Merino Bouquet

What do you do when the cute embellished sweaters in stores are out of your price range? If you're like me, you start looking for a blank canvas that you can embellish yourself. This might sound like an easy solution, and the embellishing isn't too hard. But the simple-sweater-finding can be a bit of a challenge. I lucked out, though, when a few weeks ago I wandered into Gap (who, thank goodness, reverted back to their old logo. Seriously, what were they thinking?), and I saw this cardigan. The day I went they were on sale for about 60% off, making the cost a mere $20 from their original $49. $20? I can handle that.

The sweater comes in a bunch of great colors, but I settled on the charcoal so I could go nuts with the colors of my applique.

Here's what happened next:I cut small rectangles out of a number of fabric scraps in my stash. Then I ironed fusible web onto each piece so I could cut shapes out and iron them onto my sweater.Once I decided on a design, some simple daisy shapes this time, I arranged all the pieces and began to iron them in place. I placed a few near the collar, and a few wrapping around the ribcage on one side and climbing up the back.After ironing everything down, I sewed the applique. I free-motion stitched the pieces, and I imagine I'll like it even more when the edges fray a bit after washing.

Here are a few shots of the finished product:I have to admit, I was wearing it today when I went into Gap to consider buying another blank canvas. I debated for a while between the orange and olive (and royal blue and pink, argh, impossible tasks), but ultimately walked out empty handed. They were marked down to $35, but that seemed like a mark-up after my original deal. I figure I can check back next week, maybe they'll be back down to $20. And by then the slimmer pickings might help me choose another color. Or two.