Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Drum roll, please...

First off the needles: 2011
The LONG awaited project:  LBD (or Little Black Blue Dress)  Even though I often call it a dress, it's really a pullover/tunic top.  It's just so long at this point, that it seems like I've been knitting a dress.
It's as pretty as I imagined! (IMHO) And not perfect.

I selected this pattern in July 2009 just loving those roses. I was disappointed to find that they are duplicate stitched however I have happily gotten over it.  Duplicate stitch is where it's AT!  They certainly wouldn't be as nice in intarsia. (At least not MY intarsia.) At the time my newborn granddaughter seemed far from wearing the smallest size for this pattern, 1-1/2 years, so I contented myself with other baby projects.  Then I started the lower edge.  It was quite the challenge... in Danish, with a most complicated combination of written and chart instructions, where neither were stand-alone instructions.  It turned out lovely both times.  I frogged the whole thing once and substituted colors and remeasured and gauged blah, blah, blah.  And now it's too big for my 1-1/2 year old so it will wait patiently for her to grow into it.
In my other posts I voiced concerns.
Concern #1:  I picked up a dropped stitch.  Would it even out in blocking?  The answer:
No.  It still looks like this after 2 blockings. So, it's an "original"!
Concern #2:  I used kinky yarn (from the frogged mis-start) and first time yarn.  They looked way different when knitted up.  Would it even out in blocking?  The answer:
Almost.  It's looking much better, and especially with big ol' roses to draw the eye away from the perfect "new yarn" stitching.
Concern #3:  Not previously voiced in a post, but at a meeting of knitters I asked what was I going to do with a garment that twisted.  And I'm still asking all of you, why has it twisted so badly, and how do I get it to straighten out?  Is it because of the circular one-piece body? Will it come out in blocking?  The answer:
(See above pictures.)
Not really.  It's an illusion.  I blocked it with wonderful straight rods down the sides, looked perfect while drying flat, but as soon as I start handling it, it wants to twist.  (What I mean by twist:  the rectangular | | body becomes a parallelogram \ \ .)
It is what it is, and I already have plans to add more trim so a 3 and 4 year old will be able to wear it... until she says, "Gram, would you make me a different tunic?"  And of course, the answer will be:  What color?

Pattern (in Danish): Siksak og Roser by Løve Garn from Løve Garn, Baby og småbørns-strik 2
Yarn: Bomuld 8/4 Merceriseret by Løve Garn Fingering / 4 ply 100% Cotton 180 yards

5 comments:

  1. About the twisting, according to this book I have about yarn (Yarn? All About Yarn? can't remember and can't find it), the twisting is probably the yarn itself. Something about how it is spun. Having knitted it the round may be making that tendency really show up, but I don't know for sure.

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  2. Thanks so much for this comment through Ravelry:
    First, let me congratulate you on the beautiful dress which you have just finished. It is quite stunning.

    Second, you asked on my blog why the dress is “racking” or twisting. The answer lies in the twist of the yarn from which it is knit. Specifically, the yarn’s twist has been imparted to the entire garment. This is nothing that you have done wrong, and it is also nothing which can be corrected with blocking. Some yarns do this more than others. If you look at commercial sweaters on hangers, you will often find them doing the same thing--I believe this is one of the reasons retailers usually sell sweaters folded. The cure (the only cure, actually) is simply to wear the garment, as the rack or twist is usually not noticeable when the garment is worn. In fact, if you start looking at people dressed in sweaters, you will see that it is surprisingly common to have the side seams twisting around the wearer’s body. However, again, few will notice this unless you are actively looking for it.

    Thanks again for writing, and I am sorry not to have better news for you.

    --TK

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  3. It's beautiful. Congratulations on a great job. I'm betting a couple more washings and the kinked yarn won't show at all.

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  4. It's like embroidery on knitting! Who would have thought such a thing would be possible. :) It's a beautiful little dress, and the roses look gorgeous!

    ReplyDelete

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