Emma: Mission Accomplished

The Emma top is finished, I still can't quite believe it took only about 14 hours from start to finish, but there it is. It's good, every so often, to use a larger yarn in a project, if only so that one may better appreciate the superiority of finer yarns and the ability to control design and shaping better with them.

After finishing the top according to the directions I took a critical eye to it. I felt that the neckline and sleeves would look nicer finished with a row of single crochet, and made it so.

I had knitted the Large size (for the first time in my life!) because I wanted to avoid completely the protrudence of adipose tissue through knitted fabric around waistline or brassiere (my grandmother never allowed the shortened form of the word, so out of respect for her I use her form here). However, the top seemed too shapeless when modeled. One need not give up evidence of feminity in favor of class, say I; one can achieve both. But undeniably, fat was implied where there is none-- we cannot abide that now, can we? Replying to my own question with a firm "No!", I hand-sewed full darts along each side, shaping the waistline and tapering back out to the full width about 3 inches below the armhole and 3 inches above the bottom. I often find myself grateful for a stepmother who taught me to sew at an early age.

The result is as pleasing as is possible. My ever-self-critical eye abhors the lack of firmness in my upper arms (these having fallen victim to my abandonment of piano practice), emphasized by this design. The eye is inevitably drawn to the arms due to the whiteness of my skin, that contrasting highly with the beautiful fuchsia color of the yarn. But that is no fault of the design or the knitting, and can be remedied by wearing a nice gauzy white thing over the top, adding little warmth or substance but mitigating the reality of gym avoidance and middle age.

Those attending the Maryland Sheep & Wool festival are bound to recognize me by skin which hasn't seen the sun since April 9, 1991 or (in case of a hot sunny day) later, by glowing red skin frying unhampered by number 120 sunblock!

More Memora-Cups!

Dear Reader, if you have been following my blog for a while, you may recall the two teacups that I brought home from Stitches Northwest. These have delighted me so by evoking fond recollections every time I see them that I made a pact with myself that each time I go somewhere out of town and have a good experience, I would bring back a set of cups. In Pullman for Mom's weekend, I did just that. Here are the mugs, beautifully painted inside and out. I enjoy unique shapes like these.

Please visit Ryan's new blog, "Mossy Cottage Knits"!! This woman puts me to shame with all her beautiful socks, and she already has a sock design being sold through sockpatterns.com after only a year and a half of knitting. I am so honored that she would consent to use NWKniterati as her blog site.

Fierce Creature

Here Sherlock trains for his future as ball boy for Wimbledon:

As you can see, he's not about to let those other ball boys retrieve the ball!

Posted by Sheila at April 23, 2003 10:03 PM Posted to Emma Top | Sherlock | Travels | TrackBack