And alas! We have our first sewing project of the year: The Deandra Knit. This was such an easy sewing project (and is so comfy) that I can't believe I didn't think to make it sooner. Yes, we have had a knit sweater here on the blog before (The Alice Knit: also a very easy sewing project) but it is nowhere near the comfort level of the Deandra.

Also, the Alice is nowhere near the pretty, feminine level of the Deandra. I am not a very big "pink" girl, so I don't know why, but I was just drawn to the more feminine colors & styling for this sewing project.

But first, let me back up. What makes the Deandra Knit are those beautiful, floral patches. (Am I right?) I have never really worked with patches before, but when I was doing my Fall/Winter design research, I was completely and utterly taken with Oscar De La Renta's RTW winter collection. This collection is packed full with floral motifs:

I have always been fascinated with embroidery & beadwork. When I was at FIDM, I studied abroad in Paris for a summer and attended a beading lesson at a French studio that did work for couture labels. And that was it.

It's almost like with quilting (BTW--have you seen the DIY constellation quilt I have been working on?) in that it's almost therapeutic to just be working with my hands, keeping my fingers active and moving. Beading, embroidery, patchwork--It all has the same effect.

But anyways. The Oscar De La Renta collection. (If you haven't checked out the FW18 collection, you REALLY need to. It's absolutely stunning.) Most of the floral motifs were a bit too advanced for my skills, with incredibly beautiful beadwork spread asymmetrically throughout all of the pieces.

(Looking to dress up a simple, easy sewing project with some floral patchwork? Look no further, friend. This month's sewing tutorial is all about how to sew on a patch, so make sure to grab your printable step-by-step tutorial below!)

(Maybe that will be a future post? A lesson on beading? I'm thinking YES.) But what I could do fairly easily: Floral patchwork. So I set about finding myself some beautiful floral patches.

And luckily, I found some! It was actually a bit more challenging than I expected though. A lot of the floral patches out there are not-so-elegant, cheap Chinese iron on patches. And I was just not about that.

But what I did find were some beautiful, feminine floral patches from a London based studio, Sixth Craft.

And NO--Not iron on. Which is exactly what I was looking for. The colors on the patches are also absolutely beautiful: Pinks, purples, and greens. I honestly probably would have bought 10, if they were available. But alas, I got the last 5!

I ended up finding a perfectly light shade of pink in the comfiest sweater knit, to go with the patches. It's almost like a lightweight terry cloth on the outside, and is so so so soft on the inside. Originally, I was hoping to find a knit with a more defined pattern, but when I found this knit it was game over.

The colors of the knit & the patches were just too perfect not to be destined for one another. The fabric itself is fairly lightweight, but also heavy enough to be able to hold up the patches without too much puckering. And it was also very, very easy to work with. (Fabric can make all the difference between an easy sewing project and a difficult one, you know.)

(Looking to dress up a simple, easy sewing project with some floral patchwork? Look no further, friend. This month's sewing tutorial is all about how to sew on a patch, so make sure to grab your printable step-by-step tutorial below!)

I was hoping that I would be able to leave the edges of the sweater raw.. But the fabric kept shedding little tiny balls of fabric, and I couldn't take it. So I ended up having to hand stitch all of the raw edges closed. Not ideal, but definitely better than constantly having little balls of fluff all over me whenever I wear the sweater. (Which I think is going to be quite a lot.)

Still, even with all of the additional, unexpected hand sewing, this was a pretty easy sewing project. The cut of the sweater is oversized, with a dropped kimono sleeve.

If you guys haven't noticed, I am a BIG fan of kimono sleeves. (Think: The Wavy Cardigan, The Mauve Shirt Dress.) Using a kimono sleeve results in such a comfortable fit, no matter what the style is.

The sleeves on the seater are meant to be rolled up, to sort of balance out the oversized fit of the knit. I also added in some side slits, because I love slits. They are just so flattering, especially when they are done well.

The hem of the sweater is a bit longer in the back than the front, which I love on sweaters. I think that it makes them feel a bit less bulky, and a little more flattering. Which can sometimes be a tricky thing to do when working with such a chunky, oversized silhouette.

And of course, as I mentioned earlier: Those floral patches. They seriously make the sweater. I decided to place them asymmetrically across the sweater, to imitate the style that was dominate in the Oscar De La Renta collection. I think it is just so unusual, and so beautiful.

(Looking to dress up a simple, easy sewing project with some floral patchwork? Look no further, friend. This month's sewing tutorial is all about how to sew on a patch, so make sure to grab your printable step-by-step tutorial below!)

If I had a few more of those patches, I probably would have continued them all the way down, across the front of the sweater. (And maybe even a few over the back shoulder.) Please, Sixth Craft, make more of these patches!

Overall, this was such an easy sewing project. The silhouette of the sweater was so easy to sew, and the fabric was easy to work with. The most difficult & time consuming part of the project was attaching the patches, which really wasn't all that difficult. Just a bit time consuming, really.

(And this month's sewing tutorial just so happens to be all about how to sew on a patch.. So stay tuned!)

The Deandra is named after one of my very favorite characters of all time: Dee Reynolds, from the show It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia. If you know me at all personally.. Then you know that this is my favorite show OF ALL TIME.

My husband & I watch the show religiously, even though we have seen every episode like at least 10 times each. (And there are 13 seasons, sooo yah.) When we were in New Zealand last year, we would watch Sunny whenever we were staying at a spot that had WiFi.

Yes, we were in our van, with all our blankets, watching Sunny on our MacBook. In New Zealand. Seriously, it's a bit of a problem.

(Looking to dress up a simple, easy sewing project with some floral patchwork? Look no further, friend. This month's sewing tutorial is all about how to sew on a patch, so make sure to grab your printable step-by-step tutorial below!)

It's Always Sunny is a comedy show about 5 friends (if you can call them that?) that run a dive bar in Philadelphia, and all of the crazy shit that they get into over the years. I don't know how else to describe it. The characters on the show are pretty terrible people, which is what makes the show so MF funny.

Seriously, we have been watching this show for almost 10 years now, and every. single. episode. still makes us laugh, after all this time.

I have named most of our sewing projects here on the blog after people & characters that I try to emulate, and women that I respect. Now, I don't really want to be like Dee Reynolds, but as a character on Sunny she seriously brings me SO MUCH JOY. She has made me laugh hundreds and hundreds of times over the years.

And that is something that I really want to focus on this year:

Yes, of course, there are things that we all have to do that we don't enjoy. But I am really trying to cut out things that I really just don't want to do, and learning how to say NO. To only read the books that bring me joy, watch the shows and movies that I enjoy. And if I don't have time for something, to just NOT GO. If I sat a really bad dog, I'm not going to watch them again.

To really try and focus on the things that make me feel good: Like reading, running, building up this blog and turning it into a business. (And of course, to continue watching Sunny. So much joy you guys, seriously.)

Anyone else trying to focus on that this year? Would love to hear your thoughts on this month's project, and of course, TELL ME IF YOU ARE A SUNNY FANATIC. Deandra Reynolds, I will love you forever.

(Looking to dress up a simple, easy sewing project with some floral patchwork? Look no further, friend. This month's sewing tutorial is all about how to sew on a patch, so make sure to grab your printable step-by-step tutorial below!)