…and how I got there, aka adventures in applied i-cord.
My Ruffle Tank is done.
I love it. It’s perfect. My favorite FO of the year. This is the picture I sent to my friend Diane. We had been discussing applied i-cord edgings via email and text. She wanted to see the FO, which I was wearing hot off the needles, and I didn’t have a picture yet. So I took one.
I started this project last year, after seeing Leigh Radford, its designer, wear hers to knit night. I knit on mine last year until Sock Summit, when I lost my annotated instructions at Deb Accuardi’s pre-summit luncheon/yarn tasting. My fault, not hers! I set the project aside in a fit of pique.
Fast forward to last month, when I finally felt that I could face puzzling out what I had done on the back, so the front would match.
What was I waiting for? I wish I had finished this last year; it’s so much fun to wear.
Ruffle Tank by Leigh Radford
Smallest size 37.5 (and modified smaller)
Louet MerLin Sport Weight, 3 skeins French Blue
Lantern Moon Ebony circulars, US size 3
Mods: I eliminated the keyhole neckline on the back; it was pretty but I wasn’t looking forward to i-cording around it, and I knew I’d never unbutton/button it. I also made the tank shorter overall (because I’m short), and narrower than the smallest size by 4 sts on the front and 4 sts on the back to try to get it to be closer to 36 inches.
After applying my i-cord edging to the neckline, I could no longer get the sweater over my head easily! This is what prompted me to chat up Diane, who had the same issue with the armholes of a tank top. She solved it by crocheting the edge instead. I wasn’t willing to give up yet, because I had already had a discussion with Leigh about i-cord and right and wrong sides, and I really wanted to do it her way. After googling around a bit, I came upon some suggestions to work the i-cord without always attaching it every row. Yarnpath and Mason-Dixon Knitting, were particulary helpful. Armed with this advice, I picked up sts from the wrong side and worked the applied i-cord edging, working an unattached row of i-cord after every 3 attached rows. It worked like a charm. The armholes were still a bit snug using this ratio, so I re-knit them working an unattached row of i-cord after every 2 attached rows. Perfect. And the unattached rows are undetectable to the naked eye. I finished using the Purlbee’s excellent kitchener stitch tutorial (yes, I started with a provisional cast on).
I worked my i-cord using an SSK to attach it to the edge of the tank; I liked this better than PSSO or k2tog. I picked up several sts at a time on the body, like Kelly Petkun did in this video. I also slipped the sts back to the left needle, rather than sliding the dpn through. You can do yours any way you like.
I haven’t washed the garment yet because I wanted to wear it yesterday to work and to knit nite. I don’t know how the fabric will react to the washer and dryer; it may get a lot more relaxed. (I know, I didn’t wash my gauge swatch, naughty me.) I did steam it a bit to relax the ribbing, and the fabric took on a lovely drape. I would happily make another of these. If I do it again, I’ll knit it in the round (it took me 6 tries to get a seam that I liked), and maybe eliminate the little open side seams at the bottom 2 inches of of the tank.
Thanks, Leigh, for a great pattern!
