Thursday, July 07, 2005

Pictures! Rebecca Wrap! Clapotis capelet!

Woohoo! My (brand new) husband just bought a new digital camera (although I _still_ haven't replaced mine), so I finally have pictures to share of all the projects I've been describing these six+ months. I've inserted them into the relevant entries.

Recently Finished:

CLAPOTIS CAPELET!!!

The Yarn:

Shimmer from Over the Rainbow http://stores.ebay.com/Over-The-Rainbow-Yarns
This is NOT the lace-weight Shimmer from Knit Pics that people have been talking about on the Clapotis 2005 knit-along. (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Clapotisknitalong2005/) Shimmer is a hand-painted Rayon/Silk blend, that knits more-or-less worsted. The colorway is called Shell. I bought two skeins of it (8oz each) with the intention of making a full-sized Clapotis wrap. Since it was an auction, the price varies. I think bidding started at $18 per skein, and I won it at $21.33 per skein. That's INSANELY cheap, compared to Lion & Lamb or Silk Garden. I think I used size 8's, but I could be misremembering. I'll check on that (and on my gauge) and report back.

A Problem:
The colorways on the two skeins were actually quite different. The first (the one in the ebay picture) was predominantly peach with pink and raspberry tones and a touch of delicate yellow. The pinks in the second were much paler, and almost white in sections. Furthermore, yellow was the most predominant color. I figured I'd be able to tone it down by doing two rows from one ball, and then two from another, but I just didn't like the bolder yellow. Here are some swatches I made with the overly-yellow ball:

Don't like the colors, but look at that sheen!

The swatch, by the way, is stockinette followed by garter rib, since I was thinking about making another Asana.

Love my Denise set!

NOTE: I like to complain. This should not be interpretted as a bad review of the vendor. This is a gorgeous yarn, and variations among hand-painted skeins are to be expected. I could have asked the vendor to exchange it, but I only decided that I didn't want it after working with it, so I didn't feel comfortable asking them to take it back. I will definitely use this vendor (and this yarn) again. I will just pay better attention before I start swatching. :)


The Solution:
I frogged. WooHoo! Then I knit up as much as I could, making it shorter and narrower than the pattern called for. The result was big enough to wrap around my shoulders, but had no "tail", and had to be tucked in to be secured. Still, it had a lovely drape, so I tried a bunch of different wrapping variations. My favorite looked quite a lot like a capelet, so I decided to seam it up. IMHO, it looks fabulous. Now I just need more pink clothing...

Pics:

Laid flat

Close-up (this is the truest shot of the color I could get)

Clapotis on, point in front/side

Clapotis on, point in back and off-center

Leftover Yarn Needs a Home:
As I mentioned, I didn't care for the second skein of yarn, which had much bolder yellows in it. If you like it, I'd be happy to part with it. You would get 8oz. of yarn, which the vendor says is about 500 yds. It is enough to make my capelet or a Clapotis in a "typical" scarf size (as opposed to the big, wrap-sized scarf the pattern produces). If you're interested, make me an offer. I paid $21.33 for each skein; tell me you think is fair. I'd also consider a yarn swap! Send me comments, or email me at (the six letters preceeding blogger.com in my URL)@gmail.com.



On the Needles:

Rebecca #12 Wrap With Sleeves - available online for FREE
http://www.rebecca-online.com/en/anleit/heft_12_anl_17.pdf

The Yarn:
GGH Soft Kid in white. I just love this yarn. It's the first luxurious yarn I ever bought in quantity (and my first triple-digit yarn purchase), and I am really pleased. It's very fine and takes some getting used to, but it feels wonderful in your hands and against your face. Sigh.

This gorgeous yarn posing on my handiwork

The yarn tag, just in case you're interested

My Progress:
I've got one sleeve done (although I forgot to photograph it), and about a foot and a half of the wrap. The sleeves are done in stockinette, and the wrap is Fisherman's Rib. I had a lot of trouble interpretting the instructions for the rib, and am still not sure I got it right. I really like how my version looks, though, and I'm getting the right gauge, so I don't really care. :) I'll post my interpretation of the instructions in a later post. I need some lunch!

Some Pics:

My handiwork

Fisherman's Rib close-up

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