Linden Sweatshirt with Woven Back!

Take a look at my project for the AGF Loved to Pieces blog tour! Loved to Pieces is the debut fabric line by my friend Mathew Boudreaux of Mister Domestic for Art Gallery Fabrics. This line has edgy florals with lots of surprises, and includes quilting cottons, rayon, and knit substrates. 

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I decided I wanted to weave the back panel of the Linden Sweatshirt. The Linden is a pattern from Grainline Studios. I've made more Lindens than I can count - it's a GREAT pattern. Actually everyone I know who has made one Linden has gone on to make ten more. They are easy and look great. It's also the perfect gateway pattern for those scared of knits. Don't be afraid of knit. Knit is so forgiving to work with. But how is it to weave? 

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I knew folding each strip before weaving would add too much bulk, so I decided to leave the strips raw edged. I tried starching, but ended up stiffening the knit beforehand using Terial Magic. Terial Magic is far beyond even heavy starch. Treating the knit with it kept the strips from rolling, both during cutting and while I wove.

I just cut my fabric into one inch strips and got to weaving, so this project took less time than I thought it might! I used my 1 inch WEFTY Needle to weave this, and another 1 inch WEFTY Needle as a guide needle. 

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After weaving, I secured the panel using freezer paper. Freezer paper is the perfect temporary stabilizer! First I traced the pattern piece onto the paper side of the freezer paper and cut it out. After weaving, I put it shiny side down on top of the weave, pressed on the top (paper side) with an iron and the heat adhered the freezer paper to the fabric. It holds really well! After removing all the pins from the weave, I sewed around the edges of the freezer paper pattern piece with a stay stitch, or basting stitch. This weave once completed felt really soft and light, and had a texture similar to knitting or crochet.

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After soliciting my social networks for advice on how to sew the weave together for a garment, I got some great feedback from Mallory Donahue of The Selfsewn Wardrobe who said that continuous lines of sewing wouldn't stretch with the knit. She suggested I focus on the intersections only. So I "quilted" around some random tumbling blocks in the weave designs (essentially stitching in the ditch around some hexagons). Just enough to keep the design together and ensure the strips didn't twist or curl too much.

From there constructing the top was easy peasy. My biggest challenge was figuring out how to photograph the darn thing. I used remote control with my digital camera, the timer on my phone, and even my six year old who I paid in doughnuts. I showed my photos to Mathew and he suggested a flat lay. If only I had asked him several hours prior. Ah well! The flat lay photos are much better at showing off the garment, but I can't help but show some of it here being used!

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Just a quick add: the back is not at all heavy!!! And it's easy to get on and off. I'll be adding a little bit more "quilting" in the near future as I can see some strips twisting a bit. Next time I'll be weaving both the front and the back, and with 1/2 inch strips. This looks and feels awesome. I'm really proud of it! 

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There have been many gorgeous makes with Loved to Pieces already. Basically just search the hashtag #agflovedtopieces on social - but you can also check out the links below for the folks in the blog tour!

Tara Curtis2 Comments