A Year of “Re”: Reviving an Old Friendship
I’m not sure I’m ready to let go of summer yet, but the cooler evenings are telling a fall story. The one thing about turning into a snowbird is that the lovely wool garments I have hanging in my cupboard just aren’t as useful as they once were. Being a total “woolophile” (is that a word?), I just haven’t been able to purge them from my wardrobe.
There is one garment I dearly love but haven’t worn for some time. It is a soft sweatshirt that feels like a sweater. It was cut on the bias with raw edge finishing and a hand-knit collar. I used two yarns held together to get the tweedy look I wanted with the fabric. I acquired the wool plaid in San Francisco years ago. It took me another couple of eons to make it into a garment, and now I just can’t let it go.
Time for Reviving a Sweatshirt
When I got the word “Revive” from my “re” word cards for this ninth installment in this Year of Re series, I pulled out the sweatshirt and started noodling. I didn’t have any of the fabric or yarns left, so I would have to work with what was there. I knew it would most likely continue to hang around unworn for several more years unless I did something to revive it. Since passing it on has not been easy, what did I have to lose?
I tried it on several times and realized that if it was going to fit into my new snowbird lifestyle, it needed to be not as warm. Hmm, what does that mean? The softness of the fabric and the bias cut really give it a sweater-like feel. However, the sweatshirt style just…
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Your original piece looks so soft and pretty, I can't imagine parting with it either! Love how it was revived into a sweater jacket. I also appreciate you explaining how you "hum and haw" awhile before actually taking your scissors to it. I do this a lot myself, but needed to hear how that can be a normal part of the process for others too! I think this is my favorite of your renewal projects so far. Thank you so mcc for sharing these articles!
Thank you for following along. I try not to let my collection become too precious. When that happens I just get paralyzed. But every now and then there is a piece of fabric or a garment that takes on "legendary" status and I find it hard to make the first cut or let it find a new home. I knew this one was a legend! But I'm very happy that I pushed through and did it. It's so nice to be wearing it again. Glad you liked it.