Scarf art

I have an American friend who is currently living in Mexico.  Among all her other ventures, she has started doing sewing pattern designing.  In looking for testers for her newest project, she asked me if I would be interested.  Never having done such a thing before, I thought it could be rather fun.

While I'm fairly confident in my sewing abilities, neither Doc Leo nor I are particularly professional when it comes to modeling and photographing, but I needed to show off the product and explain how to use it.  Here are the results of our efforts, as well as various styling ideas I came up with.

If you are interested in seeing more details, you can click on any photo to enlarge it.

The classic style

This pattern, called Street Style Scarf from La Paz Patterns, creates a scarf design that is a cross between a square scarf folded in half diagonally and a long rectangular scarf, which allows for some interesting tying variations.  It can be downloaded for free from Susan Sews Daily.

I wanted to show and explain some of the ways I discovered, as well as how it can look with different styles of clothing.  This first view is simply the basic style, with the center front of the scarf worn as a bib and the ends wrapping around the neck and just hanging to the sides. 

Here I've chosen to show it with a blouse and jacket, and I got a number of compliments on how classy it looked when I wore it to church.

Tied in front

I was given the freedom to use any fabric I wanted.  When I found this print in polyester silk, I knew it was just perfect.  Then I found this perfect trim, which I think ends up allowing some different styling effects than just a simple scarf would.

This time I'm dressing up a turtleneck sweater, which turned out to be a perfect base.  While the scarf fabric contains soft, delicate silk, the trim is wool and metal, so it both dresses up and dressed down quite nicely.

Here I've brought the ties around my neck and knotted it over the bib front, giving emphasis to the ends of the scarf rather than the center.

One tie in front

One tie in back

In this version, I've pulled one tie around my neck then knotted it once on my shoulder. 

I let one tie hang down the front, throwing the other one down my back.

This created a little weight balance, and the trim resting on the sweater kept the back tie in place.

Interesting back view

Same tie from the side

Then I decided to try a little interest in the back rather than the front.

I started with the center in the back, like a shawl, crossed the ties around the front of my neck, then threw them down my back. 

While the ties stayed in place on my sweater, they did not with a different top.  So I simply tied them under the center part, then they hung together down my back.

I really liked the way this next version looked, and I can see wearing it this way with other tops that have some kind of similar collar.  I've simply draped the center over one shoulder, then tied the ends in a bow.

From one side

From the other side

From the front

Another classic view

This is the same style as above with the blouse and jacket.  However, this time I'm pairing it with a simple scoop neck knit top. 

I've pulled the center down to the same level as the neckline and simply wrapped the ties across my back and let them hang down in front.

I spread the bib out a bit wider, letting it create a whole new front to my outfit rather than just an accessory.  The low draping also allowed bold jewelry to show.

These are two different ways to wear the scarf as a shawl, giving more emphasis (or warmth, depending on fabric and weather) to the back view.

Giving emphasis to the back view

Turning it into a shawl

The one on the left is similar to one above, except that one was pulled tighter at the neck, and this one is draped a lot lower to follow the garment neckline.

On the right, I've simply knotted the ties to hold the scarf in place.  It could probably also be tied into a bow.

All in front

Draped and wrapped

I really liked both of these styles.

On the left, I've pulled the ties snug around my neck, then simply tied them into a bow on top of the bib.

On the right, I've draped the center over one shoulder, then wrapped the ties around my neck and let them hang down in front.

Using it as a neckwarmer

A final view involves wrapping the ties twice around the neck, pulling the front up snugly, then letting the short ties hang down the front. 

This was quite warm and comfortable in the chilly day.

Doc the Photog

Last but not least, I'd like to give credit to my very patient photographer, who managed to capture his model in mostly flattering poses using various
elements of the local scenery as pretty backdrops.

Storm clouds over the Mediterranean

The day was forecasted to be sunny and beautiful.  The water should have been its typical gorgeous azure blue.  They lied. 

We had dark menacing clouds most of the day, with sun breakthroughs here and there.  However, between the light and shadows, we managed our job successfully. 

And then I managed to capture this beautiful moment, a perfect addition to the day's photo shoot.