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Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Giving new life to an old shawl


The shawl was a brithday present from Mr. C. I fell in love with the delicate colour palette and  the romantic print of butterflies and branches . But when worn the print wasn't visible and the colours were too mellow.


So I decided to give it a bit of a facelift with some purple trim. Keeping in mind the delicate floral print I chose a flower trim to match, but I wanted a colour with a lot of visual impact that's why I chose dark purple.
 


The trim is attached to the very edge of the shawl and handsewn in place. The tools required for this project are: a matching thread and a needle and lots of patiece. I was happily sewing away yesterday evening watching an old Miss Marple film and sipping a glass of wine.



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I also chose to turn the shawl into a snood.  The shawl was too short to drape properly and any attempt to tie it into a knot resulted in a messy bulk concentrated around my neck.


After attaching the trim I sewed the shorter ends together using a flat felled seam to hide the seam allowances. The material is very gauzy making it difficult to get a clean sewing line, but the seams are tucked in and invisible when worn.


A somewhat blurry image to show how the snood is draped. I can never get decent photos of myself ;-)

16 comments:

  1. I like the purple trim you've chosen. It really sets off the snood nicely :-)

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    1. Thanks :-) as usual I went shopping for notions woithout the actual item I was going to alter in this case the shawl, So I pretty much chanced it. Turned out pretty well

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  2. Great idea!!! It looks so much better with the lace edge!!!!

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    1. Thanks! The smallest details make all the difference :-)

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  3. What a great idea! And I love the snood transformation!

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    1. Thanks Shirley! It's also so easy to wear it as a snood, just wrap it around and you're ready to go!

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  4. Great idea ....it looks so good on you...love your glasses too....

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    1. MrsLJ these glasses are my favourite glasses in all of my long history of bespectacled existence :-D Purple is such an awesome colour, so is magenta

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  5. Is a snood the same thing as a cowl? I've never heard that term before. In any case, I love your modification. The trim really pops and adds a nice new dimension to the piece.

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    1. Kelly, I think so. It's basical just a scarf with its shorter ends sewn together making it a large tube. I think I saw the term snood on Etsy. And you're so right, the trim adds dimension, without it everything looks lifeless.

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  6. Great to read a post from you. It´s been long since.
    I like the delicate, foggy prints on your shawl and by adding the lace trim and turning it into a snood, it got a whole new life!
    But - how on earth did you manage to do the handwork, watch TV and sip wine all at the same time, is a mystery to me!
    Did you check the lining the following day, was it straight ; ) ?

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    1. Mette ;-) maybe the glass of wine had something to do with uneven seamline....
      I do love handsewing in the evening with something to drink, though it's usually cocoa or coffee. I watch movies that are light and entertaining and don't require a 100% focus. This way I can keep my eyes on the sewing and glance up on the screen to see what's going on.

      Wishing you a happy weekend!

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  7. Happy to see you posting,have missed you.First thing I noticed was your specs.they look great +suit you.Like the delicate colours on the shawl especially the butterfly.
    Thought of you when watching David Suchet (aka Poirot) in his FINAL 4 series which he has played for 25yrs, so suppose I understand why he is bowing out, still I will miss him!

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    1. thanks Judith, like I wrote in my reply to MrsLJ, these are my favourite pair of glasses I've ever owned. I associate them with happiness :-)
      As for the last season of Poirot, it's a bittersweet experience. I've been savoring the films to watch them slowly since they are the very last. It feels like the end of something truly great and unforgettable!

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  8. You know, I could have sworn I left a comment several days ago, but guess I didn't! What I THOUGHT I said was that you are so clever to transform the shawl and I really love that purple trim. Hope to see more posts from you in the near future!

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    1. Sanda, blogger can sometimes be so annoying and unreliable :-( Thanks for your sweet comment, I hope to post some more in the near future, if nothing else I still owe you a white nutella recipe :-)

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