My sewjo! It has returned! I hope!
I took a brief vacation in early September, and then came back to a shitstorm of work in the weeks after (turns out it's hard to take a break while working on a public health emergency response during a pandemic!), so my sewjo has been pretty dormant since. Thinking about sewing lots, but not doing much of it.
But a turn in the weather got me thinking about sweaters and perusing my stash...
I made this Seamwork Oliver sweater with this pretty ice-blue boiled wool blend from my stash (you might remember it from another Seamwork project from a couple years back!). A perfectly simple sewjo re-starting project!
Note: I am a Seamwork Ambassador, which means I received a one-year subscription in exchange for sewing up 10 of their patterns and providing some feedback to Seamwork about their patterns, articles, etc. If you use this link, you can get a little discount if you decide to purchase from Seamwork.
I had just enough large scraps of my boiled wool leftover from my Jill Coatigan to make the Oliver pattern work with some careful cutting. It's a stiff-ish, low stretch knit, but I thought it would highlight the boxy cut and fun sleeve detail of the Oliver pattern.
Speaking of sleeves: statement sleeves have been a "thing" for a while now, and I've mostly avoided them. I can't stand when sleeves are long and/or oversized at the wrist. I think I'm too clumsy and messy for those dramatic, droopy, drapey sleeves. I would inevitably get them caught on door handles, dipped in my lunch, etc. etc.
The Oliver pattern has a two-part lantern sleeve that is tapered at the cuff, so I thought it might be a statement sleeve I could get on board with... it's relatively un-dramatic. Just a hint of interest. Statement sleeve lite.
My Oliver is a size 16, which is probably a size down from where my current measurements put me. I didn't make any fit changes and am pretty happy with how it turned out! I love how it's a little boxy, but not overwhelmingly so. And that it hits at the high hip.
The Oliver has a boat neck normally, but I went with a funnel neck rather than the facing provided. I used Seamwork's pattern hack instructions. Dead simple: just drafting a rectangle the length of the neckline, basically! I think the stiff boiled wool helps it to not be floppy.
I topstitched the neckline seam down, and decided to do the same for the sleeve seam. The neckline was so the seam lay flat, the sleeve seam just for visual interest. I didn't finish any of my seams because this boiled wool doesn't fray and I didn't want to add bulk. I used my clapper when pressing to get the seams nice and crisp.
I'm really chuffed with my Oliver! Cozy, cute, a little vintage-y looking, but still modern. Good stuff.