FO: Wiksten Tova 2

I spent the weekend in Cambridge, and spring was definitely in the air. Hooray!!! Today was the first day this year I ventured out without a coat! Exciting stuff.

daffodils and sunshine - yipeeeeee!

This time of year is so exciting to me. I love watching nature wake up again after winter. And although the full bloom of spring is still a month away, there is some very pretty early blossom in the hedgerows.

Most fitting for my newest make: another Wiksten Tova.

I used a delicious off-white Nani Iro twill-weave brushed cotton (in Fuwari Fuwari). I love the Nani Iro fabric collections: beautiful watercolour florals designed by Naomi Ito. I snapped up 1.5m of this print on sale after Christmas, because it brought to mind the explosion of spring blossom. And it's so pretty, non? It's a wonderful mid-weight cotton, and was a real pleasure to work with. And is incredibly comfortable to wear.

with both sleeves rolled down!

This time around, I made it to dress length (which is more tunic length for me). I made a small, merging to medium at the hips, and added 1" length to the sleeves, which perhaps wasn't necessary. This top comes together very quickly, and is a really enjoyable make. I struggled a little over the inset, which is a bit fiddly. I hand-basted it before sewing, because I did struggle with this bit when made my first one, and I'd recommend that. The gathers aren't quite perfect, and I think I should have re-done this bit:

I'm especially irritated that I didn't notice the weird corner gather (above left) before serging

Well, that's something to improve on when I make it again. Because I will make it again (and again and again, most likely).

If you'd like to make this too, you can now buy digital copies to download! (Also of the Wiksten Tank.) You will not regret it.

In other news, I made this little guy for a friend who's expecting her first born any day now:

I made him using Purl Soho's Purl Frog pattern, and used toy stuffing instead of the recommended lentils. I used a scrap of Liberty lawn (in My Little Star). The pattern calls for a 1/2 yard, but the scrap I used was about 8"x11", and was plenty. I also embroidered some weird little eyes, instead of using beads/buttons, to make it baby-friendly.

speak soon!
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