quick, cute, conflicted

C's Tee

This is the last thing I finished before my Summer of Not Knitting: a sweet little top for my small friend Cecilia, who loves wearing handknits made especially for her.

The pattern is Alice Tee by Helen Rose, and the yarn is (of course) Wollmeise Pure in the mindblowing Rittersporn (Delphinium) colorway. I'd heard people rave about this color but hadn't seen it in person until I got this skein. The camera does not do it justice. It seems to glow with its own purple-y inner light.

It was a quick knit and a well-written pattern (although of course I made some modifications, because patterns are made to be ignored adapted).*

Cute, isn't it? Except I hated it. I hated it and I was on a deadline: Cecilia's new sibling was due within days, and I needed to get a package posted off to England for them.

But even after blocking, this piece curled and curled, at the hem and even at the sleeve cuffs. (Look at those tiny sleeves! There isn't enough cuff to curl! But they were curling.) Curliest damned stockinette stitch I have ever encountered.

Rittersporn,
glowing with its own
purple-y inner light

yep, the sleeves are still curling it's gorgeous!

I knew it needed a good steaming and possibly some bias tape sewn in, but my itis-y elbow precluded precision hand-sewing and it was HOT for ironing. Who wants to wield steam when it's 90+ degrees? (I've mentioned our record-breaking Long Hot Summer in a previous post, but I'll say it again: it was a scarily persistent hot, dry summer and I found it difficult to bear.)

So I tossed it aside for more than a month...and I felt anxious every time I looked at it. Then I covered it up so I couldn't see it, which helped.

I didn't get to finish steaming 

Finally, on one of the hotter days of this hot summer (did I mention it was hot?), I broke down and fired up the iron, then started steaming those damned curly edges. It was immensely satisfying to watch them submit. I went over the hem two or three times, then started on the sleeves...and suddenly noticed a distinct lack of steam. No steam, no pleasant whooshing noise, no evocative hot-iron smell, and very little heat. I touched the sole plate and did not get burned (please don't try this at home). The heat of the day must have been too much for it. My iron had expired.

But it was enough. C's curly tee was redeemed! I loved it again and I loved the whole world with it (besides, I'd been wanting a new iron). I slapped it on a hanger and ventured out into the glaring sunshine of climate apocalypse to take a few photos.

Cecilia loves it.



*For Knitters Only: I changed the increases to be more noticeable (more decorative) in the yoke section and less noticeable in the body (going down either side of the lace "placket"). I can't remember the actual increases I used, though, and sadly I did not make notes at the time.