Summer Knitwear Capsule Wardrobes

I've been reading a bit more lately - I'm on Maternity Leave and little one prefers to nap cuddled up on my lap which gives me a lot of kindle time. Having said that, I'm a bit restricted in what I can read since postpartum hormones have turned me into a total wuss. I used to love horror novels,  crime novels, nothing phased me. Now I can't cope with anything except the mildest peril, no crime novels any darker than Poirot for me! I was halfway thrifty a book of Shirley Jackson short stories and have had to totally abandon it. It's quite a difficult balancing act to find something that's meaningful but still light and breezy in tone. 

So I've been reading quite a bit of non fiction lately. I do love science writing and I've just finished “White Holes” by Carlo Rovelli and “Brief Answers to the Big Questions” by Stephen Hawking. Both are surprisingly readable and I would highly recommend. Now I'm onto “Goodbye, Things” by Fumio Sasaki, advocating a minimalist lifestyle, i.e. getting rid of all but your most essential possessions. The author lives in a tiny studio flat with a wooden box, a futon pad, a desk and very little else. 

Knitting, to my mind, is maybe a bit more of a “maximalist” hobby. I have a decent sized stash; needles, stitch markers, buttons galore; and then hundreds of finished garments in a rainbow of colours. Pretty typical for this pastime I think! When I think about it though, I have yarn bought years ago for projects I never quite find the time to start, let alone finish. Maybe I'd be better off selling three sweater quantities of yarn on ebay and buying one sweater worth of yarn that I really love? There's definite food for thought. If you consider minimalism as only keeping possessions which add the most value and meaning to your life, then there's definitely space for all the kit needed for a creative outlet as far as I'm concerned.

There's quite a lot about being a new mum that makes minimalism appealing too:

1. I am drowning in stuff. There are toys everywhere. Mountains of clothes that the baby has already grown out of with no time to tidy any of it. I'll definitely get round to giving the baby clothes away, but my three year old would be furious if any toys "disappeared”. Getting rid of some of my own stuff to counterbalance things makes sense. 
2. My life is pretty simple now, in a lovely way. When my “big kid” is at nursery I pump the milk, feed the baby and hold her while she naps. When she's not, we're always out. Park, library or museum - it's much easier to entertain two kids when they're out and about. The baby sleeps better in a moving pram too. There's no need to have lots of stuff if there's no time to use it!
3. I have no money. Maternity leave in the UK is quite generous in terms of how long it is, but statutory maternity pay is less than 40% off my (already part time) wage. Reading about minimalism makes me feel a bit better about not being able to afford anything. I'm so glad to have a second source of income from my knitting patterns!
4. I have a ready made minimalist wardrobe because very little fits me any more. The baby weight is definitely not shifting so easily second time around. So I have maybe five tops, two pairs of jeans and a couple of dresses that still look OK and I can pump milk in easily. 

Number four has led me down a nice Pinterest rabbit hole too - the minimalist capsule wardrobe. (There's plenty of time for scrolling Pinterest when you're trapped by a sleeping baby too!) This got me thinking about knitting capsule wardrobes, so I started playing around with pictures and came up with these:

Brights - Summer Handknit Capsule Wardrobe

Patterns clockwise from top left:
​Bracklinn Crop
Crosshill Cardigan
Loch Katrine Shawl
Corrieshalloch Top
Corran Cami

Pink - Summer Handknit Capsule Wardrobe

Patterns clockwise from top left:
​​Loveheart Crop
Dairsie Cardigan
Invermoriston Top
Corran Cami
Liathach Cowl

Burgundy- Summer Handknit Capsule Wardrobe

Patterns clockwise from top left:
​​Pollokshaws Tee
Arnisdale Cami
Moseley Cardigan
Eyebright Shawl (Ravelry Link)
Northumbria Shawl

Purple - Summer Handknit Capsule Wardrobe

Patterns clockwise from top left:
Monadh Top
Arnisdale Cami
Au Jardin Cardigan
Lochnagar Top
Moseley Cardigan
​​

Navy - Summer Handknit Capsule Wardrobe

Patterns clockwise from top left:
Kelvingrove Sweater (Ravelry link)
Asphodel Shawl
Epsilon Cardigan
Castle Sands Shawl
Sandaig Cami
​​

Teal - Summer Handknit Capsule Wardrobe

Patterns clockwise from top left:
Corrieshalloch Top
Sandaig Cami
Bracklinn Crop
Loch Katrine Shawl
Steall Shawl
​​

Green - Summer Handknit Capsule Wardrobe

Patterns clockwise from top left:
Summer Lace Tank
Pollokshaws Cardigan
Sineabhar Shawl
Mabie Forest Shawl
Chance Inn Cardigan

​​If you're reading this before 4th July 2024, you can use coupon code SUMMER24 to get 50% off all Littletheorem Knits patterns, it's valid on Etsy, Ravelry and Payhip too.