...Especially when you are off to mount your horse.

Sometimes you hit gold. Sometimes you enter that op shop with something else entirely on your agenda, but find yourself with a smile a mile wide.

The motherlode of knitting patterns from the 50's, 60's and 70's. Thank you Betty, whoever and wherever you are.

This is but a small sub-selection of the entire load I nabbed. And wait for it... all for the ridiculous price of $1. That's right. Not $1 each, but $1 total!! There's something like a few hundred patterns here contained in 20 odd pattern books.

I grabbed them all because they are actually full of some great basic and timeless patterns and I do in fact see myself using them to knit up a whole stack of things over the next several decades.

But boy do they have some entertainment value, immersing one in the the most iconic fashions of the time. Let's begin... 70's anyone?

SEWN: BAROQUE BROCADE LIBBY

Yay! I finally finished something this winter. It was looking doubtful but it happened!

 

May I introduce my "quick win", the Libby skirt.

Have you ever been in a crafting funk where nothing seems to grab you for long and when something does grab you it simply does not move at a pace that keeps you really engaged? I've been in one of those. This year has shaped up to be incredibly demanding, and has left so very little time for anything extraneous at all. And as much as we'd all like to think sewing and knitting are not extraneous, the reality is sometimes they truly are.

My knitting progress has ground almost to a halt. Knitting takes time dudes. Serious time. Hours daily I just don't have anymore.

But then a few little things happened that propelled me forward.

1. I saw Rachel's awesome Libby skirt and just had to have it. Sorry Rachel! I know this skirt isn't quite the same, but I loved yours so very much that it certainly comes close. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery? I so hope you think so Rachel.

2. I spent a wonderful half hour or so at Tessuti in Surry Hills chatting with the very gorgeous and generous Colette. And it just made me feel all happy and energised. Thank you Colette!

I knew I was going to make the Libby skirt, I happened to be close to Surry Hills with a bizarrely free hour, and so I thought I'd check out my fabric options at Tessuti. I had black brocade on the brain. And what do you know?? Score!