2019 Fashion on the Ration Challenge

Laura_Elsewhere

PollyWollyDoodle wrote: »

Laura, I’m exactly the same now, it’s not the money but the thought of spending coupons that stops me buying! Also, where I might have picked up a bargain before, thinking ‘well, it’s cheap’ now I’m the other way round. Do I want to spend my precious coupons on something that won’t last much more than a year? Nope.

Yes, that's part of it too! If I'm spending coupons, then I really don't expect to be spending more coupons on the same item any time soon!

Re your sewing mojo... repairs and alterations rarely inspire me much, but a new project does - so with luck the Xmas stocking will get you back in the flow of things!

I have to excavate the sewing machine yet again - our sitting-room is tiny (so is the flat!) and at present it has lots of bits in it from my chap making a new recycling-drawer for the kitchen, plus several of those moon boot things from his son's injuries which the hosp cannot take back as an inflexible rule (even unused!!!!) but several charities will take, but we need to organise getting them to said charities and, oh, just lots of things we need to get round to...

I want it excavated soon, though - colder nights and only one of my 1979-80 velvet curtains has a lining - the other one HAS a lining, yes, but they curtain and lining are several feet apart and not attached in any way, so...

Also, I have five panels, two huge pockets and a waistband to cut out of dupion silk and bind or hem the edges on so that the pieces can all be dyed together to be the same colour of vivid green, as well as a load of 1987 New Zealand wool and some Texere raw silk yarn from well over a decade ago, both Aran-ish, to wind and tie loosely into hanks and then dye to variants on vivid green. I shall knit alternating silk and wool, maybe just single rounds, maybe 2-3 rounds, and I haven't yet decided whether to have one yarn darker or not.

But I need space to sort that lot out, and then access to the sewing machine to make the skirt!

PipneyJane

I agree with Polly, Thriftwizard, that's an impressive amount of sewing.

Laura, I'm curious regarding the dimensions of your flat. It sounds like a TARDIS, small but holding an incredible amount.

- Pip

thriftwizard

Not really impressive at all, it's all very rough & ready! I haven't done much today, though, except chop up a raggedy old Turkish towel, which is now a much smaller hand- or hair-towel and a series of washcloths or wipes.

But I did get down to the recyclers; there wasn't a lot there except a purple air-cell blanket, a pretty 70s maxi-skirt, a smashing cross-stitch cushion (which may stay with us) and a few more pure lambswool gents jumpers. I attempted to felt two of them for "upcycling" earlier by chucking them into a 60º wash, but all that happened was that a nasty stain came out! They must have been superwash wool. So it seems that instead of the girls getting fingerless gloves, OH & DS3 may get lambswool jumpers...

PipneyJane

I had the strangest dream yesterday. I dreamed that I was going through my hand-knitted jumpers, which were piled on the bed and folding them all. That wasn’t the strange part; the strange part was that there were several jumpers in the pile that I haven’t knitted yet, haven’t even queued on Ravelry. One was white with black trim - I think it had black pocket flaps - and I studied it carefully before folding it up. I will swear it was BFL, but that’s all I can tell you.

I’ve swatched the silk using the 4mm needles specified in the pattern for Blanche Too . Much to my surprise, it looked really good on 4mm needles, with no visible gaps. The swatch is currently drying, so I’ll check the gauge when it’s dry. I was tempted to throw it in the washing machine with yesterday’s hand-knit-sock wash, but the label says “hand wash only”. I’ve assumed that, even on a wool wash, that’s because it’ll felt. I won’t test it until I know that I won’t need the yarn in the swatch. (I’ve machine washed silk garments in the past.) No colour bled into the soaking water.

- Pip

Laura_Elsewhere

What a bizarre dream!!!!

I do machine-wash wool that is hand-wash - I don't use the wool cycle, though - ours has a 19-minute "rinse" cycle with completely cold water and since wool rarely needs any detergent and there's usually a bit in the machine anyway, I simply put my woollens in on the "rinse cycle in perfectly cold water and have never had any disasters!

PipneyJane

Laura_Elsewhere wrote: »

What a bizarre dream!!!!

I do machine-wash wool that is hand-wash - I don't use the wool cycle, though - ours has a 19-minute "rinse" cycle with completely cold water and since wool rarely needs any detergent and there's usually a bit in the machine anyway, I simply put my woollens in on the "rinse cycle in perfectly cold water and have never had any disasters!

Our previous washing machine had a "hand wash" cycle; this one has a "wool wash" and you can choose the slower spin speed. Both are fine with my pure wool/alpaca hand-knits. In fact, the only time I've had disasters were when I'd previously soaked a jumper in Eucalan!

Seriously, that stuff should come with a health warning. I will never use it again. One of my favourite yarns is Blacker's 4-ply BFL. In 2012, I knitted a jumper out of it (the Virginia Sweater from issue 10 of The Knitter). In 2015, I used the leftover balls and knitted Susan Crawford's It Cannot Fail to Please. Unknowingly, I handwashed the latter once in Eucalan. The next time I washed it on the wool cycle, together with the Virginia Sweater. The Virginia Sweater has been through the washing machine dozens of times and came out unchanged. It Cannot Fail to Please, was virtually destroyed - shedding fibre by the handful, shrunken and partially felted. In the end, I gave it to a friend to become her cat's bedding. (Mr Cat loves it.) Same yarn; same wash. The Eucalan soak was the only variable.

Something similar happened to the first Blanche Too that I knitted, but that didn't shrink as much and is still wearable. Again, I'd soaked it in Eucalan at some point and it shrank/shedded fibre during the first machine wash afterwards.

- Pip


PS: The silk didn't make gauge. On 4mm needles, it got 22st to 4 inches but the pattern specifies 23, so I'll knit the jumper on 3.75mm instead. Given the unevenness of some of the spinning, slightly denser is probably better anyway.

thriftwizard

OK, what should I charge myself for 3 cotton polo-necks? They will be doing the job of vests, basically, to keep my beloved wool jumpers from touching my neck, wrists & other ticklish parts, as sadly it does tend to irritate my skin. Somehow I found I only had a couple left after editing my wardrobe quite severely (to remove all stained & tatty items) so had to replace a few; I'm sure I used to own about 10 in different colours! So whilst accompanying DD1 on a festive shopping expedition today, I popped into M&S & stocked up a bit.

Polo-necks almost never seem to come up secondhand now; I've been looking for weeks. So although this may well take me over my "ration" & put me at the mercy of the spivs, needs must...

Laura_Elsewhere

thriftwizard wrote: »

OK, what should I charge myself for 3 cotton polo-necks? They will be doing the job of vests, basically, to keep my beloved wool jumpers from touching my neck, wrists & other ticklish parts, as sadly it does tend to irritate my skin. Somehow I found I only had a couple left after editing my wardrobe quite severely (to remove all stained & tatty items) so had to replace a few; I'm sure I used to own about 10 in different colours! So whilst accompanying DD1 on a festive shopping expedition today, I popped into M&S & stocked up a bit.

Polo-necks almost never seem to come up secondhand now; I've been looking for weeks. So although this may well take me over my "ration" & put me at the mercy of the spivs, needs must...

Oooh, whatever they cost in coupons, I must take myself off to M&S and investigate... I have one cotton poloneck, in mid-grey, which I got reduced to a couple of quid in Primark a few years back - had they had more than one, I'd have got more than one, and have looked intermittently ever since, in shops, on eBay, in charity shops... they're just so useful and cosy, aren't they? And a wonderfully practical way to deal with a wool reaction for you, too!

Laura_Elsewhere

I must get round to lopping those three coupons off so my sig.file says 16.5!

I have just spent another 5 coupons - a pair of shoes made for the WW2 re-enactment market, US WC shoes, a low-heeled lace-up in tan leather, for £55, which I think will be comfortable for everyday. Especially as my current pair of little lace-up leather shoes is leaking and starting to fall apart!

Also, these ones have a solid heel so CAN BE REHEELED! Hurrah!

When they arrive, I shall jettison several pairs of shoes which are similar in style, but made of fake leather and are too flat so make my feet hurt AND they are slightly too small so bruise my toes. I have one pair I got free with some vouchers and still haven't worn once, even two years later, so I shall send those to a charity shop, but the others are all disintegrating so will go to the shoe-bin at the tip.

why do I keep disintegrating shoes?!?!

http://www.quartermaster-stores.com/Footwear.htm

Crafty_Lisa_Hampshire

I have a habit of keeping disintegrating shoes as well because I think to myself "I'm sure I can get a bit more wear out of them".