vintage pullover

It is funny, when I (Major Moma) use my grandmother's patterns, I feel closer to her.  I know that it is artificial ... and one-sided, but I feel like a part of her is with me in the room as I sew up projects that I know she has made many times before.  I live far from her and only see her every few years, so I am glad I have this connection.

This time, I was sewing a late 1960's S-T-R-E-T-C-H & SEW pattern; # 300.

pattern with uncut fabric

I made it in an orange remnant fabric that I picked up when I was back in Charlottesville, VA on business.  (I took the time to visit my all time favorite fabric store, Le Fabriques.)

The fabric is classified as a rib-knit but it has less than a 25% stretch.  So, it is stretchy enough for some give, but really not a t-shirt type fabric.  I bought it because it would be perfect for these patterns.  They were designed for this type of not very stretchy knits.  I also loved the color.  I am a big fan of orange and seemed to only be sewing orange for my son.

The pattern has two variations.  One, with buttons down the front to make a cardigan.  And the second is a pull-over.  It also has lines for a v-neck or a jewel neckline.  I clearly made the pull-over with v-neck option.

The sleeve cuffs, neckline, and hem all have a band.  You know the type ... long piece folded in half and then sewn on with the two raw edges meeting the raw edge of the main garment.  I think this made a very polished finish to the top.

It turned out more fitted than I expected, but I do love the fit.  One of those unexpected but good surprises. 

And now when I wear it, I will know I am living in the footsteps of my grandmother who surely wore this same shirt too.

with my favorite scarf w/ orange and grey elephants

On an unrealted note, we will not be officiall doing the Inspiration Point this month.  There is just too much going on in December and we want to concentrate on being with family.  However, I am posting this picture below and figure it won't hurt to have a free-for-all IP.  What do I mean?  Well, if you make/write/develop anything related to Christmas, or other December holiday, feel free to upload a photo of your project to our flickr account.  It need not be inspired by the below picture, it just must be inspired by a December holiday.