Welcome Carla

Apologies for not posting for while. I’ve been knitting away like a crazed guillotine tending Madame Lefarge, and finally Carla is finished. Rejoice!

(Sorry the photos are a little blurry. It’s a grey day here, and even with a flash, I can’t get them any darn sharper.)

I’m pretty pleased with her, given that she’s only my third knitting project now. The pattern (by Debbie Bliss, using Cathay yarn) was quite easy to follow- I think I’d definitely recommend it to a fellow beginner looking to knit something a little more advanced than scarves and flower pot covers. Here’s the back view:

(Have you noticed how everyone has their own special pose they default to when anyone points a camera at them? Mine seems to be elbows out and hands hooked in jeans pockets. Must try to reprogramme myself before posing for our wedding photos in June.)

If I’m being critical, however, (and I’m ALWAYS critical!) there are two things that I’m slightly underwhelmed by:

1. I taught myself to knit from Debbie Bliss’s book How to Knit. The pattern for Carla involves: k2tog, yon. As the yon (or yarn over needle) is worked between two knit stitches, the yon Bliss explains in How to Knit does not work. (Eventually I worked out that the stitch she explains as a yf (or yarn forward) would work instead. I think in US all these kind of stitches are called yo?)

2. I added in an extra 1.5cm in length on the straight waist section, and I still ponder the size of the finished top. Checking the tension, I seem to be 2 rows too tight over 10cm, but only on the length. This top does seem quite snug- I hope it doesn’t shrink too much in the wash. I can’t believe I was even considering making the 34″ bust. (This is the 36″.) Next time I would definitely make the 38″.

On the plus side, though, this Cathay yarn is so lovely and so silky! Here’s hoping the weather warms up enough soon to wear it…