Knitting News

While I was in Ohio, I got a good amount of knitting done on my Petal Halter. The nice thing about N sleeping and napping in the room with the computer is that when I would normally be on the computer (while he was napping and sleeping) I couldn't--so I knit instead. I got 3 1/2 of the 8 petals done while I was there. The pattern calls for just 6 petals, but after completing 6 petals (or 3 tubes), I realized that the top was still way too short so I did 2 more petals to create a 4th tube. I sewed the petals into tubes as I completed each set of 2. After I got home, I finished knitting the last petal and then sewed the rest of the tubes together--all while watching last week's final two episodes of So You Think You Can Dance (Go, Jeanine!).


I haven't blocked yet, but am happy with the top so far. Now comes the hard part--the straps. I've decided to not do the straps as written in the pattern. I want to space them farther out so I can wear a regular bra under the top and I want to make them thinner so they are a little more delicate looking. You can't tell from this picture, but the top currently has an asymmetrical neckline. Dealing with that will be part of my challenge. Anyway, my plan involves picking up stitches on the front for thin straps that will be sewn to the back. I will then pick up stitches around the neckline, straps, and armholes to add some sort of edging for stability--probably some sort of simple ribbing to reflect the motion of the garter stitch. I could just do the garter stitch edging on the straps when I knit them, but then I couldn't do the continuous line from straps to neckline that I want to do. Must continue pondering this and hope that I don't ruin my top with ugly straps. Wish me luck!

To further complicate matters, I started swatching for my next project last night.

I didn't have the mental energy to tackle the straps yet, but still had another 20 minutes of So You Think You Can Dance. What's a girl to do?