Taming the Gleeful Beast
Glee has turned into a beast which must be conquered, subdued, and forced to do what I want. (This is a sure sign I've been working too much on it.)
(Also, when you are driving home from your folks' after the holiday and you see some round pieces of trash by the side of the road in rural Alabama and think, "Oh, grenades!" - that is a sign you played too much Halo that weekend. Just sayin'.)
I have been working till smoke comes out my ears on Glee. I'm almost to the start of the arm shaping on arm #2; let's hope I took good notes because I was completely winging it. Before I start the shaping I need to get out some stitch markers (the padlock kind) and mark each decrease I can see on the other sleeve. (So I know I have the same amount of decreases. Otherwise, potential for disaster lurks around every turn.)
When I did them on that sleeve, I started off and did about thirty rows, then realized I had been doing all the decreases on the OUTSIDE of the sleeve. Very unique, but not for me! Rip! Reknit! (This sweater has kind of been like that. Knit everything twice.)
I finished the button bands, and let me tell you it is HARD to knit two button bands that sit across from each other and are bound off to exactly the same length. I've no idea why I had no problem with this on Twist, but I ended up having to do the bind off over again on the first side that I did because it was just too loose and floppy. It is still possible that I will rip out both bands back to a shorter length, because they still seem a bit floppy and want to fold over like a polo collar. (I really don't want that.)
Now that I have a sleeve, I love the drape and even the slouchy, comfortable fit of the sweater. I'm very encouraged. But I don't love the length/bottom ribbing. It's very unflattering, as far as I'm concerned - a 3x1 ribbing that is about 3" long, and seems to draw in instead of making things look finished. Also I think that the length is just too long - even for me, and I have a very long torso that needs long shirts or my behind looks about six feet tall (not good).
Folding the hem under does wonders for the length, but then I get concerned that the V on the front is maybe just too too deep for the body of the sweater at that length. So after I knit sleeve 2, I am going to rip back the bottom ribbing and do about 6 rows of 1x1 rib on the bottom edge. The neck and sleeves will be finished with the same ribbing (but only 3 rows) and the placket/button bands are knitted in the same stitch. So I think it will shorten the body, unify the piece, and make it look more finished and less blousy around the bottom. But there is a chance I will rip back to an inch or two before it is joined in the round and make that placket smaller. Which is just basically saying I'm going to rip half of the body back. Ugh. I don't think it will come to that. There is always blocking, and my sweater has more ease than the one on the model. I think that it will work out as-is. And I'm toying with the idea of just making it a cardigan if that happens. By steeking. Ack! Because I have a 12-stitch alley in the middle of the sweater anyway (from the placket) and a sewing machine sitting near my front door. And it would mean no reknitting.
(Ladies, "less blousy around the bottom" is almost ALWAYS a good thing for us.)
I have a photo shoot today AND I'm late, so I don't have time to post pictures. But I do give you my solemn promise that sometime in the next couple days I will take a picture of the Gleeful Beast, and share them with you. Till next time, pretties!
(Also, when you are driving home from your folks' after the holiday and you see some round pieces of trash by the side of the road in rural Alabama and think, "Oh, grenades!" - that is a sign you played too much Halo that weekend. Just sayin'.)
I have been working till smoke comes out my ears on Glee. I'm almost to the start of the arm shaping on arm #2; let's hope I took good notes because I was completely winging it. Before I start the shaping I need to get out some stitch markers (the padlock kind) and mark each decrease I can see on the other sleeve. (So I know I have the same amount of decreases. Otherwise, potential for disaster lurks around every turn.)
When I did them on that sleeve, I started off and did about thirty rows, then realized I had been doing all the decreases on the OUTSIDE of the sleeve. Very unique, but not for me! Rip! Reknit! (This sweater has kind of been like that. Knit everything twice.)
I finished the button bands, and let me tell you it is HARD to knit two button bands that sit across from each other and are bound off to exactly the same length. I've no idea why I had no problem with this on Twist, but I ended up having to do the bind off over again on the first side that I did because it was just too loose and floppy. It is still possible that I will rip out both bands back to a shorter length, because they still seem a bit floppy and want to fold over like a polo collar. (I really don't want that.)
Now that I have a sleeve, I love the drape and even the slouchy, comfortable fit of the sweater. I'm very encouraged. But I don't love the length/bottom ribbing. It's very unflattering, as far as I'm concerned - a 3x1 ribbing that is about 3" long, and seems to draw in instead of making things look finished. Also I think that the length is just too long - even for me, and I have a very long torso that needs long shirts or my behind looks about six feet tall (not good).
Folding the hem under does wonders for the length, but then I get concerned that the V on the front is maybe just too too deep for the body of the sweater at that length. So after I knit sleeve 2, I am going to rip back the bottom ribbing and do about 6 rows of 1x1 rib on the bottom edge. The neck and sleeves will be finished with the same ribbing (but only 3 rows) and the placket/button bands are knitted in the same stitch. So I think it will shorten the body, unify the piece, and make it look more finished and less blousy around the bottom. But there is a chance I will rip back to an inch or two before it is joined in the round and make that placket smaller. Which is just basically saying I'm going to rip half of the body back. Ugh. I don't think it will come to that. There is always blocking, and my sweater has more ease than the one on the model. I think that it will work out as-is. And I'm toying with the idea of just making it a cardigan if that happens. By steeking. Ack! Because I have a 12-stitch alley in the middle of the sweater anyway (from the placket) and a sewing machine sitting near my front door. And it would mean no reknitting.
(Ladies, "less blousy around the bottom" is almost ALWAYS a good thing for us.)
I have a photo shoot today AND I'm late, so I don't have time to post pictures. But I do give you my solemn promise that sometime in the next couple days I will take a picture of the Gleeful Beast, and share them with you. Till next time, pretties!
posted by Jen at 7:11 AM
1 Comments:
My cousin once saw two pedestrians walking along, while he was driving. One was short, one was very tall. Both were wearing blue. My cousin swerved automatically - luckily, his conscious mind realised in a fraction of a second that he was not, in fact, in a warthog, and that hitting innocent pedestrians is generally frowned upon.
I used to have halo dreams... disturbing.
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