I rarely sew but I was recently inspired to bust out the old Singer to create some lined zippered pouches similar to one I made a few years ago. I realized I had almost all the material I needed, except the zipper, so why not?

The sewing session was actually quite enjoyable and yielded two new pouches.

I’ve been using the brown flower pouch with the green zipper to hold double pointed needles and other miscellaneous knitting tools. I started looking at the little pouch, racking my brain and trying to remember exactly how I had accomplished this feat – without a pattern no less. I knew it couldn’t be too hard because I’m not an expert sewer by any stretch although I’ve been sewing a very long time (since 1972 to be exact).

Because my newly acquired Timbuk2 messenger bag has quite a bit of velcro, it occurred to me that a zippered pouch would protect my socks in progress from getting snagged. I created the pretty green pouch with the pink zipper and guess what? It works!

I am going to attempt to produce a pic-torial in the next week to show you exactly how I made these lined pouches. They’re not reversible because the zipper only works in one direction, but they are finished and lined and very sweet. You’ll see.

So all you need is four pieces of mismatched fabrics, two pieces of each print. The size is immaterial – you can make them any size you want – but my scraps are approximately 4 inches by 8 inches. The zipper I’ll be using is 7 inches. This is actually a good size to start with. You’ll also need some thread.

The fabric was purchased at Craft Warehouse in Vancouver Washington. The zipper and thread were obtained at JoAnn’s fabric.

Get your materials together and meet me here in about a week and I’ll show you how to make one – if you haven’t already figured it out yourself.

But I have to say this sweater is FAST. I think it helps that the the buttonhole band is knit in garter stitch as you go as are the buttonholes. I really love the construction and design of this sweater and I only hope it looks as good on me as off me. Not 100% sure about the neckline.

Here are the photos of the recently completed Urban Aran Cardigan which I promised you. Jessica seems to get roped into modeling all my knits from the Paton’s Street Smart booklet. Probably because she wears them so wonderfully. Can you believe she’s the mother of three!?!?!?

The zipper actually wasn’t so bad. With the moral support of Michelle, it went rather effortlessly. Just a lot of sewing up which I’m not so keen on. We took advantage of a nice warm break in the weather a few weeks ago and took our knitting down to Lake Lacamas. As the pollen floated in the air, I basted the zipper and finished it later at home.

The gals at knitting night have convinced me that it’s flattering and definitely a keeper. So yes, I’m keeping  it.

And of course I must acknowledge Jared Flood aka brooklyntweed who had the original inspiration to turn this sweater into a zippered cardigan. Thanks Jared!