4 years ago
CHRISTMAS JUMPER TIME
I like the idea of having a special sweater for Christmas, but hate the ugly jumper trend so obviously I had to sew my own. I knew exactly what I wanted. The fabric had to be velvet, in a wearable colour rather than a traditional Christmas colour and it had to be super soft. This Deluxe Soft Velvet Stretch Knit is perfect, it comes in a range of wonderful colours - I chose beige. It will go with almost everything I have in my wardrobe so I will be able to wear it out of the festive season. I'm not drawn to all things shiny, so I'm unlikely to choose glitter and sequins, but the sheen on this velvet fabric gives me a luxurious Christmas feeling.
I also knew exactly what kind of pattern I wanted, It had to have raglan sleeves. Most sweatshirt patterns come with either dropped or set-in sleeves, but I wanted to juxtapose the deluxe look of the fabric with a sporty top. It's harder than you think, there are lots of raglan tee patterns, but not so many sweatshirts - luckily I found the Mika pattern from Fibremood. It comes in sizes XS - XXL (I made a medium) and was exactly what I was looking for.
I toyed with using a contrasting fabric for the collar, cuffs and bottom band, I think it would look great with a matching ribbing or even a contrast, but I was worried that it would go back to looking sporty. As there’s plenty of stretch in this velvet I was able to use it in place of ribbing and I really like how it looks. It’s also lovely and soft to wear.
As it's a stretch fabric it needs to be sewn either with a zigzag stitch on a domestic sewing machine with an appropriate needle or with an overlocker. I was able to sew the entire garment on my overlocker, which can be a bit tricky when attaching the collar band, but I've done this a few times and am confident with getting the stitching even. I could have chosen not to top stitch the collar band and just give it a quick press, but I like how it looks topstitched so I went that route and used a twin stretch needle.
People can be wary of using velvet, but I didn't find this to be problematic - maybe it helps that it's a stretch rather than woven? It is true that you get a lot of fluff in your machine, but that's a small price to pay. I found it pressed well, but I always use a press cloth with fabrics that have a pile and I place some light card under the seam allowances when pressing. That way you don't get a shadow of the seam allowance or a sort of embossed effect.
I've mostly been wearing the top with jeans, sometimes tucked in, but it will work just as well with skirts or under dungarees.
I like the idea of having a special sweater for Christmas, but hate the ugly jumper trend so obviously I had to sew my own. I knew exactly what I wanted. The fabric had to be velvet, in a wearable colour rather than a traditional Christmas colour and it had to be super soft. This Deluxe Soft Velvet Stretch Knit is perfect, it comes in a range of wonderful colours - I chose beige. It will go with almost everything I have in my wardrobe so I will be able to wear it out of the festive season. I'm not drawn to all things shiny, so I'm unlikely to choose glitter and sequins, but the sheen on this velvet fabric gives me a luxurious Christmas feeling.
I also knew exactly what kind of pattern I wanted, It had to have raglan sleeves. Most sweatshirt patterns come with either dropped or set-in sleeves, but I wanted to juxtapose the deluxe look of the fabric with a sporty top. It's harder than you think, there are lots of raglan tee patterns, but not so many sweatshirts - luckily I found the Mika pattern from Fibremood. It comes in sizes XS - XXL (I made a medium) and was exactly what I was looking for.
I toyed with using a contrasting fabric for the collar, cuffs and bottom band, I think it would look great with a matching ribbing or even a contrast, but I was worried that it would go back to looking sporty. As there’s plenty of stretch in this velvet I was able to use it in place of ribbing and I really like how it looks. It’s also lovely and soft to wear.
As it's a stretch fabric it needs to be sewn either with a zigzag stitch on a domestic sewing machine with an appropriate needle or with an overlocker. I was able to sew the entire garment on my overlocker, which can be a bit tricky when attaching the collar band, but I've done this a few times and am confident with getting the stitching even. I could have chosen not to top stitch the collar band and just give it a quick press, but I like how it looks topstitched so I went that route and used a twin stretch needle.
People can be wary of using velvet, but I didn't find this to be problematic - maybe it helps that it's a stretch rather than woven? It is true that you get a lot of fluff in your machine, but that's a small price to pay. I found it pressed well, but I always use a press cloth with fabrics that have a pile and I place some light card under the seam allowances when pressing. That way you don't get a shadow of the seam allowance or a sort of embossed effect.
I've mostly been wearing the top with jeans, sometimes tucked in, but it will work just as well with skirts or under dungarees.
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