Sunday, September 30, 2007

Pretty on the Outside...

Okay y'all have caught some glimpses of Crimson Croquette while in progress, and CeeCee was actually finished at the BAM knit night earlier in the week when we were acting crazy.

Now that I have broken it in by wearing it out Friday night to a party and thoroughly discussed the ups and downs of it at my fav LYS with all my knit buddies on Saturday, I have some project details.
~Project Details~

Pattern: Fitted Knits Coquette Tube Top.
My first project out of this pattern book. Errata for this book is located here.

Needles: Denise US5 & 7

Size: Too dang big!!! Just to be clear that is not a happy face in the above pic. Haha!
As I told Michelle who thought it looked fine from the pics, things are not always what they appear to be! Pretty on the outside...a mess on the inside! :oD

I accounted for negative ease and read how everyone that made this top said it was too big for them (which was always my concern the entire time I knitted this garment). I went down a size and made the 32.5" even though I am a 36" bust. I should have done the 30" bust. But I think I still would of had problems with the top ribbing stretching out!

I did make gauge! And I tried it on again about 1/2 of the way in and knew that it would be "loose". You should not be able to wear a shirt under a freaking tube top!
I have more "top" than "tube". :op But I pressed on because I didn't think it was that bad, just not ideal.
BTW I am hearing that alot of the pattern sizes, based on your actual bust measurement, in this book are running a bit big from others who are knitting them. How in the heck is this called Fitted Knits if nothing is close fitted!?!

One of the bloggers I like to "stalk", Knitensity, just made the Split Neck Tee from Fitted Knits, and made a really good point about shaping a garment. And how she rather do back shaping versus bust shaping since boobage (or in my case booblets as well Haha!) gives some curve in the front, but the back is just there...looseThat is just a hot mess! One of my knitter pals Fairiegirl tried it on and she has a 42" bust and the back was STILL too big at the top ribbing!! WITW!!!

I am convinced that the model in the book has clips on her freakin' back!! LOL

Even in the book it does show some slight "waves" at her waist. Plus the model is probably wearing the XS size, however she has 6 lace repeats on her garment which actually is called for in the larger size starting at 37" no way she is wearing that size, because she is the size of a pretzel stick!!

Yarn: Cascade Yarns Pima Tencel (what the pattern called for to use), 4 balls.
I originally purchased 4 balls thinking I was going to make the 35" bust. But went down to the 32.2" size which only calls for 3 balls.
How about I needed the entire 4 balls for the smaller size and still didn't knit the full 6" on the bottom ribbing. Therefore, would have truly called for 5 balls! So be careful about how much the book calls for the recommended balls of yarn.

Also......I HATE THIS YARN!! And will NEVER use it again. I SHEDS like crazy! Love the color, hate the yarn! It even had a little "slub" in my yarn that did not make me happy and you can see it on the garment.

In fact, this yarn reminds me of the Knit Picks Shine Sport yarn (which I don't like either b/c it pills like crazy) but at least that one doesn't shed as much like this one.

Look at this mess that was on my chocolate pants from when I went out the other night.

I will spare you from the pics of my chocolate strapless lace bra! Ugh!

I knew right away when I started knitting with it that I was going to have issues with shedding. I would get up from knitting and a red haze was all over my clothes. I read on someone's blog (can't remember who since I tend to look at a few hundred LOL) that this yarn sheds.

But I did a double check with Robin who just loves this yarn, and she said that it really didn't shed that much. Well not for me! After I tried it on again yesterday at the LYS everyone was just surprised at how much residue was left on my hiney!

By the end of the day everyone had little red balls all over them! It traveled onto them too!! LOL

Cost: $16 for the yarn/$.20 for the chocolate ribbon

Time: You could knit this up in a few days. It is a fast knit, but of course depends on how often you work on it. And I don't knit on the same project consistently. I told y'all I have Knitters ADD!! :op
What I learned/Modifications: I finally used my
I love the smell of lavender!

And did my very first soak!
Mmh but Eucalan really doesn't suds up that much. Will have to try my Soak potion on the next one.

And you do remember I implemented the technique of putting in a lifeline! LOL

Other than that nothing big and exciting. This was more of my "firsts" than anything.

Speaking of "firsts" this was my first major blocking on a garment, as any good knitter would do!
BIG mistake on this project! It stretched out even more!! Ugh!! (See the yarn "slub" on the right side! shish)

And it was not because I intentionally spread the garment out wide (b/c I wasn't that crazy), but this yarn is soft and ended up relaxing some more!

Of course your genius girl (not!) decided to throw it in the dryer when it was almost dry to get it to 'spring' back some.....um no help LOL and just ended up just making a ton more of red balls everywhere!

I also knew I didn't want the full 6" for the bottom ribbing and only did about 3.5". I originally thought I wanted to have 6 repeats but in the end glad I only did the 5 repeats.

As far as the top ribbing, maybe I should have casted on for less stitches for a snugger fit and then increase for the body? Gone down another needle size? However, I did get gauge. But then I have heard how you can possibly get a different gauge when you knit in the round. Maybe I should have learned how to do some back shaping? LOL Who knows!

I also did bind off too tight on this project (surprise surprise), but in this case it is a mute point since this knitted object sadly won't be worn again...sigh. It will now reincarnate into a throw/accent pillow...or something I can't wear! LOL


Verdict: I know I said alot about a project that ended up being a dud. But I wanted everyone to know my ups and downs about a project that I do, because Hey! you may want to do it. Besides, I hate when knitters don't give the good, bad, and ugly about their knits and just throw it up like all went well!
Plus, I type up all these notes for my own personal records! :op
I WOULD knit this up again because I really did enjoy knitting it. But I would definitely select a different yarn! And of course adjust for sizing to fit much closer. I won't be doing it again anytime soon, but it may pop back up sometime next year...who knows!
I must close out with a pic of me at the chocolate party which was one of the main reasons I wanted Cee Cee done before the end of the month. It was fabulous wearing it for all of 5 hours! LOL Well, not really since I couldn't dance how I wanted to in it! So I could "party like a rockstar" :op Haha

39 Comments:

  1. tina said...
    Well thanks for such a nice detailed 'spill' about the top! I too, love to hear all the dirt good and bad. Now I have to say, regardless of the woes with the top, it is dang cute! And being the resourceful knitter than you are, I just know that you are going to find the perfect way to make it a GO GO GO!

    I bet EVERYONE oogled over it when you wore it out!!
    Still Patrice said...
    Okay! That was A LOT to read. Lol But that RED is so pretty and the top came out great. Too bad it didn't fit properly. You looked cute in it though!
    Erica Bunker said...
    That red is so pretty! I love this tube top! This would look great layered on top of a classic white shirt! What a great wardrobe addition!
    a friend to knit with said...
    love the journey of the coquette tube top! thanks for the tip on the yarn.....i HATE when yarn sheds!
    i actually think it looks fabulous on you!
    Anonymous said...
    It looks so cute though! Darn. Thank you for being honest about all the drawbacks...I agree, it sucks when people just post cute posed shots of their knitting and don't give guidance to people who might want to wear something in the real world. I for one, will never buy that yarn after reading your post. Yuck! The top is really, really cute though.
    funfairiegirl said...
    yeah - when I put it on and it was still big on me ... I mean I have serious boobage and I shouldn't have had bagginess on the 32.5" size!!!! Seriously. but it is pretty. and it will make a nice pillow.
    Cas... said...
    Very cute top! Too bad about the size though. I would hate that too. But you know most people won't realize how it is supposed to fit actually and you can re-create it to a fashion plus instead of a minus by repurposing the top like Erica B said. I think it would look cute with a top underneath it. Something fitted with fun sleeves! You know what I mean?
    Anonymous said...
    ROFL @ party like a rockstar!!! hehehe!!!

    you know i'm loving that color on you, but i'm mad about the yarn "flaking" out like that!!! >:( NOT good. i feel for ya. i took my chance with the berroco and wasn't happy with it, so i definitely feel for ya.

    i was thinking i wanted to try knitting the top, but i'd have to choose a different yarn if i do because that's just not acceptable with all that spillage/pilling all over the place!!!

    keep us posted on it and can't wait to see your next knit in progress. your smile reminds me of tocarra from america's next top model. makes me wanna scream, "FABULOUS!" ROFL!!!
    cpurl17 said...
    It does look cute on you and I'm glad it did't fall off or anything!

    The shedding would have annoyed me too.
    Jeanine said...
    I'm sorry you deemed this project a dud. It IS a pretty red. Maybe you can clip it up in the back and rock it with a cute cropped jacket? I've yet to try the yarn because of your complaint about the yarn shedding.
    Anonymous said...
    I have to admit I had my doubts as I was reading. However, I think it looked fabulous on you in the last picture! Wow.
    Wendy said...
    You are just beautiful girl! Too bad the tube top didn't help to show you off. But to save the knit by turning it into a pillowcase sounds like a great idea. And if it's still pilling, I'd try washing it again and putting it in the dryer to help collect the lint. I've done that with other bought knits and it seemed to help sometimes.
    Anonymous said...
    it looks really cute stacey, you are so tiny, look at you, the color is great, sorry it shed that much but I had some and it felt so silk,, good thing I decided to get rid of it, but at least the top is CUTE!!!!
    Adrienne said...
    Very cute girl! Even if it is a little big and it shed!! Good job! :-)
    Anonymous said...
    Beautifully done! But you're right, it is big on teeny you!
    Unknown said...
    Very cut top.

    Have you considered running seams up the sides to make it fit better?

    Thanks for the info about the yarn.
    SissySees said...
    I too hate shedding/pilling, but it's a cute top. I hope you can come up with a way to make it functional, because it is darling, it really is.

    Thanks for taking the time to fill us in on all of the details. I've found I rarely use yarn to the same "rate" that the pattern suggests. I either have way too much - the bamboo vest - or barely enough.
    Sheila said...
    The CeCe came out great although you felt the fit was not right, but hey the objective was you did it and learned from it. It would make a great pillow too.
    Carmell said...
    do is this your first shirt from this book...cause i just bought this book and i'm not as good as you at adjusting to fit... i don't want to have to do that. i hope not all the patterns are this off!

    i like this though. i'm sorry you had so much drama with it. you looked good in it. despite the shedding. you think maybe you just got a bad batch??
    CaveGurl said...
    Thanks for giving us the good, the bad, and the honest end result! ;) I guess I'm guilty of not being totally honest about the whole process on some of my knits.

    I'm sorry that your tube top did turn out well, but that was a really great idea to make it into an accent pillow. If you got some red, chocolate, or black satin or silk for the base pillow, that would be really pretty!
    KimT said...
    its super cute on you so I say that makes it worht it all!
    KelInCal said...
    I'm sorry that didn't work out for you, on so many levels! The yarn is a beautiful color and looks wonderful on you, but the shedding is shocking! You look great in it, in any case.

    It's also shocking that other patterns in the book might be flawed in this way. I'm planning to knit one for my daughter for Christmas and now I'm going to have to do some research on it - especially considering that I've already bought the yarn and it might not be enough!!

    Thanks for all the details and honesty!
    Anonymous said...
    WAAAAAAAAIT!! I hope you haven't sewn the top and bottom closed yet for that pillow!!

    I had the SAME problems with my Coquette. Well, except for all that red fuzz. Saggy upper ribbing and too wide in back.

    I threaded a yarn needle with some THIIIIIN elastic and wove it in and out all along the cast on row on the top of the garment. Do this while you're WEARING it around your waist at least. LOL Once you've gone all the way around, put the garment into the spot where it'll be worn and pull on the ends of the elastic until it's snug enough to your liking. Tie the ends into a secure knot, hide said not in the ribbing and you good to go!! :)

    I know it's a little loose around the waist (I think this pattern REALLY needs some waist shaping and that the model DOES have hers pinned in the back!!).

    But I still LOVE your red coquette and how it looks on you.
    Lorette said...
    That last photo of you in the "tube" looks great, despite the fact that the project turned out to be a dud. You look fabulous in red, girl.
    Thanks for the detailed review of the yarn, pattern, and knitting process. It's probably more helpful overall than a lot of project posts I've seen. And I'd bet my Knitpicks Options kit that they did use clips in the official photo.
    You could try sewing in some fake seams in the sides for shaping, though it might end up looking bulky. Or maybe one seam down the back to cinch it in, then wear it under a short jacket.
    Robin said...
    Sorry it didn't end up working out! I believe in being honest about my knits that don't work out too - and I do have a number of them - especially lately!

    What if you threw it in the dryer to try to shrink it down??
    Renee said...
    I thought that top looked familiar. The Knitting Virgin just frogged hers because she had the same problem with hers. http://treasuregoddesschic.blogspot.com/2007/09/its-my-party-and-ill-frog-if-i-want-to.html
    diddlinaknits said...
    Man, i hate when that happens. It really is a great pattern and you looked awesome in it. For sure a learning experience lol. I hope you make it again sometime in the future.
    Mama said...
    Sorry it wasn't your dream project (you still have LIZZIE to gaze upon!); I have to say that you do look really good in the final shot!
    Octopus Knits said...
    Thanks for all the info. Sorry the top didn't turn out how you expected, but it sounds like you learned a bunch!
    Monique said...
    Very, very nice! You look great in it! You did a great job!
    Jada said...
    I hate it didn't work out for you!It did look cute on you!

    I hate that top kept you from partying like a rock star!!HaHa
    Liz said...
    The picture of you wearing it out looks amazing. But I totally see what you are saying in the other pictures, and especially the back picture. It doesn't shape in at the waist at all, does it? I have seen patterns that have a kind of rib semi circle at the sides to create some shaping.

    How frustrating for you, though, it really is a pretty top...just too big!

    You could make it into a cushion!!!!
    WandaWoman said...
    I'm sorry it didn't work out for you. I can't recall if it was you or someone else that mentioned that Shine Sport sheds terribly too. It's something about the super soft yarn that tends to shed/pill.

    I didn't realize from the preview picture that the top you were working on was a tube top. I would say to wear the tube top as a tank over another shirt like Erica suggested.
    Reckless Glue said...
    cute, cute cute! looks sooooo good on you! Red is definitely your colour, but I guess you know that already haha!
    Funessa said...
    This is sooo cute! Too bad it's so big. My "Busted" Root turned out too wide, and I sewed up the seams on the inside. It's not too bulky, and it fits much better now.
    Anonymous said...
    I'm sorry this top didn't work out like you wanted but I sure learned a lot from your post! It's so pretty, I hate when you're disappointed by something that looks so good.

    BTW, I've used Soak & it doesn't suds up that much either.
    Kamika said...
    I'm all late. LOL. Sorry it didn't work out. Yep, tencel tends to stretch while being worked and in the wash.

    Have you considered making it into a skirt? Drop it below your hips and see how it looks. The extra room in the back may be perfect for your behind.
    Ms. Lee said...
    But Stacey, it's really pretty though. I was wondering if you could get one of those big craft needles and take in a half inch to an inch on each side to make it fit. (Yes, I know the yarn sheds, but I had a mohair sweater that I put in the freezer and it stopped shedding. Might work for yours...) But it's so pretty, I'd hate for it to go to waste!
    Janet Richards said...
    I like it!! It is too cute, and well worth the journey.

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