Calm

Completed: December 2008

Pattern: Calm, The Dark House Collection, by Kim Hargreaves

Yarn: Blue Sky Alpacas Alpaca & Silk (50% alpaca, 50% silk), #134, 3 x 146yd/50g

Notes: I knit this at a smaller gauge since the yarn I’m using has less of a “halo” than does Kidsilk Aura and it just looked too naked at the pattern gauge, so I had to make stitch and row count modifications accordingly.

I knit the body and sleeves separately in the round, inside out, and then joined them together at the yoke to continue knitting in the round. The neckline was picked up and (surprise!) knit in the round. To do this, you can omit the k1 seam stitches on the 1st round of the lace and do the 2nd round as a p2tog, yfwd (or at least that’s how I did it--may or may not be correct).

I don’t like this top as much as I thought I would, but I think that’s my own fault. I wanted to bring the neckline up so that it wasn’t quite the off-the-shoulder look, but I think I might have brought it up too far. Because of this, the lace around the neckline, which is the most charming part, IMO, is kind of hard to see. Also, I think I made the sleeves a bit too snug, even after adjusting for gauge. If I try to pull my arms out of them too quickly, the effect is like a Chinese finger puzzle. All in all, though, it’s still quite wearable.

The yarn is beautiful. My skin was too sensitive for the recommended Kidsilk Aura, so I searched around for awhile for a suitable substitution. The Blue Sky Alpaca & Silk was light and comfortable and so snuggly!