Like many others I jumped on the Paper Theory LB Pullover pretty much as soon as it was released as, I have to admit, the description seduced me:
“Inspired by the classic turtlenecks worn by the beatniks in the 1960s, and later by the political protesters of feminist and Black civil rights movements in the 1970s.” and “A turtleneck is synonymous all over the world as the uniform of the intellectual, but the cut of the body for this pattern has been updated to evoke a more relaxed, versatile and easy style of living.” Well, I remember the 1970s clothing so well, and found all this quite irresistible.
The pattern was duly bought and I tested it with a piece of wool from Knitwit. I will show it at the end of the post as it’s not terribly interesting. I must say that I felt a bit miffed with the pattern at this point. It did remind me of the machine knitting patterns of the 1970s and 1980s, in that there was minimal shaping and it took roughly 40 minutes to put together, even with a bit of pattern tetris and piecing.
The fact that this pattern also suited to wovens was a big part of the appeal so I got out this magnificent painterly silk drill that I bought when my FB and IG friend, Belinda, took me shopping in Arab Street in Singapore. This fabric has lingered in my stash for far too long as it was quite a small piece of fabric and I struggled to find a pattern which would fit on it.
I cut the turtleneck collar on the bias, but had to cut it in two sections instead of on the fold, and I also made it a bit shorter than the pattern required. I did lengthen the body a little bit, just to completely use all the fabric.
The collar is quite floppy and I really like it. I used French seams throughout the top as using the overlocker didn’t seem quite appropriate.
This will be a perfect top for the coming cool weather, it goes with lots of my skirts and trousers and looks good with jeans for a more casual look.
After this silk version I was slightly mollified and decided to make a third one, this time from some glorious cotton knit from Knitwit. This is really interesting fabric. It reminds me of French Terry as it is slightly looped on the back whilst being smooth on the front.
The fabric features a digital print of visible mending and it is supposed to be sold in panels, but I didn’t get two whole panels, so I’m not sure what happened, but I was able to get the pattern fitted on with fabric to spare, so all is well.
I think it’s safe to say that I’m now smitten with the pattern.
However I decided that pockets might be useful.
I added in seam pockets in a single layer but when I drew them out I didn’t take into account the shape at the bottom and the way they would hit the hem. I finished up reverse coverstitching them on, and then had a bit of a problem when I coverstitched the hem where the pockets intersected. I had to stop and start round the pockets. I’ve since drawn a new pattern that follows the hemline so I won’t have this problem next time.
The top looks good with my new leather bag, which I’m very pleased with. I will be blogging it when it’s finished – I’m just waiting for a tool so that I can tidy it up a bit.
I mentioned that my first one was wool and here it is – a bit ho hum, but very useful, nonetheless.
I didn’t have enough fabric for a turtleneck so used a regular knit binding for the neckline. I also had to piece the sleeves and finished up with a cuff on each sleeve.
I will probably make a few more of these tops, especially when I’m short of fabric as it doesn’t need a lot. It is a really quick make, except when pockets are involved! Those slightly baggy sleeves are pretty comfortable and the neck is quite good as it isn’t constricting but provides good coverage if it’s chilly.
The body is quite short and it can be elongated quite easily. I only have one question, which is, what the devil does “LB” stand for in the name?
