Don't you just love cosy-ing up in a snuggly sweater at this time of year? I know I certainly do! When Katie at Sew Sew Sew had a drop of the new Stof Fabrics in, it was so difficult to pick a favourite! They are all stunning but this Mountains Sweatshirting stole my heart. I love to ski and the little mountains pattern reminded me of the gorgeous mountains when we go skiing. We have another trip planned late in January so I couldn't help pick this one to sew up a cosy jumper to take with me! This fabric is perfect for a warm winter make as not only does it have a pretty design printed on the right side but a super soft snuggly fleeceback on the reverse too!
I was looking for a jumper pattern that had a bit of a sporty feel to it to complement my concept and I came across the Casey Sweater by Experimental Space Patterns. I instantly loved the cowl neck detail and long angled cuffs! I thought this would be just right for what I had in mind. Along with the cuffs and cowl it also has two front welt style pockets. Although I really liked the finished look of these on the garment, I was a little short of time so I decided to omit these but instead add a kangaroo style pocket to the front, so I still satisfied my pocket necessity. I used the Tilly and the Buttons Stella Hoodie pattern piece which I think works a treat!
As this pattern benefits from a contrast for the cuffs and cowl lining, I decided to use a plain black cotton jersey to complement the mountain sweatshirt fabric. This is also a Stof fabric available from Sew Sew Sew and I cannot express enough how high quality these fabrics are! The stretch and recovery are excellent and they just feel so lovely to wear. I used 1.5m of the sweatshirting and 0.5m of the cotton jersey. The sweatshirting was plenty but the cuff pieces are surprisingly long so you may need a little more than this to give yourself a little wiggle room.
Experimental Space Patterns are sized by a name instead of a number which I really love so my size pretty much sits in with a 'Bea' (to give you an idea this is for a 33" high bust and I am a 32"). I made no alterations to the pattern pieces and decided to just go for it as there was enough ease in the final measurements that I could alter the garment at the end if it was wildly wrong. The instructions are great and are organised such that you sew all the slightly tricky bits first (the cowl and the welt pockets if you decide to do these). The cowl was very straightforward to assemble, and the instructions were clear and easy to follow. I altered the placement of the buttons ever so slightly from where they are recommended to suit where I wanted the cowl to sit. The pocket I attached using the welt pattern marks as a guide and I'm really happy with the overall look as it’s still in keeping with the style of the jumper - I think I'll have to try the welt pockets on the next version I make!
The last alteration I made was to take the side seams in a little more at the waist, so it was just slightly closer fitting. I'm really pleased with the final fit of this garment though and think I’m going to get so much wear out of it! The sleeves are a perfect length for me and cover my wrists nicely. The length of the sweater is also great and comes down to my hips. The cowl is a really interesting and unique feature too which is going to be perfect for keeping the chilly wind off my neck!
Whilst sewing, I used a size 90 jersey needle on my machine which worked perfectly with these two fabrics. The instructions also don't specify exactly what stitch to use throughout so I went with the stretch stitch on my machine (which looks like a lightning bolt) and this seemed to work just fine. If you don't have this a zigzag stitch would also work well. I then finished all my seams separately with my overlocker as I thought that finishing them together would make them a bit too bulky in this fabric.
Overall I am super pleased with my Casey Sweater, the fabrics are gorgeous and pair beautifully together, Sew Sew Sew also has a black rib jersey you could use instead of the black cotton jersey if you prefer this for a slightly different look and the Butterfly Alphabet sweatshirt or the Mustard Leaves sweatshirt that are both available on the website would also work brilliantly with a black contrast fabric too!
It's so comfortable to wear and is going to keep me nice and toasty during those cold January days ahead!
Happy sewing!
Holly (@holsstevens) x
I was provided these fabrics free of charge from Sew Sew Sew in exchange for this blog post, however, all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.