The Family Trunk Project Blog

Betty Jean, girl detective

I posted recently on Ravelry that one of my life ambitions is to look like Nancy Drew. Well here I am, living the dream.

This may just be my favorite self-designed project yet. Even though it's late July and hot as the dickens, I've hardly taken it off since I sewed on the final sleeve. Not only that, but the pattern is this close to being finished too, which is a first for me. There are certain aspects of sizing (sleevecap shaping, I'm looking at you) that almost always make me procrastinate about finishing patterns, but this one has been a breeze from start to (almost) finish.

I'm so pleased with the details on this sweater. I wanted a crisp, tailored look that retained visual interest, and I think the combination of turned hems and that narrow yellow border is quite snappy. And the buttons! It does take a while to get them all fastened, but oh, how I love a zillion little buttons, all in a row.

There are faux seams under the arms (which are also convenient reference points for the waist shaping), and the little i-cord neckband is sweet and simple, to go with a Peter Pan collar.

To take these photos, we went down to Cleveland High, the building where my grandmother went to school in the early 40's. Back then it was a secretarial school called Commerce, and offered courses in shorthand, typing, composition, and other skills that would outfit young women for the pre-war economy. (For you indie rock fans, Cleveland is also the setting for the Decemberists video Sixteen Military Wives.) My grandmother said that Commerce wasn't all-female - but she shook her head a bit over the quantity and caliber of boys in attendance. These days it's a standard public high school, but there are a number of original architectural details. Here's the sweater, investigating a case:

And here it is meditating in the crook of a tree that was probably planted around the time my grandmother was graduating from Commerce:

We brought Mr. Bingley with us on the shoot, and he got very upset when I went up into that tree. Judging from his reaction, and the joyous reception I received on my return, he assumed I was never coming back down. Either that, or he was afraid I was turning into a squirrel. Lest you think us cruel dog owners, we did take some time to chill with our little guy:

In any case, I'm extremely pleased. And if anyone else shares my fixation on looking like Nancy Drew (or my grandmother), the pattern should be ready very soon.