The Sweatshop of Love Blog

Librarian HOTT

I promised a Style Your Knits was coming really soon and here I am to deliver!

Even more than just a regular Style Your Knits, though, this is a Style Your Knits: Brother’s Wedding Edition.

(And yes, it is perfectly acceptable to dress like a sexy librarian when your brother gives you a one week notice he is getting married.)

I’ve got to give myself some credit for rocking this look as hard as I am. These pictures were taken at about 2:30 EST. After I drove 4 hours (traffic getting out of Chicago was nuts and added over an hour to the normally manageable drive). After I trained up to O’Hare to rent the car. After I woke up at 7 CST to finish unpacking from Portland and packing for Michigan.

Not that I’m complaining. I’m just stating facts. It’s not every day your little brother gets married and I would have driven a lot farther, CTAed a lot longer, and woken up a lot earlier, to be there.

LOVE That Sweater!

I’m just saying that I pulled it together in the clutch. Just like Kirk Gibson during the 1984 World Series, commemorated on the wall behind me.

Sexy Lean

My mom’s house is a pretty great background for these pictures. She weaves all the baskets hanging from the ceiling and on the walls. The wood walls make everything look better. There are books on every wall and hand made things sticking out of every corner.

That pile of red on the table is my Mrs Darcy Cardigan.

And full disclosure: I haven’t taken Dollar and a Half off since I’ve finished it. This is officially the fifth day in a row I could have shaped a Style Your Knits around this sweater.

It. Is. Perfect.

Sweater: Dollar and a Half Cardigan

Top: Target, a million years old

Skirt: Old Navy

Tights: Meijer

Shoes: Ann Marino, and yes I wear them any time I have to dress up

Bag: Estate sale in Portland

It is amazing how much can be accomplished in just one little year. Today is my one year blog anniversary! I honestly had no idea what I was getting myself into a year ago, but I am so happy I did. I’ve written more in this past year than I wrote in four years of writing school. I’ve knit more this past year than I ever have before. And I’ve taught more classes than I ever have before.

And, of course, the launch of the Knit Kits is a huge step forward for my little Sweatshop. And to thank you for being a part of this crazy year we are hosting a Madison Kit Giveaway!

Brynn Rockin Out

Win a Madison Cowl Kit or a Madison Hand Warmer Kit! To enter, leave a comment about which knit kit you want, which color, and how you are planning on wearing it. Tweet it with a @sweatshopoflove for bonus points!

You have until the Super Bowl (that is Sunday, February 7th) to enter! Our winners will be announced Monday, February 8th.

HOTT!

And you can take your style cues from our Madison Kit model, Brynn! She rocks the Madison Cowl and Hand Warmers so well it was like we made them for her.

Love It!

She had some lovely things to say about what she was modeling, too! “I am amazed at the vintage feel of the pattern; it makes this set especially unique.  I’ve never seen anything like it.  I also love how the gloves are like little coats for your hands!  I can still rummage through my purse, flick my hair out of my face and get things done without constantly pulling gloves on and off.  The cowl feels like a hug around the neck! It not only kept me warm doing my chilly morning shoot, but it didn’t feel confining.  Vintage fashion meets function – yes, please.”

Thanks, Brynn!

How sweet! And how cute is her outfit? I couldn’t NOT make this a Style Your Knits.

Navy Floral Strapless Dress: Vintage (Knee Deep in Pilsen)

Cropped Tuxedo Jacket: Twenty8Twelve

Pale Pink Wool Cardigan: I bought it in like 9^th grade!

Faux Croc Leggings: American Apparel

Belt: Vintage (Knee Deep in Pilsen)

Suede Booties: Aldo

ZigZag Bracelet: Vintage (Randolph Street Market)

And Tara took all these cute pics! She wanted to give a shout out, “To Atomix and it’s awesome patrons for being so cool with us shooting in and around the coffee shop. Everyone was really radical about it.”

Remember my Summer Sweater I knit last summer? I rocked it out last night!

Summer Sweater Winter Style

And Here Less Angry!

I had an outfit planned for last night that was not this outfit. It involved a Sweater That Shall Not Be Named, and that is still an open wound so lets not talk about it! lalala

I had my heart set on a Style Your Knits post, so I had to make it happen.

While it is unseasonably warm in Chicago this weekend, it is nowhere near summer levels but I thought, why can’t this be an all year around sweater? I can make it happen.

And I did! How cute it is with the black belt and tights combo? Instant winterization.

Sweater #2

I threw a black sweater over it, too. Little did I know Relax Bar, the scene for PT’s birthday party last night, is kept to a near hell like temperature. See my shoe option two in the back ground? Flats would have been just too easy.

Summer Sweater

I love this top. It’s so fun and pretty and was fun to knit. And I got groped all night by adoring fans of this lovely sweater. Win win!

(AND a very happy birthday to Mr. PT!)

Top: Summer Sweater, knit by me

Sweater: Kohls

Belt: Stolen from PT

Skirt: Made by me from an old pair of pants

Tights: Target

Shoes: Ann Marino, again

Feet? Check.

HOTT? Check.

I got a sweet idea while I was getting ready to go out Friday night! I know some knitters have trouble styling their knits, I sure did when I first started knitting. So why not show examples of how I wear my knits to help show how easy they are to work into perfectly normal outfits?!

Enter: Style Your Knits!

(I should have thought of this when I was rocking my bow headband on New Years Eve, but better late than never)

OOhhh Belt!

So here we’ve got my cabled party belt that I finished last week worn over an Alternative Apparel tshirt PT won off a blog contest and didn’t like and under a black cardigan.

Full Disclosure: I was worried about the belt slipping off since there was no real way to secure it, since it’s not a belt buckle but a purse handle, so I used some bobby pins to make sure it didn’t go anywhere. This was a great decision! There is no way it would have stayed on all night otherwise.

Also, it was really hard to sit in. When I sat down it would slide up unattractively because the buckle was so big.

Worth it? DUH look how cute I look.

Feet: HOTT

And here we’ve got some purple toe up socks I knit over the summer with purple peep toe heels I bought a million years ago at Target. They are Isaac Mizrahi for Target, that is how long ago I bought them. I went a little crazy because all the snow is melting and it was like 25 degrees Friday night! I love how my long jeans look with these shoes.

There you have it! I styled those hand knits and I can safely say that no one in the world was wearing the same outfit I was wearing on Friday. I love that about making my own clothes.

Shirt: Alternative Apparel deep V

Sweater: Kohls

Belt: Hand knit by me, Vogue Knitting pattern

Jeans: New York & Company low-rise bootcut

Shoes: Isaac Mizrahi for Target

Socks: Hand knit by me, my own toe-up sock pattern