Knit vest with Inkle woven collar

This vest, the Four Seasons Vine Lace Vest [by Classic Elite], is a one-piece, knit-up-the-back-and-over-the-shoulder vest that was fun to make. The only finishing you have to deal with is the side seams, which makes it quick to finish.

The pretty lace motif is a four row pattern with purl on all the wrong side rows. My vest was knitted with Vickie Howell's ROCK (5 sts/in; 50g/100m), a soysilk-wool-hemp light worsted yarn. I picked up a 10-pack of this yarn at the Stitches South Expo at a good buy. (Nearly 5 skeins were used to complete this project.)

I decided to deviate from the pattern by dusting off my inkle loom to weave the shawl collar. The original pattern has a ribbed collar, but I chose to mix my fiber techniques.  The even, woven texture of the collar contrasts nicely with the organic openwork of the lace knitting. The woven collar also provides stability and structure to the garment. The band was woven using the same yarn and then sewn to the knitted fabric with an all-purpose sewing thread.

I like the combination of different techniques in a single piece—knitting with crochet, weaving with knitting, quilting with weaving, quilting with knitting, etc. Using different techniques to their best advantage can make a stunning and unique piece. Take the road less traveled every now and then. It's liberating and exciting to "color outside the lines."

What combos have you experimented with?

Wearable Art Vest Workshop

Is it yarn? Is it fabric? Is it woven? It's Yarn Fabication. 

On February 20, I'll be teaching my yarn fabrication technique at a workshop sponsored by the Riverbend Fiber Arts Guild.

In this workshop, we'll be doing an easy, no-knit stitching technique to create a soft-sculpt artwear vest like the one shown here. Yarn and a sewing machine is used to stitch up a "yarn-fabric" base to make the vest. Garment pieces are easily assembled using flat seams, and simple shaping is achieved with a slash-and-join method. Additional interest, texture and color can be achieved with contrasting yarns, trims, threads, embellishments, buttons or beads. This soft-sculpt vest can be customized for any occasion.

The vest workshop will be held at Alexian Brothers/Senior Neighbors, 10th and Newby Streets, in Chattanooga. It is a full day class from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The cost of the workshop is $45 per person. Make checks payable to "Riverbend Fiber Arts Guild." For additional information or to sign up, send an e-mail to veronicaquilts@gmail.com.

A black-and-white inkle woven shawl collar was added to the lime green vest.

The brown vest (below) showcases a novelty button for a front closure. Use your imagination to embellish and customize your wearable art creation!

The vest pattern is a modified version of Rachel Clark's "Picture This" vest pattern.