Category Archives: knitting

How to replicate a dress with zero reference images.

Hermione's red dress beads

This picture is from a few days ago, but the red dress is (almost) finished! I want to redo the flower thing in the middle to make it look less flat, and it’s lacking beads but other than that it’s done! I wore it the other night when Boyfriend and I went on a pre-Valentine’s Day date. It’s swirly and lovely and I completely forgot to take pictures. -headdesk-

I’ll get on that.

I think I have an unhealthy obsession with Hermione. In the past month, I have made two of her sweaters, one dress, a hat.

On top of that, I started a scarf the other day..

Hogwarts PoA Scarf

..and I’m in the beginning stages of a second dress.

Hermione's pink dress fabric

This dress is absolutely gorgeous but it’s driving me insane. It was handmade by Jenny Packham for Hermione to wear to Slughorn’s Christmas party, and since the entire scene lasts all of a minute and a half and happens in the dark, there aren’t a lot of reference images. In fact the only ones I could find online were about fifty pixels wide. So I’ve been watching that scene and saving screen captures in the attempt to find one that actually shows me how the seams are done on the bodice. I thought I had it figured out, but after two hours of attempting to recreate a pattern of it, I deemed it impossible and have added a stomach panel under the crinkled bust bit.

Like this, basically:

Hermione's pink dress pattern making

And I may have ordered more yarn to redo the Deathly Hallows Fair Isle cardigan in the proper colors.

I need about eight more sets of hands.

6 Comments costumes - knitting - - - - - - -

Not yarn.

The streets are empty and Joann’s was crowded; it must be Superbowl Sunday.

I woke up this morning at exactly 9:37am with a burning desire to make a very specific dress that I’ve been squee-ing over for months. Hence the Joann’s trip.

BUT I walked away with this lovely bundle of stuff. And it’s not yarn! -shock-

Any guesses on what this lovely project is that is going to be eating my soul for the next week or two?

Hermione red dress fabric

Yeah, ok. Not very difficult.

Anyway, then I went home and decided to wear my new slouchy hat even though it’s nearly 80F outside.
Hello New York hat 2 Hello New York hat 1

Hello New York

CIMG1025

This hat is an ego boost. It took me less than a day to finish it, I used up some leftover scrap yarn that was just going to sit in a pile anyway, and it’s slouchy and lovely. The pattern is called Hello New York and it’s really quite simple.

I actually changed it up a bit because I was running out of the pale peach colored yarn (leftover from my Hermione gloves) and I didn’t feel like I should be running out to buy more of something I was just trying to use up in the first place. Instead of repeating the six peach rows and two pink rows five times before starting to decrease, I did it four times, started the decrease, and ended up with two rows of pink at the very top. I also used worsted weight yarn (doubled) instead of DK weight yarn anyway like the pattern calls for so it would have ended up ginormous if I’d kept going with the extra pattern repeat.

It also made me feel less of a failure as I worked on my first sock ever, which I keep alternating between worrying that it’s going to end up far too huge or that blocking it is going to be entirely ineffective and it’s just going to be lumpy.

 

CIMG1028

 

I’m totally in love with the pattern though. And the reindeer.

Hello New York

CIMG1025

This hat is an ego boost. It took me less than a day to finish it, I used up some leftover scrap yarn that was just going to sit in a pile anyway, and it’s slouchy and lovely. The pattern is called Hello New York and it’s really quite simple.

I actually changed it up a bit because I was running out of the pale peach colored yarn (leftover from my Hermione gloves) and I didn’t feel like I should be running out to buy more of something I was just trying to use up in the first place. Instead of repeating the six peach rows and two pink rows five times before starting to decrease, I did it four times, started the decrease, and ended up with two rows of pink at the very top. I also used worsted weight yarn (doubled) instead of DK weight yarn anyway like the pattern calls for so it would have ended up ginormous if I’d kept going with the extra pattern repeat.

It also made me feel less of a failure as I worked on my first sock ever, which I keep alternating between worrying that it’s going to end up far too huge or that blocking it is going to be entirely ineffective and it’s just going to be lumpy.

 

CIMG1028

 

I’m totally in love with the pattern though. And the reindeer.

Stripes.

Applications for graduate school are due tomorrow –most of them anyway. This has, of course, resulted in a lot of stress which has in turn led to a lot of knitting breaks to maintain a certain level of sanity.

And so I present you with a progress photo.

CIMG1017

I’ve got the ribbing done on the other sleeve. If I finish this today (and by “if” I mean “when”), I’ll have made 2.89 sweaters in three weeks. I think I have problems.

Andd here’s one of me wearing my cabled Hermione hat. I ended up adding some elastic to the ribbed part because it was really just too loose. Now it’s slightly too tight. Might have to adjust the elastic so my ears don’t fall asleep.
CIMG1004