After the shoulders, it was downhill all the way!!! Yea!!! By which I mean just easy, almost mindless tasks.  I picked up 65 stitches on either side of the ‘shoulder seam’ (130 total) and knit 14 rows before making a narrow 8-row hem. Easy but it takes time to pick up live stitches and hang on the needles and I always like to knit the first row by hand.  I know the professionals and experienced knitters routinely knit that first row using their carriage.  No matter what machine I have, I make the carriage jam.  Long ago, decided fasted for me was to hand knit that first row.

My sleeve hem needs a little more steam.

Next was hanging the live stitches from a front and a back onto needles; knit one row and bind off.   I had planned to do the binding off with the GC but she just didn’t like the yarn at this point. So it was the long slow, carpel-tunnel-syndrome producing hand bind off. Then repeat for the other side.

I plan for about an hour TV viewing time to darn in all the ends.  Not sure how much time I actually spent on this top.  Next day, downstairs for some judicious steaming and I added 1/4″ shoulder pads. Otherwise this pillowcase top would make me look like a pillow

I like how the finished (with shoulder pad) top looks like.  It feels comfortable but may be a little tight across the the tummy hips.  Then again, I’m having bowel issues. The top may be perfectly fine in a day or two.

Thank you for following along on this journey. Despite pointing out possible improvements,  I am very happy with my new top.  Some of my happiness comes from what I didn’t do.  I didn’t reknit the pieces several times.  I was able to look for and find check points.  Places where I could say, “is this going to work on me?” and then either proceed or make a change, which importantly worked.  Making myself accountable by posting on the blog, helped keep me going and got me restarted after ‘those kind of days’.  The one downside now, is that winter has returned.  It will be a week or two before I can wear my new top anywhere, including in the housr.

I give the back and front pieces some steam and smooth out the ribbing by patting.  I steam kinda heavily.  This is cotton yarn.  It doesn’t die like acrylic. As I do, I keep looking at the shape of the pieces. The proportions.

Earlier I had planned to shape the shoulder by seaming them at an angle (along the blue lines)

Because the back and front are essentially rectangles, the seaming  would leave a triangle flap  above the seam.  I fold that open and down securing it in the armscye seam.  For me, those flaps, add an easy shoulder pad effect.  Very helpful when you dont have shoulders.  But as I look at the back and front now; and remeasure them; I’m unsure of the plan.  I want my top 24″ long.  It now measure 22″.  It will drop some, but how much?  2″?  Should I rip the ribbings after all and make them longer. No my mind rejects the proportions of that change.  I ponder a moment and then decide I can accomplish the same things (retaining length and shaping the shoulders) by adding  triangles at the top.   I learned how to short row several years back and never quit. Short rowing will allow me to add 1 triangle on each side of one pieces (2 triangles) instead of add 1 triangle each side of both pieces (4 triangles) and of course means that much less casting on and binding off.  I’m lazy. I’m all ready to cast on and let the GC knit the triangles when I realize I’ve never short-rowed with the GC.  I know the theory, but that doesn’t mean I know what to do. Definitely means I don’t know how to recover from any error.  I dwaddle a bit before deciding that while a stockin’ knit stitch won’t have the depth of the GC ribbing, it will look similar enough.  I put the GC away and set up for stockin’ knit.  It progresses quickly and within an hour I have both triangles I need

When folded along the ‘shoulder line’  the shoulder shape is clear to see

I wish I had photoed the entire piece at this point.  It is beginning to shape up but more than that with this triangles I see the size and shape I need to fit my body.  IDK, it is something that you develop that allows you to see immediately that some piece of clothing will or will not work with your body.

Having settled on what todo next, I cast-on 160 sts with waste and ripper cord and began knitting the front.  One change, I hung a marker at the center front neckline–part of that easy scoop I mentioned last post. Whew!!  Hour later another row of ripper cord plus 15 rows of waste knitting and the front was done.  Not all the way done, you understand, just ready to be removed from the needles.

To my utter delight, there was still yarn on the cone!!!

However, I’m still feeling a little panicky and decide to do the ribbed hems immediately. I will be using 1×1 ribbing with my garter carriage.

I know I don’t want my hem to flare; my top be tent like.  But I also don’t want the hem to cup.  I want it to hang, just a little closer to my body–not blouse.  I opt for an 8% reduction. It’s a WAG (wild ass guess) . Well almost. 10% is what I usually use to make arm bindings snug. I decided upon a little bit less.   I pull forward 176 needles ((24″ hem length * 8 stitches per inch) -(8%))=176.  This is good; and hang the hem edge of my top in the needles.  I knit the first row by hand. It’s just easier that way for me.  Over the years I’ve tried different methods for that first row, this work reliably.  Next set up GC with both extension rails.  Using only 176 needles could leave enough room at the bed ends for the GC to complete a row and turn around safely, but I don’t want to find that out with a big crash and broken GC.

Initially, I had planned for 2″ ribbing or 28 rows (2 inch # 14 rows per inch).  But I get cold feet and set the counter to 26 rows.  Total will be 28 since I manually cast on 1 row and and I will have 1 castoff row. Even then I’m keeping a close eye on the yarn. Weighing it before and after the first hem.

GC (Garter Carriage) chugs away for 24 rows. It’s slow.  It can work faster but everytime I speed up the GC I have problems.  I’d rather let it work the way it wants.  Finally the rows of ribbing are done. I set up for bind-off and let the GC bind off the ribbing.  I see an issue.

The GC has dropped 2 stitches instead of binding off.  I catch each  (and the end stitches that were placed on the gate pegs) in my hand knitting stitch markers.  Just bought these late last year and I must say they are great for hand knitting. Surprised and delighted that these stitch markers were  just the ticket for catching the errant stitches.  Technically, I should rip the bind off and redo it but I think, “Hey it’s only 2 stitches.  I can fix those.”

I decide to pause and take stock before moving onto the back ribbing.  I take my front downstairs and hit it with puffs of steam from the iron.

My magic fingers smooth out the ribbing and I pat the whole piece to flatten it.  Measured now it is 24″ wide by 22″ long. Umm, almost.  I really want 24″ long.  Will the knitting drop 2″?  Do I want to make the ribbing longer? Anything else I can do to make my knitting long enough? Not sure….

But I am ready to add the ribbing to the back.  Sure wish I’d thought more about dropped bind off stitches.  They were a warning.

The back must use less than 50% of the needed yarn. I will also need an equal amount for the front, plus enough to add 2″ ribbings to the bottom of both front and back, plus “sleeves” for the  armscye area and there is an unestimable amount needed to finish the slit-neck and stitch the shoulders and bind off the sides.  My first eye-ball estimate says there is less than half the amount of yarn remaining on the cone. Less than what I will need to finish my garment.

I don’t have a second cone.  Dont have a coordinating yarn of any size; either darker, lighter or the same color.   I do have that massive swatch (12.5×7″) and  the little stitch swatch. After briefly panicking, I decided to estimate yarn remaining and needed.

I have a food scale. Never use it for weighing food. Why kid myself?  I’m not cutting back for any scale, especially during this quarantine But it also ….

… works for weighing small amounts of yarn, mailing envelopes and small packages  as well.  I keep it not in the kitchen where it would never be used, but by my Big PC and desk where it is handy for what it is used for.  Now I grabbed it and started weighing.

Back 5.27oz

Yarn Cone 7.57 oz.

Ok even without weighing the swatches,  the ounces I’m coming up with  look adequate. Seems after the front (5.27 oz) I will have 2.3oz of yarn left. Good!. EXCEPT that cone has a weight of its own.  It’s  med size and all plastic.  I think I’m safe estimating it at 1oz. Still that would leave me with1.3 oz for the sleeves, ribbing and the little stuff.   Possible? With the swatches?

I decide upon a quick pattern change. I will not have a slit neckline finished with Icord which rolls the neckline into a nice V.  Instead I will make a scoop neckline the easy cheater way, which I will share.  The advantage of the scoop is the amount of yarn needed for the bind/off-cast/on at CF and then Icord finishing. There’s also a bit of time saved, as well as wear and tear on the arms and hands.

It is an acceptable change but detracts from something important:  All drop sleeve sweaters are essentially PillowCase Tops.  When a plus sized lady, that’s me, wears one a pillowcase top, we look like overstuffed chairs or comfy pillows.

That’s just true. Sometimes, you just want to be presentable, but what if you’d like to look just a little better?

Anytime I am making something, I shape the shoulders (blue lines).

It is quick, always easy AND It not only reduces the overstuffed pillow look, but it removes a lot of wrinkles I get lower down.

On this Drop Sleeve Top, I always planned to add a little at the armscye area (Orange lines), making a bit of sleeve and again changing the pillowcase look just a smidge

I’m kind of barrel shaped from the waist down, so best bet for me is often just quit fussing with anything below the rib cage. But I do find that a nice neckline can change that pillowcase shape too. My best neckline is the V neck, hence the original plan to make a slit which would roll into a lapel, framing the face thus (red line V)

The result is going from

this————————-         to   —————————  this

While the two are similar, I can assure  you the blue outlined shape on the right is much more flattering on me.

So it was with real regret that I decided upon a scoop neckline.  The shape above, I would most likely have happily worn. I’m not so sure about the scoop, but It is what It is and IT is that I need to conserve yarn.

I’ve got a plan.  I think this top is still doable. Sooooooo onto the next step.

Why the back?  Least amount of shaping but also it’s a big honking piece which with estimating yarn use.

First that big honking piece

Doesn’t look so interesting when first off the needles or even later after it’s been stretched, hand patted and hung to drop.

Important thing here is the dimensions roughly 25X19.  Not exactly what I wanted (24X20) but within range considering this is cotton and I have not completed the prepping i.e. wash, dry, steam press.

Not seen, but the sides all  have “live” stitches held by ripper cord and waste yarn. I’ve reached the point where, I really don’t like to back stitch  or use any other hand stitch on my MK items if an MK solution is available..  Hand stitches often add  undesirable bulk; can restrain the free flow/drape of the knitting and Dang! my hand get tired. At nearly-the-end, I will  join the sides using the garter carriage, promise to share.

I like to think I have an “open process”, some details  in the previous post, which allow me to adapt my knitting as I encounter the unexpected with my Custom Made Knitted Garments.  Make no mistake, even though it is for personal use, it is custom.  All the dimension are adjusted to suit my personal taste.  Yarn, stitches, neckline just every decision is subject to my personal i.e. Custom Specifications.   Anyway, as part of my Custom/Open Process, I use waste and ripper freely and often hang yarn markers to denote certain points like shoulders, armscyes, etc anything where the knitting and finishing needs to be adjusted so my Custom Specs can be executed by my designer/knitter, ME.

May be a little difficult to see the markers on this back piece.  They are on each side in the body (in small blue circles) to designate where the drop sleeve ends and where the body begins. IOW mark the armscye.  Again along the edge of the top of the back piece there are markers at each shoulder point  (in the green circles) which  happens to also mark where the neckline is.

I feel optimistic at this point.  I seem to have remembered everything, for the back at least.  Seem to have gotten gauge, for a cotton that will shrink and grow during the remaining prepping.  Then I take a look at the yarn remaining on the cone:

Oh No! I think I’m going to need more.

In regards to my final comment yesterday: W-r-0-n-g.  As I thought about it and handled my swatch, I realized I had several issues.  One being that while I barely had enough needles, I could knit a full  front and full back, I would be using 192 needles i.e. nearly the entire bed. I could do that.  I used to be able to do that with ease. About 20 years ago.    After 18 months of chemo, me pushing the carriage back and forth that far is tiring. First question, Is there an alternative?  Can I break those 2 pieces into smaller pieces? Easier to push-the-carriage to knit the  pieces?

2nd question occurred to me as I handled the prepped swatch.  It was heavier than I expected. I don’t have enough yarn to make a long sleeve sweater (which would be worn during cool weather instead of the warm weather coming up.)  But past experience tells me I won’t wear a tank or sleeveless top made from this heavy of a fabric during our warm summer months. The sleeveless top idea had to be revisited. When would I wear the resulting fabric.  In what style?

This yarn could make an excellent fall/winter cotton sweater.  (I have some purchased cotton beauties I love to wear.) But I want to make summer clothes.

The fabric I have in my swatch/hand, would be good for cool spring and fall as well as winter styles. So maybe a cap sleeve?  South Dakota has long cool springs. T-shirt,  3/4, and short sleeves are good.  Summer cap sleeves are good for avoiding sunburn but again the body of the sweater would have me dripping sweat.  Cap Sleeve- ah no. But that does leave T-shirt, 3/4 and short sleeves.  Worn for several weeks late winter, early spring, parts of summer and fall.

I think I have a shape solution, but what about the number of needles I have to push that carriage across. I look through my massive collection of patterns and find a possibility that will be suitable for the season, the fabric, the sleeve desired and the knitting.  A drop sleeve sweater with short sleeves and knit  side to side i.e. sideways.

If you can read that pattern, it is a miracle!  Unfortunately my beloved Sweater Maker does not chart sideways knitted sweaters.  Knit It Now, of which I am a premium member, does but I’ve only played with their program once.  Now, in my mind, was not the time for a huge software learning curve.  So out comes the pencil with eraser, and a small hand held calculator.

• I knew the row and stitch gauge from sleeveless shell Sweater Maker generated 2 days ago. 8 stitches, 14.29 rows to the inch
• I based garment measurements on previous success.
  • So the width across the hip and tummy need to total 48″. When it is sewn up.  Maybe a little less but 48″ is comfortable and does not ride-up and importantly is not skin tight.
  •  Shoulders need fewer inches but I’m not shaping the sides to make the shoulders narrower.  I want a very simple pattern to knit. So the too-wide shoulder will become drop-shoulder sleeves with a little decorative edging similar to the schematic above.
  • The length of the sweater, when it hangs from  my shoulders to my tush will be knit at 20″ even though I like my tops 23-26″ long, depending upon style.  I calculate for a shorter body length knowing that it it will get longer called “drop” and
  • Plan to knit the ribbing/hem  after the garment is nearly finished and has had a chance to hang and grow. The hem then becomes a good place to correct over all length.

I’ve had to rip and reknit so many garments that It has become  important preparation to make places in the knitting process so that I can make adjustments when I realize there are errors.  Hence the process

• Knit major pieces-for this garment front and back
• Sew back and front of one shoulder together. Finish neckline.  Use cut and sew if needed.  Add a knitted piece, if needed. Just make the dang neckline and shoulders work.
• Check width of garment.  Too big? Cut and Sew  Too Small:  Add side pieces.
• Add sleeves. For this garment knit-on the drop sleeve edgings but for other garments I hang the armscye and knit the sleeve from the top.
• Check it all one more time before adding the hem ribbing.  Garment too short?  Make a complex hem i.e. several swathes of knitting different stitches. It’s a mistake I’ve got to fix. May as well make it interesting.

BACK TO PLANNING THE PROJECT AT HAND

Since I am knitting sideways, I need only 160 needles, the 20″  length of the garment. A bit more  than the 140 needles  that is most comfortable for me, but still doable. I chose a front slit neckline.  Easy, cast off/on.  The inside is the knit side. When the slit flaps about, excuse me, rolls to the outside, it will make a nice neckline collar.   Instead of shaping shoulders as I go, I will stitch them at an angle to join.  At this point, haven’t definitely decided how to handle the hem at the bottom.  It will take less than 196 stitches (24″ for front and again back *8 pre inch so 196 stitches) for a ribbing because you always decrease that number of stitches and tighten the tension so the top will hug your body instead of flare away. Also, as noted above, I’m keeping my mind open in case the 20″ +2″ ribbing I’m planning is too short.

So off I go to knit the major pieces.  Be back.  Can’t say when.  I can do a lot of planning in my chair. But I can’t get things done elsewhere until the chemo lets me.

I’ve done a lot of machine knitting the last few years, but haven’t been really productive. Machine Knitting requires a whole set of advanced skills.  I had a hiatus where I just didn’t knit. Had the machine set up and all, but wasn’t interested.  No mojo.  I expected a little bit of a re-learning curve but am puzzled by what has happened with my knitting.

One of  my biggest issues has been accurate gauge. I was able to salvaged a few sweaters through cut and sew methods, but I tell you, I’ve tossed more yarn and half-done projects than I can remember.  I’ve had yarns that wouldn’t knit the same gauge for 4 pieces. No fooling. I’d knit one piece of a sweater each night.  Same gauge. Same yarn.  Sleeves should look like each other, exactly.  Front and back should closely resemble each other.  None of the 4 pieces were close to the other. Gauge, big problem.

Time and physical ability is a factor.  Knitting 1 piece each night for 4 nights is a necessity in my life. Years back I discovered I could not sit at the machine and knit all day without being ‘crippled up’ for a few days afterward. The  aging, changing body effect has now been accelerated  by chemo + steriods + whatever else they can think of to throw in an IV. Successful sweaters from 2 years ago, aren’t wearable.  They don’t fit my hips or back or just my shape in general. Not to mention that  they’ve stretched out of shape.  I’ve had to rediscover the garment measurements and proportions that work for my physical shape and satisfy me. It can be frustrating, Especially since custom knits are unlikely to have the same drop, and stretch factors that RTW and yardage experience.  Knitting on the home knitter is a whole different experience.

But I persist.  Right now I’ve decided I need to knock out off doing any and all the fancy stuff.  I need to make simple shapes, using plain knitting or preprogrammed stitches. Shapes that may not make me look my best but will make me happy to have.

..And so I begin

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Yes this will be a multi-post project.  You are entirely forgiven if you don’t want to follow along. My intent is to encourage myself to think the project through, identify issues both in advance and as they happen and persist to a wearable completion.  I find a journal type experience to be very helpful.  But I admit freely that others may not find journal entries interesting reads.  

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