A Slice Of Color

All that is left to accomplish is to sew down the casing, insert elastic and voila!  I shall be stepping out in style.

The bias stripes of the skirt become flirty with the pop of the short row color wedges. I've been working on this skirt for quite a while, and now that the end is near, it has all been worth it.

Should you be inclined to cast on:

Interweave Knits Summer 2011 magazine  Swirl Skirt pattern by AnneLena Mattison

My version is made from Twisted Sisters Oasis in the Mink color (from my stash) and Plymouth Yarn Vita color 120 (purchased special for this skirt).  I really think that I like the Vita.  It is 85% recycled cotton with 15% recycled cashmere.  This sure feels nice while working it and never did dry my skin the way some cotton does.  

I have now knit three skirts.  Each is very different.  Each has been a test of patience - but no more so than seaming a sweater after the same amount of knitting.  Maybe that is the real difference and why I enjoy making skirts.  The first two that I made were top down and constructed in rounds which means no seams to make.  This one did require grafting but that was not too difficult.

So, the skirt saga ends with a swirl and a slice of color.  I like that.

The Sweet Sigh of AAHHH!

One hundred fifty-six stitches on each needle to start, heaps of patience, lots of breathing and caffeine,  about eighty-five inches of yarn and it all turned out equal!

There was a lot of joy here this morning when the last of the matching one hundred fifty-six stitches was grafted together.  Let me tell you straight out.  That's a whole heap of kitchener stitching.  A whole heap.  I am exhausted.  

But getting to the end and seeing those final stitches match up with no left over "oops" was a thrill.  I didn't even have to fake anything.  Does this mean that I have skill?

The skirt is nearing completion.  Click on this photo to enlarge the unblocked grafted seam.  There is a needle jammed in the stitches so that you can follow the seam.    Once blocked, I am certain that this will truly be an invisible join and the skirt stripes will be visually unbroken.  

Can I hear a Hallelujah!

In addition to the joy of a well grafted seam, I am pleased that I remembered to weave in ends as I knit this beauty.  Just look at these tails.  A simple snip and the underside will be a work of art without all that extra fiddly needle work.

Enough celebrating for now.  There are still one hundred eighty bazillion stitches to pick up around the waist and a casing to knit.

Can You See Me Now?

I am knitting stripes.  These are not shrinking violet strips.  These are high contrast stripes in shades and textures that jump out and say, "look at me!"

Even though these particular stripes speak to me, they are quite boring to knit.  The same thing

over

and over

and over

and over even more.

But every now and again, there are wedges to be knit and  that breaks up the monotony of stripe after stripe.

Watch out world, here I come!

Well, after a massive amount of  monotony broken up by bright wedgie-ness.

Will The Skirt Stay Up?

The skirt is on the final lap and the finish line is soon to be crossed. Must weave in ends of course. And the last little detail. What keeps the skirt from sliding down?

The pattern on which I based the skirt clearly indicates to weave an i-cord around the top and tie a pretty bow. Well, a piece of string might have sufficed thirty-five years ago. Or forty! But, in the elapsed decades I have lost my faith in just string between me and the world. I want, yeah need, something more certain. More secure. More - well just more.

At minimum, the i-cord will have elastic embedded within it. Since I don't know the right way to do it, I made up my own version. This photo shows the back of the work in progress.

Notice that the elastic is a nice sturdy oval variety. My method is to simply wrap the working yarn around the elastic when starting on the next row. You might try clicking the photo to enlarge. The note is to myself, lest I forget how this is done.

The next photo is a poor attempt to show the placement for the needle, yarn and elastic when making the first stitch. I might suggest that (hold on - - abomination on the way) that the elastic actually be tied to the yarn before beginning the i-cord. This knot will prevent the elastic from slipping out of the work as you progress along.

A few details:
* dk weight
* Oval cord elastic - purchased at a fabric store
* Size 6 needle - perhaps going up to an 8 would work better, but I like the look of the smaller. The gauge on an 8 should be such that the result would be a perfect i-cord. Using the 6 results in a flat back where the yarn wraps across the elastic.

This last photo shows what I mean.

If the elasticized i-cord proves not enough to keep the skirt where it belongs, I have a step two already planned out. Step two in the security factor will be to weave elastic thread on the inside of the skirt so that it works to keep the k1p1 ribbing snug and where it belongs.

And no, my middle area does not need the added bulk of a folded over casing at the top, so don't even go there. I am my own bulk, thank you very much.

Lace Makes The Skirt

Finally, a picture of the dull grey skirt of endless ribbing. But see how beautiful the lace makes all that nothing? I am actually farther along with the lace than this photo shows.

It is just that the thrill of anything other than k1p1k1p1k1p1k1p1k1p1.... was worth snapping a pix.

The lace portion will be about the same depth as the upper ribbed modesty portion. Having knitted for so long, and now crocheting with the same yarn, I am reminded how expensive it is to crochet with the good stuff. I am only four rounds into the crochet and already feeling panic about having enough yarn. Mind you the skirt stash still has 600+ yards hiding in the closet. Crochet really eats up the yards quicker than you can pour a glass of pinot.

With visions of the completed skirt dancing about in my imagination, the cost of the Louisa Harding Kashmir DK seemed irrelevant. Not much at all when put as a percentage of the yearly yarn budget. And, by using it up so quickly on the crochet lace, think of all the space that will be available in the yarn closet! I just might be forced to go out foraging for another goodly amount of something yummy just to fill in the blank spot where the grey sat. However, such visions of yarn yet to be acquired must wait for another time. For I must confess that, with hook in hand and a rapidly unwinding ball, I am beginning to feel 'dire panic, as I watch the stash dwindle so quickly.

Perhaps I shall to take myself out to an actually clothing store and price a custom made wool/cashmere skirt.

Now that little excursion will surely put the cost of the skirt yarn back into perspective! And put the sense of pure logic behind my next yarn purchase.