Celestial Print Blouse with Collar and Tie
Merry and Bright: Styling Colorful Pieces in Dark Winter
In mid-December and January, I tend to drop off into cozy land where all I want to wear are leggings, fuzzy socks, and hoodies. I feel unproductive and I don’t know what to wear. This is odd because, in terms of fashion, this is my favorite season for fabrics, garments, and occasions. I love layering coats, hats, scarves, boots, mittens, etc.
To fight the slump, I’m leaning into bright colors and bold prints.
I’m pushing myself this year to rediscover the love I used to have for dressing up when it got cold like I did in college. I still indulge a bit when I can pair cozy pieces with more polished items but they have to have more personality this year! I am setting a hard line with my clothing choices to break out of the athleisure slump.
To accomplish this goal, I’ve found myself reaching for my colorful knitwear! I’ve spent the time making the items, I need to wear them. This sweater dress is quickly becoming a favorite of mine. It is just as comforting as a hoodie but looks like a dress and can be worn over jeans or leggings depending on the occasion.
Going into the fall, I knew I wanted more knitwear and accessories but I was dubious about my design choices. Would they work together to form cohesive outfits? Well yes and no, it depends on a matter of taste.
To someone who wears neutrals and classic accessories, this might be a bit ugly. But to a maximalist, like myself I enjoy the color palettes and pops of color these pieces bring to the brown and gray landscape of early winter.
I prefer having that neutral coat and having that punch of accessories to bring the look together. Hats and scarves can say a lot in an outfit yet are easy to mix and match, it’s a hit of creativity for minimal effort.
I’ve been reaching for my cat-ear beanie like a staple which I have to be honest I was not expecting. I get some stares, good and bad, but for every weird look, there are two expressions of joy at the sight of the cat beanie. If I can dress to bring people joy by the color and unusual design then that is a win for me.
Another style I am dabbling in is the academic style of a collared shirt and a vest. In this version, I styled a mini dress over a long flannel (from the men’s tall section) to create what I say is a Chandler Bing outfit. This was an insanely comfortable outfit yet mixed up my casual style for the winter. Because the colors are a bit unusual for the academic silhouette I felt playful and more like me.
I’m happy to say I’ve reached for some of my handmade pieces on those cozy days I may have opted for leggings or sweatpants like this laundry day outfit of a flannel “cardigan” over a thermal crewneck and the patterned corduroy pants that drafted myself. It was an odd combo but the colorful patterns truly brightened up a gray and dark snowy day.
That’s not to say that I haven’t reached for the cozy staples but with more polish, like this Aran Jumper style sweater that my mom knit for me. It’s a stunner!
How do you dress in December and January? Like me, in this dark winter do you struggle to find the joy in getting dressed?
Little Black Top
I love finding a good deal on fabric, and this one was a remnant – score! I got 2 yards of this heavy-weight knit jersey in pinstripe for either 6 USD or 8 USD. My original plan in the store was to try my hand at making a hoodie. Then I pivoted to a flowy jersey dress for winter. I cut the pieces out and began to drape on a form to see what this idea was going to turn into. I liked the drape but I was concerned it was too boxy for my frame, hitting mid-thigh.
In shaping the sleeve, I noticed this fabric although a jersey more kin to athleisure portrayed the weight and image of a suiting pinstripe of the classic menswear blazer. Especially if I straightened out the curve in the shoulder. And that got me thinking, should I go for a jacket?
I drafted some lapels for a collar and cut open the front of the dress. It was going well, looked like an interesting coat silhouette. But the fabric’s drape from the knit jersey began to betray the design. It was droopy instead of structured, like a cardigan? So I went back to the drawing board.
Today I decided to trim the bottom off, and then I trimmed a bit more because I cut it wrong. With the lapel collar pinned and one sleeve sewn in, I tried it on and reflected on the length. The long cardigan shape now a cropped hip-skimming garment, stopped and pondered. It needed something.
I looked through the pieces, discarded on the table from my cuts, and began to play with options.
If I was going to make a blazer I would need a button placket on either side for the buttons and button holes to be anchored securely. The lapels needed mitigation from the awkward state of their current appearance. I began to place the collar in different postures along the neckline opening and down the front.
I hemmed the bottom and sewed in a possible placket onto the opening of the jacket. As I re-situated the collar, I realized I could make this a blouse with the placket and drape the collar to change the posture of the garment from a structured piece to a more flowy and relaxed garment more in line with the fabric’s character without losing menswear blazer inspired look.
With this in mind, I attached the second sleeve and sewed up the front, connecting left to right with the bridge of that placket piece. By using the stripes in a contrasting way, the centerpiece and collar flow together like a false scarf sewn into the top. It retained the elevated chic attitude I was looking for in a blazer but with the comfort of the cardigan. I think I will get a lot of wear out of this piece. I tend to gravitate towards dark and cool-toned colors in the fall and winter.
As Chanel declared the little black dress as a wardrobe staple of any woman’s closet, I believe a little black top that you can dress up and dress down is just as important because 100 years later, sportswear separates are the gold standard building blocks for our wardrobe. What is one of your favorite colors to wear? Do you have a staple piece in your wardrobe? I tend to gravitate towards dark and cool colors in the fall and winter.
My 1920s Football Sweater Dream and The Banshees of Inisherin
I have a history with 1920s fashion, 1920s Ireland, and 20th-century football at Geneva College. My first successfully hand-knit sweater is a blend of all these flavor notes. As I consider how this piece came to be, it truly feels like the best possible way to write a love letter to the things that have become a piece of me, whether through ancestry or by my own seeking out, it is my beginning spark that pulled me into the world of designing knitwear.
I’ve been knitting for a decade now with degrees of success. I’ve kept to the small projects. Things like scarves, hats, mug warmers, a tea cozy, and tried my hand at mittens. There have been attempts at sweaters and even an oversized cardigan that turned out okay, but not what I had hoped. But then a movie was made that created exactly what I was looking for, they even made them by historical techniques and by hand. That movie is Martin McDonagh’s The Banshees of Inisherin.
The collar, the shoulders and silhouette of these pieces of knitwear look pulled out of a vintage collection of 1920s extant garments. Because they made these for the movie, it gave me hope that I could capture something historical from the weaving of my needles. This is what I came up with:
Originally, my plan for this sweater was to recreate a sweater I bought from H&M in 2011. I loved the striped boxy shape and easy to pair because of the neutral color story. I was knitting the body while I watched The Banshees of Inisherin for the first time and was taken aback by the knitwear of Padraig O’Sullibhean’s character. It was rugged, cozy, and yet practical in a beautiful celtic sea blue, almost teal hued wool yarn.
With only the body finalized and a sleeve on my needles, I realized I could pivot. I craved the chance to make something like the 1920’s football sweaters of Geneva’s yearbooks but I also wanted to capture the old style of sweater making from the early 20th century. Being from Irish descent, with my ancestors being from the O’Sullibhean clan out of Cork, it seemed like the stars aligned on this project. So I pivoted and widened the shoulders to look more inline with football attire. I added a longer ribbing to the bottom for a vintage feel and lastly I recreated the open collar of Padraig’s sweater.
The finished project perfectly marries the football feel with the connection to the past I desired, wrapped up in a sweater silhouette that I hope more people attempt. Historically inspired knitting was a blast. It also stands out which makes me happy. ☺️
After ten years, I finally did it! Knitting this, my first successful sweater, by my own drafted pattern was even sweeter. Thank you reader, for letting me share this project with you. It is one of my favorites.
One Rabbit Riot 