Pattern: Tori from Rowan Bamboo Tape Collection, second size
Yarn: Rowan Bamboo Tape in Tissue (I think), 9 balls
Needles: US size 8, 5 mm
Comments:
1) The astute observer will notice that I am not wearing this sweater. It’s not because I don’t like the sweater. It’s because I didn’t want to be bothered with the self-timer this morning. Also, the sweater will be traveling to Yarntopia soon, so I don’t want to mess it up. However, the sweater is amazingly comfortable. I love the fabric and most of the fit.
2) Maybe yellow ribbons were not the best choice, but it was better than the other ribbon I had.
3) The neckline is funny. It’s very, very high and rather small. (Do I have a fat neck or something?) The construction of the neckline is a bit odd and I was worried about it when I was knitting it. Had I not been making this as a store sample, I probably would have modified the collar a bit. At this point I’m trying to decide if I should rework the neckline when I get the sweater back.
4) Instead of reworking the neck, I could find a different way of closing the “slit” in the neck. I’m thinking lacing it up like a corset and letting the top edge “gap” a bit so that the silt forms more of a V-shape. Decisions, decisions.
Blabby Technical Notes That May Bore You:
As I worked the body shaping and the armscye shaping I decided to use invisible increases and decreases as opposed to fully-fashioned increases and decreases. Fully-fashion increases and decreases are visible and are often used in decorative ways. But I generally prefer to use invisible decreases in my garments.
When I started the right shoulder panel, I realized that my choice of invisible increases and decreases was going to be problematic. The right shoulder panel has an increase on every row. Not every right-side row. EVERY ROW.
My invisible increase of choice is make-1—right-slanting on the right side and left-slanting on the left side. When I use a make-1 increase on every row the resulting fabric is butt-ugly. The stitches around the increase were horribly uneven.
So I had to experiment with different increases. Some increases were not invisible—yuck. Some increases couldn’t be used on every row—darn. I finally settled on the cast-on increase from Montse Stanley’s Knitter’s Handbook. This increase has the same structure as a make-1 increase, but it is worked differently. This difference was enough to make a startlingly big difference in the appearance of the finished fabric. See how pretty? Click photo to see notes.
17 comments:
This is fantastic! You continue to amaze me with your knitting prowess. I look forward to seeing what you do with it, when it's yours to keep!
those increases are VERY pretty! i like. Before I read your solutions for the neck, I had been thinking that you could let it be open at the top of the slit. is the colour closer to these FO pics, or the ball pic below?
Simple and interesting pattern = pretty! About the neckline, anytime I see a slanted detail like that, it seems asian to me. So, how about some sort of asian influenced closure...frog maybe? Or you can just do some small half round pearl type buttons? I like your lacing idea also. You are a knitting machine!
Really nice.
Maybe some sort of decorative clasps? Frog closures are a good idea, too.
Very pretty. I'm not sure about the yellow ribbon though. I like Elizabeth's idea of lobster clasps.
Ooooo! Purty!
Can't wait to see it in person.
Amy
The Lotus is calling..."You can't escaaaaaaaaappppeee me any longer!!!"
Apparently, she's a cousin of my camisole, sigh.
Beautiful knit!!
Love it, I think that it looks amazing, nice work.
I really like that. I think the suggestion of frog closures is a great idea. Very elegant looking sweater.
Oooh, pretty! You are such a fast knitter. Lovely job.
Your increases are meticulous. Your non-laziness about this sort of thing really pays off. I could probably stand to be a little more like you in that way.
I have to say I think I'd like the neckline better with the modification you describe. Don't get me wrong, I think it's a really nice FO as it is, but I can see how you the neck in its current form might be a little tight.
Hope you're having a good week with the family...
But I still want to see Tori modeled! Either by you or Scout, you pick!
What a chinese style of neck of sweater. It is pretty. I think you can try the chinese type buttons, it may become more special.
I love Tori! Very classy indeed!
I was wondering if you had any problems with the sleeves? I just finished the first sleeve and realized it's way too small! And I've triple cheched that I've done exactly what the pattern stated. It's both too short and too narrow. It would be great to know if you've also experienced this with the sleeve.
Nope, I had no problem with the sleeves. Are you sure yours are too small? Sometimes set-in sleeve caps look deceptively tiny compared to the armholes, but when you sew them in, they fit fine. (Because they are set-in, the sweater won't lay flat after you sew in the sleeves.)
I'm sure it's too small, it wont even fit around my upper arm (and I always use the same size in all Rowan partterns) and it's not just that it's a bit tight, it's too short by almost 6-7 cm. It simply won't fit into the sleeve cap. I checked the Rowan webpage and there were no errata either. Oh, well, thanks for your reply, I'm giving it another try with a different size sleeve and a shape modification...
Post a Comment