Knitwear & grandmothers

Several handmade items have been added to my wardrobe these past few weeks. No more than four things in this outfit are handmade!

The blue shrug used to be a sweatervest, knitted last year. But after all those hours of knitting, it did not turn out as expected. And so it ended up as a ball of wool again. This shrug is a design of my own, knitted with a stitch I learned from my grandmother. It makes a nice V-shape on the back of the shrug. It's not a very special design, but it's the first thing I've knitted without a pattern (apart from scarves). Well the second thing actually, the first version of the shrug turned out big and warm but weird-looking. This one is how I wanted it to be. It's warm, cosy AND it fits. The shirt is also made by me, about three years ago. It's still one of my favourites.

The leather bag is not made by me, but by my boyfriends grandmother. She is a very crafty woman, producing bags, pot holders and quilts by the dozen. This bag is not really what you'd call fashionable, or even vintage - it's just oldfashioned. I use it a lot though, I like the size and the feel of it.

The second thing I knitted without a pattern is the hat. I was very glad it worked out in one go, because this was a time-consuming pattern to knit. I combined cables with a rice stitch and worked with both brown and blue. I added earmuffs for extra warmth and a pompon for fun. In comparison with the hat I knitted last year, this hat also shows my evolvement in knitting: it does not make me look like Calimero. Which is always a good thing.