Recently in Tank Tops Category

Today I am going to deviat from the usual knitting content to share the activities of last Saturday afternoon. John and I travelled to Ann Arbor to do two things: celebrate Father's Day with my dad and plant a tree.

Some day I will finish my "100 things about me list". One of the 100 things will be this little tidbit: John and I share the same wedding anniversary as my parents. It wasn't really planned that way. Back when we were planning our wedding we found a hall that we absolutely had to have. They had two Saturdays open for the whole year when we got there: Saturday August 22nd and Saturday October 31st. We didn't really want a Halloween wedding. It seems cool at first, but orange and black really weren't my first choice of colors. But August 22nd was my parents wedding anniversary. And it didn't seem right to take their day.

But as it turned out, Mom and Dad didn't have any problems sharing their day. John and I were married on their 34th wedding anniversary. And dad likes it because he never forgets the date. We've had several fun anniversary celebrations together, but this year, since it's their 40th anniversary, and they are taking a special trip to Hawaii, we decided to celebrate a little early and share in the purchase of an "anniversary tree".

John and I love trees, but our postage stamp sized yard is more or less dominated by the little Japanese maple that we bought. My parents, on the other hand, have 10 fabulous acres. Plenty of room for trees. Since we were going to plant on Father's Day, I invited my brother to get in on our little project. He and his wife were married a year ago at the end of May. So whatever tree we picked would represent 47 years of marriage. How cool is that?

What did we pick? Well, she won't show her stripes in an obvious way until next spring, but the newest denizen of my parent's domain is a Saucer Magnolia:

Pink Saucer Magnolia Waiting for Her Forever Home

All the rain that we've had here in the midwest this spring has made my parents backyard so lush it's almost hard to tell there's a tree there. But "Maggie" is an 8 foot tall and very lovely speciment of her species. Once we got her unloaded, it was time to break ground. Dad got out one of his favorite new toys: the backhoe attachment for his John Deere tractor:

Breaking Ground

Of course, it's really not possible for an engineer, no matter how much of a computer guy he is, to resist heavy machinery and digging holes. So after a quick lesson on the controls, John got involved in the digging too.

John Prepares for a New Career in Construction

After they got the hole dug and got some nice new top soil to line the bottom of the hole, it was time to move Maggie to her new home. I bet you never knew how versitile a piece of equipment a tractor was!

Maggie's Big Move

After a quick trip across the back yard, John and Dad and Ufer (the dog) got the tree all settled in.

Maggie Settles In

Apparently one very loud any happy pheasant has decided that this tree was planted for him and is now coming out to crow underneath it. Seems like Mother Nature is happy with our planting adventure.

Just in case you were wondering what I was doing while all this hole digging and tree moving was going on, I was getting started on this:

Confetti Tank

Yep, you knew if you waited long enough I would post some actual knitting content. Here's the bottom of the back of the microfiber ribbon tank, which I have taken to calling the "Confetti Tank" after the name of the colorway of the ribbon.

Tank Top Stitch Pattern Detail

The colors are pooling a bit -- that red definitely likes to be with the blue -- but there's enough drift that I don't think it's going to be too bad. The picture shows the one repeat that I got in between the tree and dinner.

Why, you might ask, is that all I have to show since I had all of Sunday and a car-ride home? Well, another project managed to slip into my fingers and I just couldn't put it down. But I'll be back to this project soon. I think it will be perfect for the trip to San Antonio we have planned over the 4th of July weekend. I think the colors will go just smashingly with the fireworks!

Thank you for all the compliments on my Biscotti top. It is definitely one of those projects that I am truly and completely happy with. I got to wear it again this weekend when we took my Dad out to dinner to celebrate Father's Day. The Biscotti top really does have all the elements I wanted it to have: it can go to work, but it's a little sexy; it can go out, but it can still be subtle; it has texture, but the texture isn't over the top. And the shaping is perfect. There's definitely something to be said for a pattern designed for the individual who is going to wear the garment.

We had a number of missions to take care of while we were in Ann Arbor. Most involved shopping for something (for instance, making sure that my mother got her very late Mother's Day present, a set of Denise needles that she can take on the airplane when she wings off to Hawaii for her 40th anniversary). One of our shopping trips took us to a lovely nursery full of wonderful annuals, perennials and other good plants -- even some pretty extraordinary bonsai trees. I was able to avoid most purchasing opportunities (except for one day lilly destined for a big pot on my deck) until I found this:

Very Silly, Very Delightful Sheepy Whirligig

Sometimes, a girl just gotta get something silly in her life. What could be more silly than a metal sheep whirligig? Since I can't have a real sheep in the back yard, I thought this guy might be a good alternative.

(The trip to the nursery also involved the purchase of a gorgeous magnolia tree for Mom and Dad's yard, but that's a multi-picture story that will take more time than I have tonight to put together. Stay tuned.)

I also figured out what top project I wanted to tackle next -- the brightly colored tank top made out of the incredible microfiber ribbon that I bought from Tess' Designer Yarns at MSW. Winding this stuff into a ball was a little bit of a challenge, given it's eel-like slipperiness, but they put very helpful directions on the ball band to help you get going. I didn't think there was much more to learn about ball winding, but now I do know something handy -- turn your swift 90 degrees from it's normal angle when working with slippery yarns and wind by hand as tightly as you can and then stick the ball into a nice safe plastic sandwich bag.

I haven't had a lot of good swatching luck lately. The pattern recommends US size 6 needles (4.0 mm) to get gauge. I ended up on US size 9 (5.5 mm, I think). The good thing about this yarn though, after ripping out my swatch 3 times, it still looked fresh and happy in my final swatch. Which you can see below:

Tess Microfiber Ribbon Yarn Swatch -- Click the Picture to See the "wrong" side of the swatch

The main pattern stitch is mostly reverse stockinette. If you click the image, you can also see the stockinette side, which I think is quite neat as well. Sometimes hand dyed stuff just doesn't give you nice intervals, even when the colors look lovely together. This stuff (the Confetti colorway) is just as lovely knit up as it is in the hank -- and it smells good as well! I'd love to know what they use to wash this stuff after dying it.

I realized after I posted yesterday that I didn't really give this project a proper completion party. So now that I have a few shots of me in the top, I think it's time to put together a more impressive send off.

Before I get to the pictures, let me state the particulars: the yarn for this top is ArtFibers Biscotti in the "Shadowbox" colorway -- a mix of black, blue, green and brown. This yarn is referred to as "bead chain" and is 100% Nylong/Microfiber. At close to recommended gauge, it knits up into a lovely drapey fabric. I should mention that all of the yarns that ArtFibers sells are custom made and dyed for them. And when you buy from ArtFibers, they will help you custom design a garment meant to be perfect for you. This top was designed after I swatched in the store and worked with one of the wonderful friendly store employees. Before I left the store, I was told that they offer the same services to their online buyers -- you just have to give them measurements and guidlines for the shaping and style. And they are happy to mail out samples so that you can swatch in the comfort of your own home. So you don't have to go to San Francisco to get personalized attention and a custom garment!*

From a picture taking perspective, it was probably unfortunate that I chose such a dark colorway, so you'll have to use your imagination as far as the texture and color details are concerned. But I hope these shots will give a good sense of the fit and shape of the garment.

Front

Side

Back

I'm pretty much in love with this yarn and this top. The fabric is soft and drapey and the top is comfortable and a little sexy without being dramatically revealing. To test out the "go to work" aspects of the top, I did, in fact, wear it to work. The top and I both had a great day. I haven't noticed any adverse gravitational effects, nor did it snag easily. And all my woven in ends stayed in place too, in spite of the fact that Biscotti is a tad slippery.

One question came up in my comments yesterday -- why didn't I do this top in the round? The answer is: structure. Since I didn't know this yarn very well, I was concerned that knitting the garment in the round would leave it without any good structural side seams and the garment would bag or lose its shape. (In addition to the side seams, the neckline and armhole ribbing also do a very nice job of adding structure). A second reason was that I knit my swatch flat and I would have had to re-swatch for an in the round project. And finally, I wanted a portable project. This project was easier to schlep around in pieces than it would have been all in one piece, and it was nice to have the seams to tuck some ends into.

What did I learn?

• Seams can be a good thing.
• Knitting collars and armhole edging flat has some advantages. For one, it kept my tension looser and that meant that I was able to get the top over my head. No unpleasant ripping!
• Dynamic texture hides all manner of ills, and in particular, makes seams almost invisible. Especially in a dark fabric.
• This yarn is no fun to seam with, but it's worth the payoff if you do, since the color and texture match perfectly (of course).
• Biscotti will snag if you catch it on things like ragged fingernails or other things with jagged edges. You do have to be a little careful when knitting with it. It's tough stuff though. Don't expect to break a strand of this stuff without scissors.
• This top is going to be a nice wardrobe addition. It's dressy enough for work, but not so dressy that it can't go out and play a little bit. And it goes ever so well with my favorite black pearl pendant!

I was going to add "don't be afraid to try texture" but at this point, that's a lesson I've long since learned and taken. I love yarns with their own special texture. Yarns where even "simple stockinette" looks neat because the yarn adds it's own extra dimension.

I had a great time at our KIP tonight. So nice to be done with school and able to take time to go do some more knitting things. Most of what I did was swatch. I really like the Phil Ruban, but I think I am going to have to try to get another skein... as much as I might like to, I don't think I am going to be able to squeeze myself into a top that is 32 inches around. I'm thinking I might add a stripe of a contrasting color to the top I want to make. Now I'm just going to have to find another skein of the stuff somewhere... Hmmm...

*And for anyone who is interested, these patterns are created with the help of a neat program called Knitware Design. I got to see the program in action and I was pretty impressed. The schematics the software creates are really great! I'm a sucker for great schematics, and I'll likely be buying a copy soon, myself. And there's even a demo that you can download if you want to check it out.

Finished Biscotti Top

I rushed home from work today to finish the last seam on my Biscotti top so I would have enough light to take an outdoor shot. This picture actually does capture the top quite well in terms of color. I took some detail shots of the neckline, sleeves and my lovely side seams, but they weren't particularly enlightening. You'll just have to trust me when I tell you that the collar is an inch of K1P1 rib and the armhole finishing is about a half inch of the same, and that you can hardly tell that the top wasn't knit in the round.

So what about an action shot? Well, there was enough light for the pictures I took, but not enough light to fully change and and get pictures of the top. So I'll have to wait to do the official photo shoot tomorrow. But when I did try it on, it got a thumbs up from the hubster (I also discovered that I'll always have to remember to wear a dark colored bra underneath). The top definitely looks like it was perfectly matched to my shape. Which it was. Score one for the friendly helpful folks at ArtFibers in San Francisco who put the pattern together for me.

I definitely think I'll be tackling the Phil Ruban top next... as soon as I figure out how to translate this lovely pattern that I have. Kinda sad when I can't even figure out what pattern stitch I need to use in order to do a gauge swatch! Maybe it's time to invest in that book that helps translate knitting abbreviations...

I would post a picture, but it wouldn't look much different from last night, except now there is a neckline and armhole edging on the Biscotti top. Biscotti isn't a problem to knit with, but the nubby bits make it a little less pleasant to finish with. Normally I would just be going crazy trying to get the second side seam sewn up so that I could try on my new garment, but one side seam proved enough for me today. I'll tackle the second one tomorrow.

Now, you might be asking why I would be so foolish as to decide to do my seaming with the Biscotti instead of another yarn. Well. I did think about it for quite some time. And the problem I kept running into was that the fabric the Biscotti knits up into has a very open breezy texture. Any yarn that I use to seam is going to show up. So the best way to keep my seaming yarn invisible was simply to fight my way through seaming with the Biscott.

And, to be fair, my effort, so far, has paid off. Because of the all-over-the-place texture of the Biscotti it's almost impossible to tell where the seam is. I'd take a picture, but dark yarn at night is dark yarn at night, and no amount of fancy photography will make it any more interesting. Hopefully tomorrow will bring full victory!

And if you haven't taken a look recently, there's been a lot of interesting stuff going on over in the Audrey blog!

Well, I think it's fair to say that summer has arrived here in Chicago. Those who were here last week would probably tell me that it's been here a while. I mark the start of summer by the first day on which I think we should turn on the air conditioner. We're perilously close to that day today. Though it does seem to be cooling off enough tonight for us to hold off for another day.

One good thing about this weather, it is very inspirational for adding tank tops to my wardrobe. Sometimes I forget how quickly projects without sleeves work themselves up.

Biscotti Tank Top Front

Here's the finished front of the Biscotti top. I think I am going to like the neckline. There's also going to be an inch wide neckband, which will add a little more girth to those shoulder straps. I'm working on the neckband right now, which may mean that I get the armholes and final seeming done tomorrow.

And then what will I start? Another tank top of course! The big question is going to be which one? I have some lovely Phil Ruban that I've been looking forward to knitting with, some pretty shiny ribbon from Tess Designer Yarns and the ArtFibers Mousse that came back with me from San Francisco. Right now the Phil Ruban is calling my name the most loudly. After the Biscotti top, I think it is going to be time for something bright and happy!

One of my purchases while I was in San Francisco was a bit of ArtFibers Biscotti with which to make a tank top that could cross over from worktime to playtime. I've been getting a lot more serious lately about picking out yarns and designs that can go to work. Because, let's face it, if it can't go to work, it's not going to have very many days of possible wear. And who wants to make something wonderful and then leave it in the closet?

With that in mind, when I went to ArtFibers I tried to select yarns and colors -- as well as designs and shapes -- that could do double duty. I loved the texture of the Biscotti, and chose a dark colorway. It looks almost black at first, until you get close up, and see the greens, browns and blues.

Click the Pic For a Close-Up of the Biscotti Texture

This is the back of the top. It's a shaped top that pinches in a little bit at the waist. The "hem" of the top will fall just at hip level. The top will have a shallow ballet neck line (similar to the neckline of the Phil'Onde sweater I just completed) with "shoulder straps" and shallow armholes that are undergarment friendly. Because the texture and color are complex, the garment and construction are simple. The only details are an inch or so of garter-stitch at the hemline and a little bit of ribbing around the neckline to give it a little extra structure.

Biscotti is a quick knit yarn -- this project is on US size 10.5 needles -- and I'm already half-way done with the front. I could have myself a nice new top by my trip to Ann Arbor this coming weekend for Father's Day if everything works out.

P.S. to anyone who has sent me email in the last week or so... I am way way way behind on my email correspondance. I'm hoping to work my way through my inbox this week...

Well, here's the moment of truth -- the unveiling of the Zodiac Halter Top on my frame. Here are the "serious" shots, meant to show how the fit and finish came out. Please excuse my funky looking skin and hair. It's been a warm day and I've spent most of it scratching my head in front of a computer.

I think it's pretty clear from the back and the side shot that there is a little rippling action that's not terribly desirable. I'm going to darn all the ends in and dump this baby in the wash to see if I can't get things to tighten up a little bit.

It is comfortable to wear -- nothing feels too exposed and the Zodiac is pretty smooth against the skin.

Of course, this whole photo shoot wouldn't be complete with out a few hair swinging shots, so here you go....Every knitter should have a photographer this great!

So what's next? I spent some time working on Charlotte tonight -- only two more bands to go! I really should finish Charlotte and Pebbles before starting on anything else. However, I've got these size 8 AddiTurbos free now and a couple of fall sweaters that want to go on them. And that lace scarf from Blackberry Ridge... hmmm...

It's for real this time -- I think I am finished (well, finished except for sewing 3-4 ends). My fashion photographer had to take care of some other business this morning, so the real photo shoot won't happen until later tonight.

Because of the potential loss of elasticity, I decided to attach the back without blocking. Here's what it looks like:

I decided to change the back from being P2 K2 ribbing at just the sides to being P2 K2 ribbing all across the back. When I needed to decrease or increase I did it in what would be the purl grooves on the right side of the work. I also shifted down from the medium size (17.5") to the small size (16") for the back in hopes of shoring up some of the extra fabric that I had the first time. It was my hope that the combination of ribbing and a narrower fabric and no blocking would eliminate the looseness I experienced the first time.

Here's a shot of the back the first time so you can see the difference in how they looked (I actually did a little more than twice as much ribbing as called for in the pattern):

The modeling shots will be up later, but I will say that while I was happier with this than the previous fit, I still don't think it's perfect. However, at this point, I don't think ripping and re-knitting will solve the problem. I will pass on some words of advice to those who haven't started this project yet, but want to -- and don't mind getting a little unsolicited advice.

1. Shorten the pattern a little bit if you are short-waisted like me. I think part of the reason that it rolls a little in back has to do with the fact that it hits and falls over my hips. The shaping isn't bad, it's probably just not the best for me. Especially when you combine the shaping with the fact that cotton is heavy and inelastic and submits to the force of gravity.
2. Change the back, even if you're not short-wasted. I'd recommend ribbing all the way across the back, but there are probably other ways to go as well. You can match a smaller back with a larger front because all the backs are knit to the same height, and have the same shaping, it's just the starting width that changes.
3. If you block, block minimally until after the project is done. Once you wet and stretch that cotton out, it's definitely not going anywhere.
4. Try it on before you get all your ends woven in and tied down. It's a lot easier to undo/re-do if you need to fuss with it.
5. Consider starting with K2 P2 ribbing on the right side instead of P2 K2. The effect won't be that different and you'll save yourself some frustration at the end. I found seaming up purl edges to be time consuming and I didn't get as neat a seam as I would have liked because my purl edges are never as neat as I would like them

And what was I knitting on the way to the fiber festival? My Dad's Lo Tech sweat, of course. The fall running season is almost here so I need to get cracking! Here's the back so far. Have I mentioned that I love knitting with this yarn?

Well... good news and bad news... the good news is that I got the halter top seamed up and that my husband's first words when he saw the front were "Oh! I like that!".

The bad news? The back is hopelessly too wide. I probably shouldn't have blocked it before seaming it. So now it is back on my blocking board kind of bunched up and wet, and I'm hoping that the ribbing will pull things back in enough to make it better.

Otherwise... it's going to be ribbing all the way across the back and I'm gonna be doing a whole lotta frogging. Bummer.

I think to make myself feel better I am going to swatch my Giotto....yum!