over two years and yes, thirty(ish) t-shirts in the making (once you cut off that bottom hem, you can only cut a continuous spiral of fabric up to the armpits, so one may well refer to
it as the thirty halves-of-t-shirts sweater, but regardless, it took a long time - and a lot of t-shirts to finish).
let us dispense with the boring parts:
- i didn't do it because i wanted to "recycle" anything or because i cared about my consumerism or the environment. i bought the t-shirts brand new at a.c. moore at anywhere between $1.77 and $2.22 apiece. and i didn't even recycle the leftover armpit-to-collar bits - i threw them on top of ripley and when she was done with them i threw them away. i didn't do it to "create awareness". i did it because i wanted to see what it would feel like to make and wear a sweater knitted entirely out of t-shirts.
- i didn't do it because it was in any way groundbreaking. it's not even original. people have been knitting with torn up t-shirts for some time. i did it because i wanted to see what it would feel like to make and wear a sweater knitted entirely out of t-shirts.
- right now it's a bit stiff and kind of short, but gravity is making it longer and more supple. it's not as uncomfortable as i would have guessed. it's not really uncomfortable at all. in fact, it's... well, it's comfortable.
- it was very hard on the wrists, and i had to do much of it outside because the t-shirt strips created quite a lot of teeny little black bits which were always on my lap and anywhere i worked. and i did a lot of this this summer - at least half of it. pretty uncomfortable summer knitting! not a smart choice. but i really wanted to wear it.
the pattern i used for this was one i had used before, and is really a favorite - it's the girl from auntie poncho sweater. the one i made three-ish years ago still gets compliments and is just so comfy.
for the t-shirt sweater, i made some adjustments to the collar. it doesn't have the button closure or diagonal flap of the original, but a short-rowed collar that's low in the back and comes up high in the front - it can be turned down like a turtleneck, but it's also at perfect burrowing height, as you can sort of see here - it was hard to get a good photo, and, as usual, this sweater is black. what i found making this in particular was a reinforcement of how freeing black is to me creatively. i was so much more interested in the shape of this, and the texture, and what the fabric itself would be like - not having to think about the color just made everything else so much sharper.
i tapered the sleeves differently than the original, as well. there was no way i wanted to wear this thickness of fabric in a cuffed sleeve.
again, in this shot, all you can really see is shape, and the shape is definitely changing with every wear. in that way, this sweater seems like a continual work-in-progress, almost a thing with a life of its own, because i expect that interesting challenges will arise when pieces of the material become fatigued and tear. i have not decided how i'm going to deal with that when the time comes, but i think it won't be delicately. (i've considered just running weak portions, when they occur, through an electric serger again and again, even if it creates a flat and lumpy bit - i think that will add interesting topography.)
this last photo by the way is today's photo in my set for flickr's 365 day pool, which mac and i joined on the same day. i enjoy watching how differently our sets are turning out! it's fun to have someone to do it alongside of.