The fox fur stole evokes images of a bygone era, of champagne on the veranda and a leisurely drive in the Bentley. When glamour was defined by the size of your hat, the whiteness of your gloves, and the number of dead animals wrapped around your body. Oh wait, that last part... gross.
Let's make this foxy look fox-free.
Let's make this foxy look fox-free.
Before:
Sparkly gold knit shirt I thrifted for $2. I had a lot of big ideas, and was very very close to settling on a "Di$count Univer$e" style shirt, when I had the fox idea. I started out using the Surrey stitch, then adjusted it so I am simply knotting loops any way I can. Observe the magic of a (possibly confusing) diagram!
The point of using a knit garment as the foundation is to avoid piercing through the cloth with my needle. I am in fact aiming through the knit, and knotting around it, which keeps the shirt intact and prevents fraying.
The point of using a knit garment as the foundation is to avoid piercing through the cloth with my needle. I am in fact aiming through the knit, and knotting around it, which keeps the shirt intact and prevents fraying.
Use the thumb on your left hand (assuming you sew right handed) to hold the loop down so they are all the same length. You also hold it while you pull the thread in your sewing hand to tighten the knot. By creating these knots, it should keep the piece from raveling. Leave the tails the same length as the loops.
Day 3
This has taken about 10 hours of fairly leisurely work. Once I started to build the muscle memory for this stitch the work is going much faster. I would say it is about 1/4 of the way finished, as I need to complete the head and little legs, and then get to work on the other half of the shirt front to create the fox's tail and hind legs.
USEFUL TIP: I was enjoying clipping the loops as I went, however I soon realized it made working a lot harder when I kept pulling the previous row down into my new loops. Things were getting tangled up and it really slowed me down. So I decided I will wait to clip everything until I am finished with the entire area.
I am enjoying the process and I love seeing it shape up... but right now I am trying to ignore a feeling that this is going to look very juvenile and cheesy, instead of funky and unique.
USEFUL TIP: I was enjoying clipping the loops as I went, however I soon realized it made working a lot harder when I kept pulling the previous row down into my new loops. Things were getting tangled up and it really slowed me down. So I decided I will wait to clip everything until I am finished with the entire area.
I am enjoying the process and I love seeing it shape up... but right now I am trying to ignore a feeling that this is going to look very juvenile and cheesy, instead of funky and unique.
A week and a half later...
I have only been doing a little bit each day, slowly making progress. I finished the fox head side first, and clipped all of the loops. It seemed to be taking me so. much. longer. to stitch the tail side until I realized I had been sewing the loops very close together. This is noticeable on the shoulder where the tail starts. I happen like how thick and fluffy it looks, but since I want to finish this before the end of the year I am spacing the knots out.
I have been trying the shirt on as I progress, and am loving the way it looks. Yet, I am still feeling the same apprehension as before that it looks a bit too silly. I am toying with the idea of adding some gruesome eyes and perhaps some sequined or beaded blood dripping from the mouth...
The jury is still out on whether or not I'll add some dead little legs. Not all fox furs keep them, though it seems most do.
The jury is still out on whether or not I'll add some dead little legs. Not all fox furs keep them, though it seems most do.