Imagine someone said you were going to a farm or cabin and the theme was Little House on the Prairie plus something your grandma might wear but add a dash of Canadian tuxedo and make it chic!! Got it!! (Every outfit should have a backstory no? It’s like how American Girl dolls come with a book. Outfits come with a theme. I don’t make the rules! *Shrugging emoji*)

Each piece of this outfit has a story! I’ll try to keep it brief. *clears throat* (FYI…….it won’t be brief at all!)

I started this sweater 10 years ago! I’d been knitting, mostly on and off. At the time that I started this, I was in between jobs and wanted a more challenging project to dive into then. The Fall 2007 Knitty (y’all remember Knitty?! It’s still around you know!) came out with this sweater by Veronik Avery! G. A. S. P!! I thought it was the prettiest knit cardigan I’d ever seen in my life!! Still do actually. The pattern was and still is free so I got my supplies and made this sweater. Knit everything. Blocked everything. Assembled everything and then SCREECHING HALT! Time to weave in all the ends. 🙅🏾‍♀️ I was turned OFF! I put it away for later. I got a new job, I moved, I stopped knitting, I started again, I stopped, I taught myself crochet, I stopped, started again. And then 10 years later, 10 years later, I said enough is enough! I dug it out and finished it. TA DA!!

The story behind the rest of the outfit isn’t as dramatic, I promise! I was going to Haiti for my birthday last year and I made a few items for the trip. This skirt was one of them. I paired it with a knit wrap top for a leisurely island look. Think walking the grounds of my sialnd home overlooking crystal blue waters as you sip coconut water and rum. I found this Burda Style Hip Yoke Skirt pattern and some light denim from my fave fabric store on 39th St.

I’d gotten this Butterick B6487 blouse pattern recently and thought it would be cute to make a matching top! Luckily, I had enough fabric left over from that skirt. It’s essentially View D but I left the ruffle off the neckband. AND it’s on sale for $3.99 right now!

The hat is custom made from Esenshel. I have a rather large head and one size does not fit all!! I love hats but have never been able to wear them so I got it when they had their Black Friday sale. Best buy ever!!

The boots are LL Bean. I wasn’t going to get caught out there with inadequate footwear again this winter. And the socks are compression socks from my flag football playing days. This is a real MASH UP! But I think it’s cute.