Totally 80's Wool and Cashmere Sleep Sack

This is my latest custom sleep sack. The instructions I got were "bright & bold colors, we're tired of pastel pink." I grabbed a wool/angora black & white houndstooth sweater that was calling me and paired it with a purple cashmere cardigan to use as the lining. This combination inspired me to root out some bits of bright colored cashmere scraps that I had set aside for a special occasion (orange, hot pink, and lime green). I added some basic black to the mix (merino wool) and the color combination seemed perfect. The only problem was that the cashmere & merino pieces were so thin that they didn't work well with the houndstooth which was nice and thick. I decided to use another thin merino sweater to back all the thin pieces, and it worked! This is what I came up with:
(The camera didn't pick up the purple so well. What looks like blue is actually purple. Also: if the straps look too long, it's because they are! I don't how that happened, but I fixed them after I took the photos. They are the right length now.)





I tried a new design this time with the snaps up the front instead of horizontally accross the bottom (I might try a zipper next time instead of snaps). It still has the adjustable overall straps with three snap settings. The fabric for the binding and the straps was donated by a pair of black wool dress pants. After the sleep sack was finished, I decided I didn't like the look of the plastic snap caps that might irritate a baby's skin, so I hand-stitched a strip of black angora in place to cover the snaps on the inside.



I had several setbacks while making this one (which led to lots of ripping apart and replacing pieces), but I still love it and wish I could keep it! It's so soft and cuddly on the inside and out. Mmm, I love cashmere.