Here’s some knitting for this wonderful WIP Wednesday. A little while back, I received a message in my e-mail from Chic Knits announcing a new pattern by Bonne Marie Burns called Abria. Bonne Marie is one of my very favorite designers. She designed the incredibly gorgeous Cassidy sweater that I knitted last year.
Anyway, when I opened the e-mail from Chic Knits, I took one look at Abria…
A picture of the first page of my working copy of the pattern
and thought, Oh! That is a beautiful little sweater. Wouldn’t it look lovely on my soon-to-be-DIL? So, I sent her a link to the pattern, and I sent her a link to the yarn. I asked her if she would like a sweater in this pattern and if so, which color? Her answer was a resounding YES!, and she chose a gorgeous color that will look fabulous on her.
Here’s what I have to show you so far.
This picture is pretty close to the actually color of the yarn.
The yarn is Classic Elite Firefly in the color Thistle. It’s a lovely slightly reddish light purple. The sheen is mostly an artifact of the flash when I took the picture; in real live, the yarn doesn’t have quite that much sheen. It is 75% vicose (think Rayon) and 25% linen.
This yarn is surprisingly lovely to knit with. It is softer off the ball than pure linen yarn, and it knits a little closer to it’s blocked gauge than pure linen. When it’s washed, it gets even softer, and the viscose has a beautiful sheen, and the drape is soft. This will be a great three-seasons sweater, a light-weight, little cardigan that can be thrown on over a sundress, tank top, or T-shirt to dress up an outfit or to take the chill off a cool summer evening or crisp spring or autumn morning.
I love the design of this sweater. It is knit in one piece–Let’s hear it for no seaming!– and has lots of shaping to keep it looking tailored and some lace to add a feminine touch. The shaping is done mostly with the standard k2tog and ssk, and some of the shaping becomes a visible design feature. There are also some well-placed short rows that add a little length to the fronts. It is a clever design that is very easy to knit, although I would definitely not recommend it for a novice knitter.
Front view of my Abria. The color isn’t even close in this picture.
A view of the back of my Abria. The color is a little closer to reality, but not quite there.
I have 19 more rows to knit on the body, then four rows of hem ribbing and the body will be done. The sleeves should go pretty quickly because they are not-quite three-quarter sleeves.But, of course, sleeves always take longer than you think, am I right?
I should have this sweater done before the next Stanley Cup champion is crowned. Who will it be? The Kings or the Rangers? Your guess is as good as mine, but if I were a betting person, my money would be on the Kings. Henrik Lundqvist is an extraordinary goal tender, and the Rangers are sizzling hot right now, so I definitely wouldn’t rule them out. But the Kings had to win a game seven in every round, so I think they just have the determination and grit it takes to win.
All Kinds Of Knitting 