Saturday, July 07, 2007

Josephinished!


I am thrilled with my Josephine Top. This is probably my most fitting-est knit to date, and maybe the fussiest, too. And it turned out exactly as I'd hoped it would. Yay!

Pattern: Josephine Top from the summer 2007 Interweave Knits
Size: 40.5 inch bust (2.5 inches of ease)
Yarn: Pingouin Transat (50% cotton/50% acrylic), colour 25
Needles: 3.75mm circular; 3.25mm circular (for armhole edge only)


It was not terribly difficult to knit this, but the finishing was time-consuming -- I probably spent as much time finishing as I did knitting the front and back pieces. Hey, I'm primarily a sock knitter, so things like picking up precisely 68 stitches around the neck opening takes me forever. But now that it's done, it was well worth the fuss. I'm pleased with how this fits me. I'm also very pleased that I've used the four balls of Pingouin Transat that I bought last year at Value Village for $5.99! Woot!


(My awesome bakelite necklace was made by PetitOiseau -- my fault it's hanging all crooked in these shots, not hers!)

I love the textured stitch pattern in the top half of Josephine: the little purl bumps amid the stockinette are a really nice detail. I also love the little cap sleeves, which fit really well thanks to some short rows. The moss stitch on the sleeves echoes the moss stitch (with eyelets) in the bottom half of the top. It's a clever pattern, and I didn't change a thing. Several people who have knit this have replaced the knitted cord with ribbon, and I considered that, too, because I thought the pattern called for i-cord, and that would be insane. But no, for the cord you just cast on a few hundred stitches and then bind them off. Easy, and I like the result (although I may have gone too light on the steam, as the cord still looks a little curly).


So there you have it: my new BFF, Josephine. Good timing, too, since it's not super warm here these days.

Enjoy your weekend. I'm going to try a little handquilting -- wish me luck with the rocking stitch!

61 comments:

Anonymous said...

Your Josephine looks great. I'm making my first-ever knitted garment right now (it's Camisa from Knitscene Fall06) and while I'm loving the knitting, I'ma also a nervous wreak! I hope it turns out as nice as your piece.
Love your blog - the knitting as well as the sewing projects. You have a great sense of style!
--Jennifer

Montreal Mama said...

Oh it's fabulous! Love the color and love it on you!!!!

Debi said...

Very pretty and very flattering!

Cari said...

I love it!

Alison said...

It looks great! I'm glad it turned out so well. :)

spajonas said...

very cool top! and i love your hair too :)

Anonymous said...

i already said this on ravelry, but i seriously love how your josephine came out. it looks amazing on you!

Chris said...

It looks a lot cuter on you than I remember it looking in the magazine!

Anonymous said...

It looks great!

Anonymous said...

Not sure which I love best - Josephine, your haircut, or that Bakelite necklace.

rockbridge said...

It fits you like a dream! It's not everyday that you slave away at a knitted top only to have it work out... perfectly - congratulations! Oh, and I love that color...

Anonymous said...

That is so pretty, fits perfectly too! I'm the same as Jennifer, just starting my fist garment!

La Cabeza Grande said...

Holy mackerel! That's pretty swank looking: color, fit, pattern and execution. Well done!

Now if I could just finish some things to make way for one of my own...

goodkarma said...

Yes, this is a really great piece for you! I love the color you chose. It could look a bit too girly if you picked out something pastel, you know? But as is, it's just summer beautiful. Enjoy!

Jessica said...

Congrats on Josephine. It looks great.
I can't wait to see your quilting. I'm starting to quilt too.

PCR said...

Your top looks fantastic! Excellent job with the finishing. It does look way cuter on you than on the model in the magazine.

Anonymous said...

dude, i LOVE your hair right now. i guess you haven't shown a full head shot in a while or (more likely) i just haven't been paying attention. but wow, it's awesome! :)

Anonymous said...

I've been looking at Josephine for a while now. How close to your measurements did you knit? Is this a top for negative or only slight ease? It looks lovely on - great colour and lovely fit.

Robin said...

Your Josephine looks so good! I love the colour - especially on you. I may have to put this one on my to do list.

Violet said...

ooh, i like yours even better than the one in interweave! maybe i should add this to my neverending to-knit list!

LaurieM said...

It's very cute and I could see it being an all seasons knit too. I think a black ribbon would look darling.

Peacock Chic said...

Wow congratulations cause that is super cute. I didn't really want to make it before, but now I am feeling the draw of the Josephine. Lovely color on you too.

lori said...

your josephine looks fab! but so does your hair cut -- and your neckalce!

nicely done ms. brainy!

Adrienne said...

Its BEAUTIFUL!

melissa said...

josephine looks great, and i love how your hair looks in these pictures too. cute all around! :)

Anonymous said...

wowza. you look amazing, and that top is amazing. so freaking delightful.

Anonymous said...

You look superfantastic on all counts :-)

Elizabeth said...

Hey, yours turned out great! So cool that we finished them at the same time. Really nice job, and I can't believe you made it for $5.99!

Trish said...

Wow, it looks great! And wasn't all the extra time doing the finishing worth it? (I hate finishing, so I have to keep saying that to myself, and now to you.... :)

trish
www.randomthreads.com

Anonymous said...

What a beautiful woman you are!

Karine said...

Très joli!

Joan said...

That was well worth the effort. It fits you beautifully.

Anonymous said...

Great Work Dolly!

Laura said...

So pretty! And what a lovely color!

Bertha said...

Oh wow, that turned out awesome! It looks fabulous on you! I love it!

shannon said...

It's really pretty! I love the color against your skin...just lovely.

Sarah said...

That looks so beautiful! Congrats on a great new sweater!

jen said...

Very nice... I'll have to have a second look at that pattern...

Anonymous said...

It's gorgeous, and so are you!

Stacey said...

that is absolutely adorable!!!!!!

Unknown said...

Absolutely beautiful!

Anonymous said...

It's beautiful and I love that color but can never find it anywhere.

knittingphilistine said...

Oh, wow, what a great little knit top! It looks fantastic on you. And now I must be off to add it to the very top of my Ravelry queue. I mean, really, how could I not?? FAN-tastic!

Frieda said...

Super ! Looks terrific on you ! Congratulations on another beautiful knit.

Anonymous said...

Very cute top - and you look so happy!

lomester said...

That looks fantastic on you!

Another job well done!

Anonymous said...

so cute! love all the little details in the pattern. and i love your hair, too!

Anonymous said...

looks great!

Dr. Steph said...

Beautiful! It looks fantastic on you.

Anonymous said...

yeeee haw! it' looks great!

and i must not have seen a full shot of you recently: love your hair it looks great.

i'm tempted by this top: but the low cut? i'm a little large.. and kinda big on top... so that intimidates me. *sigh* ah well.

great job! well worth the fussiness!

Anonymous said...

Love it! And I love your hair!!

Maggi said...

Oh, I love it! Just beautiful on you. How'd the quilting go? I just did my first bit of the old rocking stitch ~

Deb said...

So. Cute!

Anonymous said...

Oh, well done! I'm impressed with the growth over time that I've seen in your knitting skills. You just continue to tackle new things, and amaze us all. Congrats!

Peevish said...

That's GORGEOUS. It suits you perfectly!

Anonymous said...

Hello! Perfect size, perfect color, how'd you do that? Plus you look great, and I LOVE the hair. Damn girl, bring it!

Lolly said...

Wow! it looks wonderful! I saw a great one yesterday, and then I see yours today... I am liking this sweater more and more :) Enjoy!

Kim said...

Looks great!

Anonymous said...

That's it. I have to knit that. It looks better on you than in the magazine.

Mandy said...

So beautiful! This looks fantastic on you, Alison, and I freaking love your hair.

Anonymous said...

Great top - love the color! Hi to Mooky btw - your Mooky looks a lot like my Jack (another curious black cat with green eyes :)