In Which I May Not Have Been Paying Attention

Sometimes you just need to knit something simple.  No fancy lace patterns, no counting knits and purls in a crazy texture - just mindless row after row of stockinette with a little ribbing thrown in to keep you from going to sleep.  That was the idea behind my choice to knit the Trapeze Tunic/Dress.  It was a free pattern from Tahki Stacy Charles and I wanted something to wear with my first ever pair of leggings.  The actual choice to purchase a pair of leggings was edgy enough at my age*, so the companion piece needed to be something easy and quick.  And it was.  Maybe too easy because it seems that there were possibly a few moments when I wasn't paying attention.

I could fit four arms in there

Like not noticing how incredibly deep the armholes had gotten.  And maybe that they were made even deeper when I blocked the thing (I SWEAR I measured).  Or that the number of rows of ribbing below the armholes on the back piece didn't match the number of rows of ribbing under the armholes I'd knit on the front.  The ribbing was already weird because apparently in order to spice up the relative ease of the construction of the dress, the pattern writer inserted random stitch counts for the size I was making that actual planning and logic played no part in.  So rather than steady k2, p2 ribbing, I found myself forced into p2, k2 with a random p3 slipped in on either side which I decided in a fit of complete denial that neither I nor anyone else would notice at all.  This proved untrue.

The good news is, I DID eventually notice all of these imperfections and, once they came to light (read: once I realized I was not going to be able to pretend they weren't there), I commenced to reworking the problem areas, starting with UN-SEAMING THE ENTIRE DRESS.  That's right friends, my denial had remained strong clear through actually putting the project together.  It wasn't until I was wearing this mess for which I have no good excuse in front of a mirror that I got the first painfully clear picture that things did not work out as I had planned.  

Trapeze Tunic - Deconstructed

I plan to pay more attention to v2.0.  Yarn used and a few notes are on my Ravelry project page.

On a happier note, it is Valentine's Day and while I think the holiday is a tad overrated, I always welcome the chocolate The Husband gets for me each year.  In return, I cooked him breakfast (which is rare) and have supper in the crock pot for this evening.  The REAL proof of my love is still in the works.  Behold, it's even in a lovely shade of red:

Chocolate and yarn - Yay!

This is definitely real proof of my affection because after the last sweater I made for TH - the one HE picked out that was done completely in moss stitch in a sport weight yarn (which, incidentally, grew with use) - I wasn't sure that either my love for him or for knitting could convince me to attempt another one.  Love for both won out.

Tubular and gnarly, man...

I made a significant yarn investment for him, choosing Madelinetosh Pasmina Worsted.  Okay, it wasn't just for him - I mentioned before this stuff is dreamy.  I gave him a few pattern choices (none of them in a weight lighter than worsted, thank you) and he chose Jon's Sweater by Sarah Wilson.  I am going all out for this project, even using a lovely tubular cast on for the bottom ribbing and sleeves which looks so much nicer than a regular cast on.  

True love

The back is complete and I was halfway through the front piece when I decided I need to make more of an adjustment for my dear hubby's manly girth (read: his over-40 gut).  I haven't quite decided how to adjust the mid-section.  I'm considering either short rows in the front, or simply knitting the next size in the pattern for the front, keeping the row count the same as the back.  Do you have any advice?  Anyone?

Happy Valentine's Day!
Lisa

*The Husband keeps telling me I'm not old.  He may be right, but I am not a young woman either.  I'm old enough to have realized that while young women choose leggings because they look adorable in them, women my age choose leggings hoping they'll look adorable, but we really just care that they're comfortable.  I mean, have you tried these things?  Super stretchy + One Size Fits All = they're brilliant!  I may never wear anything else.  Now, I'm off to eat some chocolate...