2018 Fashion on the Ration challenge

PipneyJane

RicardaRacoon wrote: »

After some consideration and a chat with my Mum - "Are you sure you want to knit a black jumper????" - I ordered green yarn for a jumper. I'll knit the White Horse jumper (https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/whitehorse-2) but make it slightly longer and with long sleeves. I love a little challenge when knitting and one of my favourite podcaster knitted it and said the lace wasn't too complicated. And once the lace part is done it'll be all stockinette so quite realxing and I'll be able to watch Foyles War while knitting.


Plus I've ordered two pairs of grey trousers. Actually wanted to buy a second pair of jeans - normally I have two, but one pair was beyond repair in spring and I got through summer with only one pair - but I feel like having grey trousers again. A few years ago grey tweed trousers were my winter staple....
I'll only keep one pair of them though, so that'll be another 8 coupons...



Polly thanks for the hint with the underwear, I completely forgot to look at our own list and just checked the "Official" one.


Pip, lovely jumper, of course I had to have a look at Ravelry! Well, yes, it is possible to knit one with 10oz, but I doubt it'll work for a winter jumper with long sleeves. Plus I'll wear it with jeans, so want it "un-1940ie-ishly" long. I know most women in the 40ies wore croped jumpers either with skirts or highwaisted trousers but I'd look rather square in that with my current size so will go for hip-lenght.


By the way, speaking of 40ies fashion... I saw a girl last week at the station who was dressed very 1940ies but in a very casual way, I'm not even sure she realised she looked that way. Green high waist trousers that were quite wide, a striped top and a little yellow cardigan. Plus a headband. I hads a little fashion-crush...

Ooohhhh.... Me too! My fashion style is hugely influenced by the 1930’s, 1940’s and 1950’s. I’d have loved to have seen her.

The White Horse Jumper is lovely. What shade of green did you go for? Also, who is your favourite knitting podcaster? I listen to Knit British, Yarns From The Plain, Catheness Craft Collective and the Knitmore Girls but I’m about 5 months behind now. (There’s 220-odd podcasts in the queue but my new job will cure that.)

I do appreciate what you said earlier re coupons for sweaters/cardigans not being the same as the yarn content. For most very fine-yarned sweaters, there isn’t that much of a differential - your classic round necked cashmere cardigan weighs between 200g-300g and you could knit it for that. But not everything does. I succumbed today to a 96% wool 4% angora cardigan. There is no way on earth that I could knit it in the 5 coupons it cost to purchase ready made. I reckon it was made of double that in yarn (there’s no scales here or I’d weigh it). It’s a classic yolked cardigan with coloured trim: http://www.eribe.com/uk/shop/ladies/cardigan/alpine-cardigan-greyberry-greyberry.

Yes, I’ve travelled to France to purchase something made in Scotland.:rotfl: I’m also well aware that I’ve blown half a year’s clothing allowance on something I could have made myself - did you see the price? It wasn’t cheaper in Euros - but that’s why I save up each month, so that when the special item appears, I can purchase it. It’s beautiful; it’s in my colours; it’ll keep me warm in my portacabin; and it is smart enough to wear to work on a dress-down Friday when I go to the main office.

I’ve got 21 coupons left until January. While I’ll keep my eyes open for a new suit, I would not be surprised if I finish the year with 10 or more left. Most current fashions don’t appeal to me and I have more than enough clothes, although I will have to lose some weight/my spare tyre to fit into some of them. (Is it just me? Are designers deliberately mining the ugly end of the 1970’s for clothes designs?)

- Pip

Laura_Elsewhere

I do hope the authorities don't read this thread - I can't believe it of myself, I've always been such a law-abiding obedient little soul, but...

I met a black marketeer again today, a Mr. Asda, and he had a pair of black jeans in just my size and leg-length (not commonly found together!) and a bra (scarlet!!) in my size (even more rarely found together), so I paid him cash and made my way home quickly, with many a furtive look behind me.

I know I should feel ashamed, but... the jeans are so comfortable, and the bra (once I'd carefully cut the extensive foam 'armour-plating' out of the cups) feels and looks lovely too!

I must just turn away next time some spiv sidles up to me and offers me clothing or yarn!

PipneyJane

Laura_Elsewhere wrote: »

I do hope the authorities don't read this thread - I can't believe it of myself, I've always been such a law-abiding obedient little soul, but...

I met a black marketeer again today, a Mr. Asda, and he had a pair of black jeans in just my size and leg-length (not commonly found together!) and a bra (scarlet!!) in my size (even more rarely found together), so I paid him cash and made my way home quickly, with many a furtive look behind me.

I know I should feel ashamed, but... the jeans are so comfortable, and the bra (once I'd carefully cut the extensive foam 'armour-plating' out of the cups) feels and looks lovely too!

I must just turn away next time some spiv sidles up to me and offers me clothing or yarn!

Hopefully the jeans will last for ages. Ditto the bra.

Thanks for the laugh, Laura.

- Pip

PipneyJane

Afternoon All.

I was updating the Fashion On the Ration sidebar in my blog when I realised that I’ve miscounted the coupons I spent on Regia sock yarn. That last skein I purchased was 50g, which counts as one coupon, but I put it down as two. D’oh!

That means I’ve got 22 coupons left, not 21. Not an abundance of riches, but every coupon helps.

- Pip

PollyWollyDoodle

Every little helps! I'm off to buy some new bras tomorrow - not something I can get second-hand as I'm an awkward size. That'll be 3 coupons (I can only afford to buy two) but I think I'm going to end the year with coupons left. Might buy some more fabric but there's not much I need.

Laura_Elsewhere

I'm really looking forward to 2019's challenge, because seeing you finishing with coupons in hand whilst I've had the utter shame of turning to the Black Market has made me really question what on earth I was merrily flinging coupons about on earlier this year!

I'm really looking forward to starting again and seeing how far I can make my coupons go! I already have so much fabric and yarn, for one thing... although whether it's the right kind of fabric is something else.

Maybe I can class it as coupon-free if I sell unwanted fabric and use only that money to buy other fabric? Hmmm, am I already trying to tweak the system...?

But I have a pair of very nice trouser-y things cut out ready to sew, and a gloriously opulent pale-pink heavy upholstery-satin dressing-gown cut out ready to sew, so once I've finished October's commuting and working, I shall have at least two major garments to make with no coupons needed!

PollyWollyDoodle

Your posts always make me smile, Laura! In fairness, I adopted a 'buy nothing new' policy a couple of years ago so it hasn't been too hard for me, and I'm on a very tight budget.

Two new bras today, £60 (ouch) and three coupons but they're an item I won't compromise on, I'm not fussy about clothes generally but I need the right support.

Are these the 'accidental' trousers that you mentioned before?

Edited to add: I am now on 47 coupons, I may well buy some fabric with my remaining ones.

PipneyJane

Did anyone else catch the item on BBC Breakfast on Friday about how the average Briton purchases over 26kg of new clothes each year? The next highest were the Germans, who purchase 16kg. I don’t know where the French came but the Italians were fourth at around 10kg.

Aparently this is double what we purchased 10 years ago! I’m horrified. Sadly, I can’t find a link to the source of the news item, but I believe it was an investigation by a Parliamentary Committee. The MPs blamed fast fashion, M&S, Primani, etc, but who is buying all this stuff? In this age of austerity, how can they afford it?

I just don’t get it. OK, I’m not fashionable - fashion rarely suits me - and with current fashions it is difficult for me to find clothes I’d actually wear. It doesn’t help that the really cheap stuff is usually polyester and most synthetic material makes my skin creep. But that means that someone-else out there is buying a whole lot more than 26kg of clothing to make up for the likes of me.

- Pip

PollyWollyDoodle

Good heavens - I'm not sure what 26kg would look like but I must be well below that. Was it this https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6244055/The-average-Briton-buys-clothes-large-suitcase-year.html? (Sorry, the only non-paywall article I could find.)

I wonder why we buy so much more than other nationalities.

Laura_Elsewhere

At least one of my 20-something nieces never keeps summer clothes, going to Primark and online sites to buy herself a whole new wardrobe every time she goes on holiday abroad a couple of times a year. She just factors in 50-100 quid for clothes to the cost of the holiday...

I find it a bit hard at times to remember we're related...