Someday I'll go back to school, but not yet.

Recently I've been trying to dress purposefully, not just wear clothes. I've been reading blogs like Kendi Everyday, What Would a Nerd Wear, Already Pretty, and so many more for a while and want to try to document what I'm wearing.

That being said, I also knit, crochet, sew and craft. I'm not sure what kind of mixture I'm going for with fashion, crafting, and other things of interest to myself. I guess we'll see.

I wish I had taken a detail shot of the print on my dress, it's the nicest pink floral. I'll remember next time!

P.S. I've never been very good at having my picture taken. This is what most of the pictures looked like.