A Bit of Knitting...

... I know, knitting in the summer?  But my in-depth study of fibers in July (and hanging out with knitwear designer Kim Dolce at Penland) got my mind back into the game.  And also, my mother-in-law came to visit and knitting is a great craft for us to share.  I had about 4 skeins of 'Brushed Suri' leftover from a project a couple of years ago and I always wanted to make a top out of it.  So I dove into an impromptu project.


Knitting, for me, seems to be hit and miss, especially when I'm creating my own pattern.  But I took a risk, worked with what I knew, and created this piece.  I just combined a few basic shaping tools:  the raglan sleeve and 2x2 ribbing to finish the hem.  Once I calculated the gauge if the yarn, which was about 4.5 stitches per inch on size 4 US needles, I determined the width of the neckline and cast on (I think 140 stitches).   I knit this top in the round from the top down.  It is a pretty simple design.

This yarn is Brushed Suri, which is 67% baby suri, 22% merino, 11% bamboo, by Blue Sky Yarns in color 'Earl Grey'.  Very soft and fluffy.   Dry clean or hand wash.

The fun and scary part of knitting is not knowing how it is going to fit, or if you will like it, until you spend countless hours of work on your design.  My success rate on knitwear that I actually like is not good...  but I think I will wear this (though I was much more excited about it on the needles than when I took it off).  The top is not as slimming as I thought it would be... and in hindsight I would have made it a bit longer... those are my only complaints.