Tank & Kimono, A Very Knitty Post

Last year my my lovely wife knitted me a kimono (http://tempestinapot.blogspot.com/2011/11/kimono-for-me-or-what-my-wife-knitted.html).  I loved the garment and I decided it needed a tank to go with it.  I found a wonderful pattern, in Knit Kimono Too  by Vicki Square called the Ao Tank.  I worked on the tank through the last thros of winter and most of spring.  I finally finished it at the end of May just in time to wear it to a wedding receptions.  I looked great in it and got lots of compliments, but there was a problem.

I will admit freely that I don't always swatch, but when it comes to clothing items I do.  I was so careful and checked gauge and followed the pattern.  I was so good about everything, and then I came to the end and followed the pattern for the neckline and the castoff.  I was about a third of the way through the castoff and realized, I had forgotten something very important.  Though I am plus sized and ample in the chest area, I have very small, rounded shoulders.  The tank kept sliding off my shoulders.  My mother always said it was very tacky to see a woman's bra straps, here I was walking around being tacky.

After some thought and putting my problem solving skills to the test, I came up with adding straps to the tank.  I followed the stitch pattern I used on the neckline and viola, bra straps covered.  Learning to knit has helped me on so many levels.  My hand and eye coordination has approved, I have learned advanced knitting techniques, and I can recognize most fibers on sight.  But my probelm solving abilities have improved so much I can fix my own droppy neckline, yay me.

Kimono for Me, Or What My Wife Knitted

As I have mentioned before we are a two knitter household.  Just a little over three years ago I taught my wife to knit.  Knitting is language, and since she has started speaking in a language I understand, she has amazed me with how skillful she has become.  We have learned and grown together as knitters.  However, like so many things, we have both grown in other areas of knitting.  Natalie prefers large projects, with chunky yarn and big needles.  I like smaller projects, and have yet to knit on the scale on which she envisions projects.  So while I think in socks and scarves, she thinks in blankets and sweaters.

Early on she became fascinated with a book called Knit Kimono by Vicki Square.  Square's kimonos are based on rectangles and Natalie knew she could knit a rectangle.  After many days of painstakingly studying the book she ask me to pick a kimono and she would knit it for me.  We labored over which pattern would be the most flattering, and what yarn, then came the color choice.  I, of course, chose a green palette.  Natalie began on the project and I left her to knit on.

Front View of Kimono

Fast forward to this September and our plans to go to Iowa in October.  I ask my wife if she thought the kimono might be done for the wedding?  She mulled on this idea and one night came down with the finished product and said, "Here you go."  Of course it still needed to be blocked.

Back View of Kimono

I went to my knit family and the always wonderful Tammie took on the challenge of making the cotton beast look very square and perfect.  I dug through my closet and in my opinion a stunning outfit was put together.  I hope the photos show off all my wife's hard work and my love of the beautiful kimono.  As I have previously said, the wedding was wonderful, and I only hope I did not outshine the brides.