Mrs. Collins Makes Stuff

Hello darling. Here we are with a shiny new finished top. I thought the Mother would like the Heart of Glass top, by Mary Annarella. I had purchased the Illimani Yarn Sabri to knit another top for her, but thought the two would pair well together. The yarn is a gorgeous cotton/ alpaca blend. It is soft and drapey and just really beautiful to work with. I have knit this top before, but as a sweater. I used horrible yarn and it pilled and lost its stitch definition very soon after completing it.

What went wrong?

Not a whole lot, actually. The only thing I can think of was a complete user error. I messed up my wrap and turns on the knit side, I believe. I figured out the correct way to do it, about half-way through the short rows, and fixed how I was doing them. You can see the part that I knit weird if you look for them. I am not looking hard.

What went right?

Pretty much everything. The pattern is great. It is easy to follow and the construction is nice. The lace pattern is easy to memorize and you can adjust it to fit your size needs (says the woman that doesn’t do maths). The top is beautiful and the Mother loves it. It is a great lightweight Spring/ Summer top. The yarn blocked out very nicely. There was a tiny bit of texture in some places, but not enough to interfere with the fabric. I washed it upon completion and was shocked that there was absolutely no color bleed. The water was completely clear after a good 30-minute soak. All in all, she is a fantastic in every way.

I had planned on knitting this top for me, originally, but I am really glad that I gifted it instead. I think the neckline and armholes are more suited to the Mother than me. My one little disappointment was that I thought the top would use all three skeins of yarn. I think I only used about half. This is good, because I can knit something else with remainder. This is bad because I was hoping to use up the whole quantity. I was also proud of myself for having the top completed and to the Mother on Mother’s Day. While it wasn’t her gift, that was the goal date that I had set for myself. So now she is done, and she is lovely, and she will be worn by someone I love very much. I am so happy with the outcome.

Loves,

M