2025 Fashion On The Ration Challenge

PipneyJane

PurpleAndGreen said:

PipneyJane said:

Welcome @PurpleAndGreen and thank you for the scones.  The jam is lovely!  I’ll add you to the list of participants.

I feel your pain re too much stash and shrinking out of your clothes.  What are you knitting plans?  While my current project is from a 1940’s pattern, the next jumpers on my list are a classic cricket sweater and something to use up some Alpaca that has been in my stash for 20 years.  I also want to lengthen a jumper that I finished this year - I have the yarn, just panicked and made it shorter - and to change the collar on this jumper to a regular one, because the one I knitted is really annoying.



My other plans for this year are only to buy yarn if I need it to finish a garment - say if I’m a ball short - and, once I’m certain my weight has stabilised, to take in various pairs of trousers and skirts.   I’ll also make the clothing for which I have fabric.  (A skirt and trousers of Harris Tweed, and a suit from the wool coating I got at a fabric swap a few years ago.  However, I am loath to do either until I know I won’t gain weight.). 

  - Pip

Hello @PipneyJane

Thanks for the welcome, glad you like the scones and jam!

Firstly, I wanted to say that I was very glad to hear that you have been given the all-clear after your episode of lymphoma last year.  Hopefully this year will be better for you and your DH.

Too much stash - it's definitely a problem resulting in knowing what to tackle first!  My plans for this year are to use some of the 4-ply yarn to make some scarves/shawls.  Like you, I'm loathe to tackle anything that will have to be altered when I lose some more weight - it takes me a long time to knit something, so the idea of undoing it all is not going to happen.  I'm currently learning Tunisian crochet and, when I've mastered it, intend making a throw and a blanket.  

Your current project looks good, how are you doing with it?  I like the jumper pictured in your post, though I can see that the collar must be a bit annoying. 

I'm on a no-buy yarn this year, I have way too much to use up and, the speed at which I knit, it will take me some time to get through it all.

I'm going to be taking in/altering clothing as well as you, though I probably won't start until the summer with some light summer clothes, they're much easier to alter.

That turned into an essay, sorry!

PAG

I’m knitting it in the round and have just got to the armholes, 16 inches in.  It is actually really straightforward, once I’d put markers in place to demarcate the front panels.  

laura_lau said:

Here are the mittens. hope the picture doesn’t come out super huge, I usually don’t post pictures so I am not sure of the result, apologies in advance.

@laura_lau those mittens are lovely.  

- Pip

Cherryfudge

The mittens are fun @laura_lau, and I think a matching hat would be great.

I've neglected my knitting since Christmas but I'd love to get some more done, especially those things I thought I'd have ready to gift back in December. 

Diane1276

laura_lau said:

Here are the mittens. hope the picture doesn’t come out super huge, I usually don’t post pictures so I am not sure of the result, apologies in advance.

They're gorgeous! I treated myself to a wonderful vintage stitch pattern book a little while ago and this type of stitch is top of my list of ones to try!

Nelliegrace

I managed to get 3lbs of sour oranges from Mr S the grocer this afternoon, and a precious lemon.  I found some jars of whisky marmalade which was hidden away at the back of a low shelf. It was sold cheaply, at a third of the usual price, as old stock, but I would call it matured. I got some of Mrs Cooper’s spiced marmalade which hadn’t sold either. She doesn’t make it very often, so it was a bargain. As you can imagine, DH was very pleased. 

diminua

My boots turned up and seem fine so I need to take 5 coupons off for those and 1.5 for the bra I wanted. I also saw some trousers I quite liked but they're a shade too small still so I will hold off for now.  I've amended my signature. 

Laura_Elsewhere

I've been into town and had a wild spending spree! 

I spent 60 quid On the plus side, the original prices would have come to £179, so...  

Winter boots: pull-on ankle-boots in dark brown leather, M&S £89 down to £18
Dark green suedeish trainers, M&S £35 down to £11
Well-made canvas plimsoles for swimming, Primark £7
Two t-shirts, Primark £6
3m cotton twill fabric to make new skirt asap, Hobbycraft £42 down to £18 via vouchers and gift-cards and so on. 

So a startling 29 coupons needed for that lot! 

Still my reverse-couponing is off to a good start as I made the velvet jacket (11 coupons) with a hat, lined in teddybear, all from fabric I already had, and I made a little sleep-mask from some of the scraps too, lovely midnight-blue velvet both sides, and I used scraps of teddybear for the padding inside! 

PipneyJane

Sounds like a good shop, @Laura_Elsewhere.

I too have a spend to declare.  DH phoned me on his way home from work yesterday:  "I'm in L!dl and they have thermal socks...".  He picked me up two packets of two pairs, in a subtle grey colourway.  They're 87%*** cotton and quite warm.  (I've just walked down to the post office in a pair.)  £3.98 spent and 4 coupons.

Bless him.  He was looking to see if they had any yarn in the blue colourway that I bought before Christmas.  I saw a packet on sale on 2nd January and have regretted not picking it up, since it'd mean I could make a twin-set.  They had plenty of the grey version of the same colourway, but I've been resisting its siren call....

- Pip 


*** ETA I've just checked the socks' packaging and am even more impressed by the value for money.  The packaging says that they contain at least 84% DSC Certified organically grown cotton!

PipneyJane

diminua said:

My boots turned up and seem fine so I need to take 5 coupons off for those and 1.5 for the bra I wanted. I also saw some trousers I quite liked but they're a shade too small still so I will hold off for now.  I've amended my signature. 

I'm glad the boots fit the bill @diminua.  They look very swish on you.

- Pip

thriftwizard

Speed-reading to catch up - that jacket is simply stunning, @Laura_Elsewhere! And yes, I can see it in a kind of Jacobean crewel-work type fabric for spring. @PipneyJane, that jumper is a glorious colour, odd collar notwithstanding, and @laura_lau, those mittens are such fun!

In the meantime, I've made myself a pair of indoor slippers from the Economy Design pattern (thank you, @Nelliegrace!) using a remaindered fabric sample, lightly quilted over a "batting" of a damaged & felted cashmere scarf. The scarf means they are really warm - thankfully, as for some reason I always get cold feet in both older DS's homes - and the curtain/upholstery sample should be tough enough to take indoor use. Somehow they've turned out quite different shapes! Somewhat rough & ready as even my big quilting machine struggled with that thickness of fabrics - it's too cold out in the conservatory to use the treadle, which would have been fine, having spent 80-odd of its 115 years sewing sacks - but they do fit and are comfortable. I'll work on a tidier version, using denim (of which I have an enormous stash, having raised 5 offspring) and a felted jumper. And I'll catch the satin bias tape (left over from edging a quilt several years ago) down by hand; I suspect many pairs were made back in the day entirely by hand.

Nelliegrace

Very impressive @thriftwizard. I wondered about the slipper soles. Our Victoria Jubilee house had cold, quarry tile floors downstairs, and bare wood upstairs, with rugs. Linoleum was a popular floor covering. Fabric soles would wear through quickly, would felted wool be better? Perhaps old leather or suede, or sheepskin was used? There was a lot of rabbit skin available. Perhaps hessian-backed, wool carpet was used? They were called carpet slippers after all. 
The slippers are similar to Espadrilles which have soles made from plaited jute string or rope. Crochet soles look fairly easy.

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/980719431/twine-jute-soles-pdf-file-pattern?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=espadrille+rope&ref=sr_gallery-1-9&pro=1&sts=1&dd=1&content_source=5a9adc8f8128c243c368e96cf809f949aa30ff67%253A980719431&organic_search_click=1