Neck rings (aka “infinity scarfs”)





Over the past few days I have made several neck rings based on the instructions in Vogue Patterns magazine October/November issue. I plan to give a couple of them away as Christmas gifts. The cow and cheetah print are the shorter versions (40″ long). The glitter fuchsia is the longer version (about 70″) which is wrapped around the neck twice. They only take about 20 minutes to sew from start to finish and can be made from a variety of fabrics.

*One more thing: for the longer scarf, I added about 5″ to it. In other words, I cut the fabric at about 75″ in length rather than 70″ as the instructions state. I just thought it made it easier to wrap around the neck (remember, this one is wrapped twice) and I liked the way the fabric fell at the neckline with it longer.

Completed cardigan





Yesterday I made this cardigan from McCall’s 4923. The pattern shows the cardigans with trim around the edges which I left off. I used a stretch lace material. Since I am often cold, I figured this would be good to wear with a variety of things to add a little bit of warmth. It was very easy to make. The only thing I would do differently is to lengthen the sleeves, but that’s just a personal preference. I didn’t have the stay tape that was called for on the shoulder seams, so I cut 2 strips of the interfacing (fusible, black tricot knit interfacing) and used that instead. I attached that by fusing it in place. I used a silver pen for marking, just being careful to mark in the seam allowances so they wouldn’t show in the completed garment. Then for hemming, I used black Stitch Witchery. I cut the length I needed for the sleeve hems, then cut it in half lengthwise to make a narrow hem. The bottom hem was just the regular width of the same Stitch Witchery.

Burda hooded top





I completed this hooded tunic today. It’s from Burda 12-2009-120. I used a cotton knit fabric I had bought at JoAnn Fabrics a while ago. I made size 42. It was pretty easy to make, but I couldn’t figure out how to attach the facing strip. I read it several times until I just gave up and didn’t bother. I knew how it should look anyway and did not want to continue to waste time trying to figure it out. Other than that, there were no problems. I like that it’s roomy enough for layering. I’d like to make this again out of a solid, more neutral color like it’s shown in the magazine.