// Still a knitter

Posted on | May 31, 2011 | 2 Comments

My needles are still clicking — there are maybe three sweaters on active production line — and at least one cardigan at idea level.

I have a thing for mohair yarns, it’s part of the eighties vibe I like, part just that lovely texture. The black and white one is dress length, loose, with giant funnel neck, big enough to wear as a hood. This would be ready in a snap… …but I have lost the sleeve I was knitting… ..yeah, that’s right…

From the shade shifting gray I was about to make a plain sweater with ballet neck — but I tried out this simple texture stitch and loved the result. Well, it will probably still be a simple ballet neck sweater. Ebony needles = ultimate knitting snobbishness…

Posted on | May 31, 2011 | 2 Comments

// From the factory

Posted on | December 18, 2010 | 4 Comments

I have been lousy blogger lately — the only explanation I have is that the darkest time of the year makes photographig outfits so difficult. But… …it is perfect time for knitting! I just wanted to share with you this current work in progress — the yarn is absolutely lovely merino-alpaca blend (Blue Sky Alpacas worsted hand dyes) — and the awesome herringbone stitch makes me happy knitter all the way, although it is quite tedious to knit…

Posted on | December 18, 2010 | 4 Comments

// From the needles

Posted on | December 11, 2010 | 2 Comments

I just finished this chunky little cardigan — could not be better timing. Snow records are broken daily… …it is beautiful — but so damn cold. I apologize the lack of posting lately — I tend to be less inspired about fashion at wintertime. I feel that the dressing is mostly about surviving in the quite extreme conditions, haha!

The pattern is by Wenlan Chia — and you can find it from her book Twinkle’s Big City Knits. I used awesome bulky merino / alpaca blend for this — it feels almost silky and it is super warm. One of the best things in knitting for me is that I can choose the materials and I’m often able to get so much better things than there is available at stores — in readymade clothing.

Posted on | December 11, 2010 | 2 Comments

// Through my fingers

Posted on | September 26, 2010 | 2 Comments

I’m knitting again! Own patterns, clothes I would like to wear. Something warm, soft, fuzzy but lightweight. Feels really good!

This week I was bit busy with one personal style related mini project, will get back to that sooner or later. But my life starts to settle down with the new, much more physically active schedule — and I have to say that I’m enjoying it! I have figured out how to live with my chronic condition and the added activity, I even have some hopes that I’m able to gradually improve my condition. Also I’m hopeful that I’m able to get back more active blogging schedule after next week.

Posted on | September 26, 2010 | 2 Comments

// Making the fabric

Posted on | November 15, 2009 | 15 Comments

knitdress4 knitdress2 knitdress5 knitdress3

One aspect I absolutely adore in knitting is that I can actually make my own fabric, thread by thread, hole by hole. And that fabric can be sculpted to various shapes while knitting — and while sewing the pieces together.

In this tunic/dress the emphasis is fully on fabric — it is shaped only very lightly. I used beautiful industrial quality silk-cashmere yarn in quiet nudey beige shade for a garment that is made for layering. The yarn is relatively heavy (heavy DK weight, maybe even aran weight) but the construction of the dress is still very light because I used considerably larger needles than usual for yarn of this kind — and the holes of different lace patterns contribute to the lightness even more. The patterns align neatly in the sleeves and the body of the dress. It shows the layers underneath but is not too bulky to layer under other garments, either.

This first combination with the newly made dress is quite grown up and quiet, I wore my new leather pants with the zippers open on the legs, Rützou wedges, simple spaghetti strap top and old heavy brass necklace from H&M to underline the slightly barbaric feel of the loose fabric. The mix of leather, silk and cashmere is very luxurious and gives quite pleasant olfactory experience — silk has it’s recognizable nutty scent, too, for some reason it is more apparent in knits than most woven fabrics. But I have to say that I really miss those PVC panel pants here. The shiny plastic would be an awesome contrast for the rustic texture of this dress.

Mmm-hmm, I should bother to use my make up for the pics…

Posted on | November 15, 2009 | 15 Comments

// Work in progress

Posted on | November 8, 2009 | 13 Comments

knitdress

It’s probably mentioned here before, that my knitting blog is on hiatus, because of my identity problems as a knitter. I’ve knitted tens (or maybe tons) of sweaters — and very few of them are on actual use. I started to knit mainly my own patterns maybe bit more than year ago — but that did not actually help instantly. I was thinking about utilizing my skills and selling patterns — but when I though what actually might sell I kind of lost the touch to what I would actually love to wear.

So it was quite natural to turn the thinking process upside down and start to explore that wearability factor from my own perspective. The first result was the Light Flyweight sweater — that actually has been in use quite a lot! From knitters point of view this might be the most boring project ever, but the oversized shape, sheerness that makes it interesting piece in layering and the extreme lightness (easy to tuck, knot, twist…) makes it a really good addition to my wardrobe.

I still knit when I have time (which is not much) — and somehow exploring the loose gauge knits feels really interesting right now. Can’t deny the Rodarte influence here, but I don’t want to make copies of their beautiful pieces.

My love for layering was the starting point for this work in progress. The result will be a large gauge fitted dress with simple lace patterns. Yarn is delicious nude silk-cashmere mix, looks bit boring and wiry here, but that’s because it is lightly oiled for machine knitting (I do only handknits but industrial yarns have their advantages). The oil is washed away when the piece is finished — and the yarn will bloom beautifully. The front and back pieces are finished, started the long, fitted sleeve yesterday. I really wait to see the finished product and try it on! That’s promising…

Oh, there has been some shopping happening… …I really had to get a pair of slimlined black pants to replace my skinny black jeans — and the unfortunate PVC pants. The idea was to wait for the Jimmy Choo for H&M stuff to arrive and snatch a pair of those leather leggings. But judging from the images they indeed were quite legging-like — and in this case more pant-like solution would serve my purposes better. So I wandered through few clothes stores and checked the pant selection — and came by to these.

leather

A single pair of slimlined stretch leather pants in my size was waiting for me in Selected Femme. The price was very reasonable (less than H&M option), fit was good and I liked the details: zippered front pockets on the hip, zippers on the leg and nice vertical seam on the middle back leg. I hope that these will be a long time companion for me!

Posted on | November 8, 2009 | 13 Comments

About

Location: Helsinki, Finland

Contact: kamicha (a) gmail dot com

I'm especially interested in young designers creations, non-established labels and indie fashion. So if you have something interesting to show, feel free to contact!

You can find Finnish design from both specific and some outfit posts - but both are tagged.

You might be also interested in DIY posts, How-to posts, DIY ideas - or my adventures in Etsy =).

More about me and this blog.