Trouble with Trebles

This blog is to keep track of my knitting, other craft projects, and the weird bits of life that don't fit anywhere else.

Tuesday, July 31, 2007

The Road to Success

"The road to success is always under construction." - Lily Tomlin

There are usually a couple of potholes too, just to keep you awake as you drive along. If you've ever been in Rhode Island you know what I mean. Here you have my latest FO. Both the vest I finished earlier this year and this tank top were very close to completion for far too long. Just imagine how long it would have taken if they'd had sleeves? Anyway, here it is, even finished in the appropriate season:


Yarn: all worsted weight mercerized cotton, King Tut in mauve, Linie 12 in white, and Klaus Koch Kollection Clip in light pink

Pattern: ribbed tank from Knit.1 summer 2005

Changes: I made it longer and striped instead of solid. Also I used single crochet up the sides to give it piping look on the side seems (my regular seaming looked sloppy).

Yardage: about 300 yards of the mauve (less than 2 hanks) and about 150 yards of each of the white and light pink

Needles: US size 9

Start/End Date: Started on June 1, 2006 (one of my Amazing Lace projects) and finished seaming on April 22, 2007. It then took me another two months get around to crocheting the edging and weaving in the ends, and another month to have my hubby take some photos.

Notes: This pattern included some bust shaping which I found not only unnecessary, but I also thought it looked bad, breaking up the rib pattern in an odd way. Also, according to more experienced knitters, it was a peculiar way to do bust shaping (not short rows, like you might have expected). I also added about 3 inches to the length (I wanted to make sure it wasn't cropped).

Overall, I am happy with it, although weaving in all the ends in cotton has made me want to avoid doing stripes for a good long time. Also, next time I will wear it with a tank that sits lower in back to show off the keyhole better and put on a belt to cinch in the waist. That will hopefully give it a slimmer line. I think it looks more flattering in real life than the photos would have you believe (the camera adds 10 pounds, right?), even with the horizontal stripes. ;)

Next, I hope to tackle some more, ahem, long-standing UFOs. My poor Schachenmayr sweater consists of one lonely sleeve that is just a tiny bit too big (by a "tiny bit" I mean an inch all around; just like the Yarn Harlot says, gauge swatches lie). In the mean time, I've been working on lots of small baby items for gifts. Small items are so much fun, especially in summer!

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7 Comments:

At 12:32 PM, Blogger Prof. Knitwit said...

Congrats on finishing! The tank looks great - I love that ribbon!!

 
At 5:28 PM, Blogger jenfromRI said...

That looks terrific!

 
At 8:11 AM, Blogger cranberry said...

That is a cute top! Yayyyy for FOs.

Ahem.

 
At 12:07 PM, Blogger Jennifer Lori said...

It looks great! Looks perfect with that skirt but must look good with jeans too...I love the piping idea. I used that trick on a sampler blanket I crocheted once. Does this mean you can turn it the other way and wear it "inside out" without the piping showing too? Or do the ends you wove in show? In any case, it looks wonderful and I'm so happy you finished it! I have to get around to knitting something for myself to wear one of these days...although I'm not brave enough for horizontal stripes! :]

 
At 1:30 AM, Blogger Anne said...

Congrats on the final completion of your vest. You know, had you left it cropped, you probably would've finished eons ago. ;)

 
At 6:40 PM, Blogger Theresa said...

Don't you look so cute! And clearing out the UFO pile. Way to go!

 
At 2:36 PM, Blogger Brenda said...

Well done! I like the stripes, and it fits you well. Bust shaping with a rib pattern does sound odd; I think you were wise to skip it.

 

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