I don’t know about you guys but winter is approaching here in the UK and for the first time we had to put the heating on today. What better reason to sew a warm and cosy sweater? I’ve been looking for a sweater like this for probably a year now and couldn’t find any ready-to-wear ones that I liked. Then I started looking for some sweater fabric and wasn’t successful either. I wanted a really thick knit in an interesting colour but wasn’t inspired by the selection in the fabric shops and I’m still not the biggest fan of buying fabric online. So I put the search on hold over the summer and stumbled across the perfect fabric on a short trip to Wuppertal two weeks ago. Strolling through the city with the friend I was staying with, I obviously had to check out the one fabric shop they have there and was pleasantly surprised by the huge selection of knits. I settled for this greyish mint colour, which is not very surprising if you have ever seen my flat and wardrobe. I bought 1.5 meters and just about managed to squeeze those into my carry-on bag (my fabric shopping always seems to be limited by suitcase space, I’m just not sure if that is a bad thing or a good thing).

For the pattern I went with the Grainline Studio Linden Sweatshirt. When this pattern came out I was not sure if I liked the wide neckline but after seeing so many gorgeous versions I decided to give it a go. Now I like how the neckline gives the sweater a less sporty and more feminine touch. Sewing this up reminded me that I need to make more simple projects. There is nothing better than a quick Friday evening sew that results in a garment that you can wear the same weekend. And I have literally been living in this sweater since I made it. It kept me warm for a shopping trip in London yesterday (where we took the outdoor pictures) and was perfect for a lazy Sunday on the sofa today.

In terms of fit: according to the sizing chart I’m a 8 in the bust, a 6 in the waist and a 10 in the hips, due to the loose silhouette of the sweater I decided to cut a straight 8 . As expected the sweater is quite roomy which is great for the type of sweater I wanted. For a dressier version I would probably size down in the bust and waist. The construction itself was simple. I sewed it all up with the stretch stitch of my machine and left the seams unfinished as I don’t have a serger. The insides therefore don’t look very professional but that doesn’t really bother me. I just about managed to sew through all the layers when attaching the neck and hem band. They turned out really nicely despite the chunkiness of the knit. All in all a very satisfying sew. I’m sure I’ll get a lot of wear out of this one. I paired my Linden with my Closet Case Files Ginger Jeans (blogged here) and some socks my mum made for me for Christmas. Now I’m prepared for the long dark evenings ahead that hopefully will be filled with lots of sewing.