Knititude

Sedalia Tank

The Sedalia* Tank from Knitted Tanks and Tunics has lots of knitterly details that I really enjoyed incorporating into the design (but they do make this project a better choice for an experienced than a novice knitter). The simple lace columns on the body are carried into a floral lace motif on the upper front and back, and the waist is shaped with side decreases. All edges are self-finished, and the lace pattern creates an attractive wavy edge along the armholes.

I decided to add gussets under the arms (see above photo) because I wanted to shape the armholes with just decreases, and not bind off any stitches, since the transition from bound off stitches to the armhole sides would have been hard to finish nicely without adding an edging. But without the bound off stitches, I thought the armholes would be too deep, since the underarm stitches would have to be removed more gradually by decreases. And that's where the gussets came in: they fill in the area between the initial armhole shaping decreases, keeping the armhole from being too deep.

Another knitterly detail: the shallow scooped necklines, slightly deeper on the front than the back. (Sedalia can also be worn backwards if you like the deeper neckline in the back-- or even worked with the front and back identical, using either the deeper or the shallower neckline.) I shaped the necklines using short rows, and also used short rows to shape the shoulders. 

I thought the crisp stitch definition of Classic Elite Yarns Provence would be a great match for this design; it also has a pretty sheen from the mercerized Egyptian cotton, wears really well, and comes in many lovely shades. I used it for one of my earliest designs, the Wisteria child's sleeveless dress, and have been fond of it ever since. Alas, I found out recently that Classic Elite Yarns is closing its doors! This was very sad news for me-- CEY has been one of my go-to yarn companies, and I used two of their other yarns, Firefly and  Sanibel, for the Yuma and Odessa tunics in Knitted Tanks and Tunics.

I will miss you, CEY!

And I suggest that if you are thinking of making Sedalia, and want to use Provence yarn, you purchase some sooner rather than later. If looking for a substitute yarn, I have found yarnsub.com to be valuable resource.

All photos except 2nd-- copyright Tom Moore Studios!

(By the way, Sedalia was previously published as an individual pattern, the Madaket Tank, and is still available as an individual PDF download).

*Named after Sedalia, MO: Another town that I would love to visit someday.

 

Yuma Tunic

The Yuma Tunic may seem impractical-- one-shouldered?? All lace?? Balancing a baby on one hip while wearing Yuma may not be for everyone.... On the other hand, it's simpler than you might think to knit, it's quite flattering, and you can use it as a layering piece, over a tank or a t-shirt.

This tunic is quite simple in construction: it's really an angled tube, with one side of the tube separated into front and back and shaped for the armhole, and then joined at the top for the shoulder. The diagonal hem and neckline are created by the natural biasing of the lace pattern. After I noticed this biasing while making a swatch, I tried another swatch, changing the direction of the decreases and yarnovers, and when the fabric slanted in the other direction, I got the idea of using the two mirror image lace patterns to create the front and back of a top.

I found a really special yarn for Yuma: Classic Elite Yarns (CEY) Firefly, a DK-weight blend of linen and viscose. The linen has a slightly rough, dry texture, and some fine fibers which give the yarn a slight halo, almost as if it had mohair or angora in it (but it doesn't!), while the viscose adds drape and sheen. And the colors are stunning; I decided on Bronze, a rich dark gold, but it was hard to choose between Bronze, Hyacinth (a metallic gray-violet) and Mermaid (silvery teal). For this design, it's worked on larger needles than suggested on the ball band (US 7 instead of US 5) to create even more drape, creating a light and airy fabric.

I used CEY yarns for two other projects in Knitted Tanks and Tunics-- Provence for the Sedalia Tank and Sanibel for the Odessa Tunic-- but they are very different. Provence is a classic DK-weight plied cotton yarn, with a firm hand and great stitch definition, but not a lot of drape, while Sanibel is a very drapey, worsted weight tape yarn made of a blend of cotton and viscose. My blog post about the Odessa Tunic goes into more detail about Sanibel yarn, and I plan to post about the Sedalia Tank and Provence yarn soon.

(All photos copyright Tom Moore Studios)

Related articles

Odessa Tunic from Knitted Tanks and Tunics

Odessa Tunic from Knitted Tanks and Tunics

Classic Elite Yarns (CEY) is one of my favorite yarn companies; over the years I've used their yarns in many of my designs, including the Anjou sleeveless top (Provence), the Dayflower Camisole (Premiere), the Wisteria Child's Dress (Provence), and the Lutea Shell (Sundance). The Lutea shell was the first design I published in Interweave Knits, back in Summer 2007, and at the time Pam Allen was the editor there-- but she left shortly afterward to become creative director at CEY (and has since moved on to Quince & Co.).

I used CEY yarns for three of the designs in Knitted Tanks and Tunics: the Odessa Tunic, the Sedalia Tank, and the Yuma Tunic. They are all quite different (as are the three yarns I used). 

The Odessa Tunic, in Sanibel yarn, is worked flat and sideways, in four pieces, and then seamed at the sides and the center front and back. All pieces are worked from the center out, with increases shaping the neck, and short rows shaping the armholes, so I decided not to complicate matters by adding any waist shaping, and used a twisted cord tie at the waist instead.

My favorite feature of this tunic is the subtle contrast between the plain knit body and the lace "skirt," and this was really inspired by the yarn. I spotted the yarn in a yarn store four or five years ago, in the same color (Maize) I ended using in this tunic, and was intrigued by the subdued variegation, the ribbon construction, and by the unusual mix of matte and shiny (it's composed of cotton and rayon/viscose). When I started swatching with it, I was struck by two things: its beautiful drape, and how different the variations in color and texture showed up in stockinette compared to lace. So I knew I wanted to put lace and stockinette together in this design, and then it just became a matter of finding the right lace pattern. 

I also love how versatile this tunic is. It can be worn over jeans, like in the photos, or over a tank or slip dress or leggings, and the waist tie can be cinched in at the natural waist, or allowed to sit just above the hips, or left loose (or omitted!). 

And finally, it was a fun project-- the lace pattern is easy to memorize, the neck and armhole edges are self finished, and the body seams are simply whipstitched (when sewing the lace sections, the lace pattern makes it easy to line up the pieces, but in the stockinette stitch sections, you have to be a little careful to line up the columns of stitches on each piece). And the twisted tie belt is fun to make, but if you've never done one, be prepared for LOTS of twisting! Or you can use a hand mixer... (lots of videos on Youtube!).

(All photos copyright Tom Moore Studios)