This week's star: Ceylan (ceylangul)
Ladies and gents, this is Ceylan, one of my dearest pals and partner in knitting/spinning crime. I love her SO! Ceylan's one of the many incredible friends I have made thanks to the fabulous yarnie website Ravelry. I started to "Rav-stalk" her, as we call it, when I saw her gorgeous knits online, and eventually we got to chatting on the message boards and realized we both curse like sailors and pretty soon we were B! F! F! I met her in person for the first time in 2009 and we were fast friends. I think within a half hour or so of meeting in person, we were making inappropriate jokes left and right. She lives in Texas and we share many things in common - night owl tendencies, love of a good rock show, movie or book, a stiff cocktail, a little raunchy humor, and a hearty laugh! Last summer, we started Plied Together, our little handspun yarn shop on Etsy - check it out if you haven't already.
When I first came across her online, I was blown away by all her beautiful handknits, not just because they were so beautifully knit and photographed, but because she really has a sense for choosing patterns that compliment her curvy bod and then picking the PERFECT yarn to make the most gorgeous clothing that looks amazing on her. It's a real gift, that ability to look at a pattern and say, "Is this going to look good on me?" Ceylan does it better than anyone, and if the pattern is appealing but not QUITE right, she modifies it and makes it work for her. I am so jealous of this skill, and now that we're real-deal friends and not just Rav-stalking friends, I constantly bounce ideas off her for sweaters, because I know that if she thinks it'll work, it'll work! All hail the great Ceylan and her wealth of knowledge! She's so patient and willing to think through a pattern with me, which I really appreciate. But enough of my friend crush! On to the fabulous knits!
I really can't think of a better example of Ceylan's pattern-to-garment genius than the Manu sweater she made last summer.
Ceylan's Manu Sweater
Pattern: Manu by Kate Davies
Yarn: madelinetosh sport in Iris
July 2010
This sweater was originally written as a long cardigan that buttoned at the top and had pockets at thigh level - you can check out my version for a visual. Ceylan knows that button-on-top cardis don't flatter her as well as other shapes, but she was drawn to the pleats at the yoke of the sweater and had the imagination and good sense to think, "Hey! I could turn this into a pullover and rock it!" And that's exactly what she did, with amazing results. Now she has a pullover version of that gorgeous smocked yoke sweater.
This sweater is so beautiful on her! I love how it hugs her curves. The original sweater was kind of artsy and cute, but her version is sexy and professional. I think it'd be killer and totally work-appropriate with a black pencil skirt and heels...
...oh wait - she already thought of that!