10.08.07
Finished Object: Lotus Blossom Tank
No no, stop pinching yourself and cleaning your glasses incredulously: you really are seeing a new blog post from me within an ice age of the last one. I’d tell you that I’m turning over a new leaf in terms of my posting frequency, but I’m totally not — I just happen to have finished something, and it’s amazing how actually having something to show can affect a person’s blogging motivation. I should try that more often. Note to self: to generate knitblog content, try knitting.
To tie up a couple loose ends first, though, I was interested to see that many of you were divided in your feelings about the truce among Minty, Rachel Sr., and me. For those of you who delight in others’ drama and misfortune, take solace in the fact that the relationship between us is very volatile, and you never know when our shaky armistice could give way. As I inevitably re-enter a knitting (a.k.a. blog-content) drought, I’ll be watching Minty very closely for a wrong move that I could exploit as a thrilling plot twist on my blog.
In other drama (or lack thereof), my co-worker has not yet followed through on his daily threats to expose me as a depraved shower-knitter, though he did suggest that routinely posting flattering photos of him on my blog might help continue to stay his hand. (Why, I’d be happy to do that, Cory…if only I could find any photos of you that could reasonably be called flattering.) Bizarrely, I’ve discovered that Rachel Sr. and Cory have something in common: As two of the very few readers of this blog who don’t really know much about knitting (though Rachel Sr. likes to fake it by talking confidently about things being knit in “circle-8 stitch,” a technique that exists, formless, only in her imagination), they both happen to have zeroed in on “frogging” as the one term they recognize and understand. So now I have two friends whose efforts to talk to me about my current knitting project — no matter its state or its quality — consist only of “why don’t you frog it?” Can I just tell you how great that is for a knitter’s morale?
That actually makes for a good segue into my finished object details, because I was a real perfectionist with this project. I frogged portions of it several times over in an effort to get the fit right (and to achieve a level of evenness in the stitches that did not suggest that the fabric had been masticated, digested, and expelled by woodland creatures — the unfortunate and unblockable effect achieved by reknitting with yarn that I had previously frogged). In the end, I think all the frogging was worth it.
Pattern: Lotus Blossom Tank from the summer 2006 Interweave Knits
Yarn: Di.Ve’ Cotone Egitto (I know, I don’t know what any of those words mean either), six and one-third balls, including one ball that had to be thrown away because it was unusable after having been frogged once.
Needles: Knitpicks Options circulars, sizes 5 and 6
Began: August 18; Finished: September 30
Notes: Many, unusually for me. I’m not sure why I immediately liked this pattern when I first saw it, given that it manages to be terrifically unflattering on both models in the magazine (a problem that isn’t helped at all by the truly crappy photography — see here and here, and sorry about the small images). Too short, too boxy, ugly gaping neckline. And if I, a person whose utter lack of natural fashion sensibility would make even those nice people from What Not to Wear want to rend their carefully chosen garments, could diagnose those problems with this pattern, then I knew they really must be big enough issues that I’d have to do something about them (as opposed to my normal course of action, which is to commit to the lengthy and often expensive process of providing the knitting world with solid confirmation of the existence of the problems by knitting them exactly as written).
The first fix was easy: I knit five repeats of the lace pattern instead of four. The next step was to create an actual waist, because the original “waist” didn’t provide any shaping and didn’t fall under the bust but sort of across it, which I didn’t care for. So I decreased about twice as many stitches as the pattern said to, knit the garter ridges and a few rows of stockinette (this is knitting from bottom to top, just to orient you) and then did three quick sets of paired increases on each side to finish the shaping. (In the original pattern, there is a bit of decreasing after the lace, but that’s it.) Then I knit for four inches before the armhole, rather than the three called for, to lengthen the torso and create an empire waist.
It is worth noting that, aside from the part where I decreased down further than instructed and then increased back up, I had the proper number of stitches on my needles for the smallest size. However, my washed-and-blocked gauge was 6 stitches per inch rather than the 5.5 stitches per inch called for in the pattern, so the overall sizing was a few inches smaller in circumference. This turned out to be key in making the top actually fit as opposed to just hang; if my gauge had been spot-on, I would have had to cast on fewer stitches for the whole thing. This was a lucky mistake and not part of a series of clever gauge calculations. The fact that my tendency toward inexactness is very occasionally rewarded reinforces this bad habits and causes problems — and subsequent pity parties on my blog — with 90 percent of my projects.
The only other changes I made were 1) to add one set of decreases and finish the front neckline with a needle one size smaller, which prevented it from gapping, 2) to make the armholes about a half-inch shorter, and in retrospect I wish I’d made them a full inch shorter, as I have a short torso — you can see in this photo (and also this one here) how the fit in the back and armholes is not as trim as it could be, and 3) to futz with the neck edging, which as written creates an odd disconnected flap (because part of the edging is knit right onto the main body, and part of it is picked up later; I sort of picked up extra stitches to connect the two sections, so instead of it looking like total ass, I managed to get it looking only like partial ass — call me some kind of knitting prodigy).
The yarn is discontinued and, as far as I can tell, was never widely distributed (based on the fact that it exists in only 10 projects or stashes over in Ravelry). I bought it at the WEBS tent sale a couple years ago — with this project in mind, amazingly. It is 100 percent mercerized cotton, and it has a rather beautiful sheen to it. (The color, by the way, is perhaps the most accurate in the photo to the left.) Its biggest problem is the fact that it has 11 plies — that seems insane to me for a sport-weight yarn. And if you snag one, you’d better believe that errant ply is going to taunt you forever, resisting all your efforts to smooth or block or curse it back into place. Fortunately, the fact that I only paid $15 for the bag of 10 balls really brings out my forgiving nature. What can I say, cheapness is a balm to this classy girl’s soul.
So there you have my first finished adult garment since…holy crap, since Green Gable back in April. That’s humiliating, given that this year was supposed to be the Year of Sweaters. Since I haven’t even made an actual sweater from start to finish yet this year (not counting baby sweaters), and since my knitting plate is now almost completely clear, I am committing myself to that next. The problem is what to knit. I have 1100 yards of beautiful Rowan Silk Wool DK that I’d like to use. Guess I’ll go spend the day browsing patterns on Ravelry…or lazily hoping that a helpful commenter will just think of something brilliant for me.
As always, thanks to Matt for his unwavering willingness to serve as my own personal paparazzi on demand.
Laura said,
October 8, 2007 at 2:18 pm
I’d say that the modifications that you made were great. I never did like the original so I was surprised when I saw yours. Then I clicked on the links you had to the awful magazine photos and was immediately reminded why I disliked it so much.
If you don’t know what to do with the Silk Wool, send it here. I have a good plan for it.
Laura said,
October 8, 2007 at 2:18 pm
Oh and here’s a message for Matt:
This time I didn’t gloat about being first to comment. Unless this counts as gloating.
Alex said,
October 8, 2007 at 2:42 pm
It looks great! If I ever get around to knitting that pattern I’ll definitely come back here and follow your modifications.
earthchick said,
October 8, 2007 at 3:50 pm
The Lotus Blossom Tank looks fabulous on you! Really beautiful, and far superior to the original version in IK. Brava!
Also, I have to thank you for this sentence:
“The fact that my tendency toward inexactness is very occasionally rewarded reinforces this bad habits and causes problems — and subsequent pity parties on my blog — with 90 percent of my projects.”
I am so with you on this. And I have a vague recollection of learning in my freshman Psych class (and, later, in a dog training class with my Rottweiler) that partial (i.e., infrequent and inconsistent) positive reinforcement makes the subject (in this case, the knitter) most resistant to extinction of the deviant behavior (in this case, a tendency towards inexactness). So the fact that those of us who tend to approximate on matters such as gauge and measurements occasionally get rewarded – even if it’s only 10% of the time – only serves to keep us locked into our tendencies toward inexactness all the more.
Did I really just use the last of my Monday afternoon brain power trying to write that? Oh yes, I believe I did.
Thanks for another charming edition of Lickety Knit, and again, kudos on the gorgeous FO.
Heather said,
October 8, 2007 at 4:11 pm
I love your standards : partial ass it a total success in my opinion!!
disentangled said,
October 8, 2007 at 4:20 pm
Very nice! I think the modifications you made are key for that pattern. Gotta love partners willing to take knitting photos in public ;-)
Kristen said,
October 8, 2007 at 4:21 pm
I always thought the Lotus Blossom was cute but , yes, not that flattering or finished looking on the models. Your alterations for length and fit make it look wonderful on you. Great job!
Adriana said,
October 8, 2007 at 4:24 pm
Wowwee! That fits you perfectly! It was on my to-knit list until I decided that it just wasn’t flattering. I guess it’s back now :)
As for the Silk Wool what about Knit and Tonic’s Somewhat Cowl?
Amy said,
October 8, 2007 at 4:31 pm
Vavavavoom! You are one hot momma in that number. Your mods really did the trick.
Amy
Theresa said,
October 8, 2007 at 4:40 pm
That is fabulous. Love the mods – a definite improvement over the original, especially in fit. It’s gorgeous. Lovely. And medicine is making me lose my vocabulary, or I’d come up with more and better superlatives. That being said, there’s something wrong with the fact that you’re not freezing in your photos.
Sparkles said,
October 8, 2007 at 5:00 pm
wow, that looks really great! I almost picked up a top like that this weekend when I realized it wasn’t really “work appropriate” for me, but now I might just have to knit one for summer use, with your mods of course (can I have your luck too?)
But who knows what summer I’ll do it for? ;)
Angela said,
October 8, 2007 at 5:01 pm
Whether by determination, luck, or skill (!) you turned this into something that looks beautiful and fits wonderfully–complimenti!! (That’s not bad spelling, it’s Italian.) By the way, I had the same issues with my DiVe Cooty Whatever that I got on sale at WEBS–I frogged and reknit and ended up with horribly uneven stitches, which reblocking several times did not fix completely. (The non-reknit portions look great and the yarn has a nice sheen, as you point out, although I did also have some color variation issues). Well, if you are dying to make something else out of it, I may be persuaded to part with some of the cream-colored stuff I still have….
Emily said,
October 8, 2007 at 5:09 pm
Wow, yours is the most beautiful and flattering Lotus Blossum I’ve seen! Very much worth the effort you put in it! Very lovely.
emily said,
October 8, 2007 at 5:10 pm
very cute rendition of this top!
heehee–Are you actually knitting the pig sweater for Cory or is that just to mess with his head when he visits your blog?
Stella said,
October 8, 2007 at 5:27 pm
Wow, nice work! I never would have touched that pattern, based on the modeled shots, but yours looks great. I guess that should be a lesson to me — there’s a pretty garment lurking inside many of the patterns that I pass over.
Kathy said,
October 8, 2007 at 5:30 pm
It looks fantastic. What great mods.
Kristin said,
October 8, 2007 at 5:45 pm
I must say I think you did an amazing job. I never realized why there was something wrong with that pattern every time I saw it knit, and you fixed every problem I didn’t notice. Very flattering fit!
Erika said,
October 8, 2007 at 5:57 pm
I’m guessing the last part of the yarn label translates as Egyptian cotton…? I don’t know about the first part though. Oh wait, that’s the brand, isn’t it?
The sweater looks great with your modifications! I wonder how many issues of IK I’ve avoided buying because the tops looked so short and I just didn’t think about lengthening them.
Carole said,
October 8, 2007 at 6:34 pm
That looks terrific on you and I’d say you did a fantastic job with the modifications. Go, you!
Katy said,
October 8, 2007 at 6:54 pm
Your mods are perfect. I eyed this pattern in the magazine but had some reservations; now I will have to add it to my list.
And p.s.–your Providence restaurant recommendation was spot on. Bravo, and thanks!
Sonya said,
October 8, 2007 at 7:50 pm
That looks SO much better on you than it does on those highly paid models. Way to modify successfully. I have to admit: I am secretly hoping that the Minty detente blows up spectacularly. As a spectator, it’s just plain fun.
matt said,
October 8, 2007 at 8:23 pm
Who wouldn’t want to paparazzify your fine self?
Elizabeth said,
October 8, 2007 at 8:36 pm
This looks wonderful on you. Now I’m regretting not making this one… maybe next year!
Christine said,
October 8, 2007 at 8:47 pm
Yours looks so much better than the original! It was good you were able to see what those modifications would do. Keep that photographer on retainer– he’s doing a great job!
handknit168 said,
October 8, 2007 at 10:34 pm
The tank is beautiful. Same as you, I always change the original pattern so as to fit me.
Mintyfresh said,
October 8, 2007 at 11:56 pm
Partial ass is better than complete ass, I always say! And this top definitely takes partial ass to a whole new level.
I have no idea what what I just said means. I meant: Bravo!
Jessica said,
October 9, 2007 at 8:43 am
It’s beautiful. You did a fantastic job and the modifications make a much more flattering top. Great job!
stacey said,
October 9, 2007 at 8:53 am
love love love it! I didn’t really look twice at that pattern when I saw it flipping through my IK’s the other day, but I love how it looks on you!
Leah said,
October 9, 2007 at 9:14 am
I’m very impressed. It’s knitting on a whole ‘nother level when you can envision your modifications in advance and put them into action at the appropriate time. Kudos!
Leah said,
October 9, 2007 at 9:15 am
And it’s lovely, btw!
Ashley said,
October 9, 2007 at 9:38 am
Faaaaabulous. I always liked it too, despite the too-shortosity of the one in the mag. In fact, I liked it so much that I meant to make it this summer. Luckily, you did it for me, so now I can just sit here and admire yours. The color’s really really great.
Oh, and Cottone egitto? Egyptian Cotton.
KeanaLee said,
October 9, 2007 at 2:50 pm
Lovely, the color is awesome on you!
brooke said,
October 9, 2007 at 3:06 pm
It looks fantastic. Sometimes a bastardized pattern is the best pattern. :) Great job.
kelly said,
October 9, 2007 at 4:20 pm
beautiful tank!
Specs said,
October 9, 2007 at 5:58 pm
Can I be the millionth person to say what a great color that is on you? I can? Great.
And my boyfriend does the “frogging” thing, too. He knows “cast on” as well so we can have two different conversations about knitting.
Nonnahs said,
October 9, 2007 at 7:52 pm
Congrats- this looks fantastic on you! Bravo for the mods you made- they really make all the difference!
Knittypants said,
October 9, 2007 at 8:42 pm
Wow, Rachel, your Lotus Blossom Tank looks fantastic! I’ve honestly never really liked this pattern, but your mods and attention to detail have me itching to buy yarn for it. I love it.
deborah said,
October 10, 2007 at 10:06 am
I’ll knit that gorgeous tank after I lose 20 pounds.
nova said,
October 10, 2007 at 2:40 pm
I really liked this in the magazine when I saw it (last year?), maybe it was the idea of it, I didn’t think the fit/drape was doing any favors for the models either. I really like your modifications, it makes for a better, classier knit. Good show! It looks great and it looks great on you!
Allison said,
October 10, 2007 at 3:01 pm
Inconsistent bloggers of the world unite! Our blogs cannot be constrained by conventional notions of ‘routine’ and ’schedule.’ No, every blog post, whether two days, two weeks, or two months later, is a pleasant surprise to the reader patient enough to check regularly for new postings that may or may not materialize. If I had any artistic ability, I would make us a button.
Wow, your tank looks 47 times better than it did in the magazine. Seriously, I measured. The fit is fantastic, and your modifications obviously brilliant. The paparazzi got some nice shots :)
Artinreality said,
October 10, 2007 at 5:42 pm
Beautiful! Your tank looks great, and I love your modifications!
Liz K. said,
October 10, 2007 at 11:34 pm
Ouch! Ouch! I’m pinching myself — sorry! More blogging from Rachel — and a great knit to boot. Funny how making the waist of a garment actually hit at the waist makes it look better.
I’ve always been sort of “feh” about this pattern, but it is more than feh on you, way more than partial ass. In fact, it’s elegant and lovely.
pamela wynne said,
October 12, 2007 at 5:27 pm
The tank is totally freaking gorgeous, and you do sexy librarian like nobody’s business.
The FOs I’ve seen — most of which have 5 repeats instead of 4 — all look a million times better than that shlumpy modeled version. (How, HOW did it end up on the cover?)
pamela wynne said,
October 12, 2007 at 5:27 pm
I should have capitalized Sexy Librarian. There.
JayJay said,
October 12, 2007 at 7:16 pm
I find that cheapness is quite balming for lots of things. ;) Your lotus blossom really looks fantastic! I think this is the best version I’ve seen and the color looks so nice on you! (Also, in the link where you model the arms of the sweater your hair looks lovely).
Emily said,
October 12, 2007 at 8:27 pm
Hah! I scrolled through and looked at the pictures and was thinking, “That looks so much better ‘in person’ than it does in the magazine.” Now that I’ve backed up to actually read the post, I understand why. Good on you – that was some serious pattern repair and it looks incredible.
sari said,
October 13, 2007 at 7:21 am
it looks great! :)
carrie said,
October 14, 2007 at 11:47 am
Wow, your lotus blossom tank turned out lovely! The problems you mention were exactly the ones I had with the pattern and therefore had never tried it. Now I may need to. (Yeah, like I don’t have enough to do without essentially rewriting yet another pattern so that it will fit me…)
kmkat said,
October 15, 2007 at 3:10 pm
Interweave should have consulted you before they published Lotus Blossom. If they had there would be a plethora (oooh, I used an obscure word!) of them in blogland today. Your mods are perfect.
jodi said,
October 16, 2007 at 3:58 pm
ok, you totally made that tank better and now i want to make one. with your revisions of course. sometimes i think the designs forget we all have curves. very flattering or ya.
lomester said,
October 16, 2007 at 4:20 pm
I was so excited to see a “non-quarterly” licketyknit issue! and as an added bonus – an FO, and a lovely FO at that!
Great job, you made the perfect modifications to it because it looks perfect!
youcraft said,
October 17, 2007 at 9:27 am
Very, very lovely, the color, the pattern, the workmanship, everything!
Scribbles & Bits said,
October 17, 2007 at 4:56 pm
If you want, we can think of this as a special edition, like the holiday editions all the cool knitting nags are putting out right now! See? No pressure on turning over new leaces and whatnot! :-)
Now on to the gushing! Lotus looks really really amazing! I actually want to knit that now! I would def. follow your mods, though, because as is, I wasn’t going to touch it (which even when I first saw it, I thought that was a shame because I really liked the bottom of it, but modifying things is a skill I lack. Maybe I just need more practice!)
projektleiterin said,
October 20, 2007 at 8:55 am
This tank definitely got a lot of improvement with your modification (the original tank looks a bit too short and I don’t like this half-hearted empire line that is hovering somewhere inbetween things) and I have to say with a lot of envy, it looks great on you!
heather said,
October 24, 2007 at 10:21 am
Rachel, I think it’s lovely on you :) I’m so jealous! Clinton and Stacy would approve. Congrats on finishing!!!
Ansley said,
December 8, 2007 at 9:18 pm
Ooh, this came out really pretty. Congrats!
jessie said,
January 28, 2008 at 7:40 am
Beautiful job! My husband thinks this tank would look great on me and I’m thinking, not without mods. I am short-waisted, narrow-torsoed, flat chested (all in a nice way, I’m sure) and would need a fitted look to keep me from looking like a tent.
I’m not sure I’m up for so much thinking, but I’m enjoying your success vicariously. :-)
joanna said,
March 7, 2008 at 11:28 am
Thank you for the wonderfully detailed mods. I am SO looking forward to casting on…just in time for my upcoming vacation. Thank you also for the knitting progress bar instructions, I was able to add some to my blog very easily. :)
Janis said,
March 13, 2008 at 8:27 am
You are a HEROINE to share all your carefully worked-out mods. These are exactly the changes I was hoping to make to the thing, and now with your guidance, I have a chance of making it all work! Thanks so much! It looks fantastic on you!
Knittahavana said,
April 13, 2008 at 5:55 am
Thank you so much for sharing your pattern notes on this. I know they’ll help me make the best job possible. Really appreciate your guidance. Alix
The Oracle said,
April 28, 2008 at 12:55 am
I love the mods – I wish you (or someone else) could write them out in an idiot-proof way so garment newbies like me could follow!