The Chanel Suit

Gigantic Hanks

The newest pride and joy of my wardrobe is a hand dyed hand knit Chanel suit. I obtained a vintage Chanel suit pattern which was put directly into my mental queue. Upon estimation, I needed 1000 grams. Obtaining all that wool was the first obstacle.

Meditating on my colour options, green was go. Fortunately, Purple Photokitty was kind enough to assist me in this challenging first time dyeing venture. My intended result was a richly dark forest green, but the wool had its own agenda. The end result was a lovely grassy mossy green with very slight variegation throughout. Happy accident indeed!


With the dyeing process complete, it was time to get knitting; jacket first. As a vintage pattern, it was knitted up in pieces. In this case, I like the structure that a seam provides. Emily of Tincanknits was lovely enough to take some photos of me in what is referred to as an epic knit.



Surprise!

The finishing was the most important aspect of this project. It took bloody ages, but this is what makes the difference between a mediocre product, and an amazing garment.

The pocket is the best bit

The skirt was a simple pattern. I added a few things: a zipper, wider waist band and wee slits on the sides. To my delight, I finished it just in time to wear to the Edinburgh Yarn Festival

 

Now I need one in cotton candy pink.