I’ve hit my limit with my WIPs. I’m still working on them, I’m just tired of them. Most of them aren’t even really summer-wearable, so I keep trying to figure out why I’m working so hard on them right now, other than just to get them done and out of the way. I’ve been wanting to make this tank top AND use up this particular yarn for a long time now, so this kills two birds with one stone. I have NO idea of I’m going to have enough yarn, so I’m really just trying to take this as far as I can with what I’ve got. I’m using the size 6 needles for the lace pattern and will likely drop down for the top part since so many people have mentioned the size difference and the stretching factor with this particular project. I really want to cast on for a few tank tops, but I’m trying to only cast on one project at a time. If I work on a new project AND my WIPs, I should be able to accomplish something with both, right?

8/15 - Siiiiigh…I thought this tank top would be so easy, and I’m running into problems. First, after doing the first decrease on this in the small size, I realized that it was way too big for me and dropped down to the X-small size. That seemed to be working well - however, I am supposedly finished with the decreases, at the bust portion of the tank, and I just tried it on…it’s huge around the waist under the bust. Giant. Just hangs off my body. And I worry that since there are been reports that this pattern AND this yarn have stretching issues, it will continue to grow. I feel like I might want to make it even smaller, which I wasn’t expecting. Like maybe I should take out one of the panel repeats. I don’t want to make it too small or tight, because I don’t want it to make me look fat, but I don’t want it to make me look huge because it’s hanging off of me. So, according to my new resolution not to continue on if I’m not sure, I’ve put it to the side for the night.

8/19 - I’m back on track with this, I think. After trying a few things, I decided to rip back 4 repeats. At that point, I dropped down to the size 5 needle to tighten things up. It really worked well, but I still wanted it to come in some, so I did an extra decrease round. When I tried it on, it seemed to be a close to perfect fit. I decided to decrease another 5 stitches right before the purl rounds, dropping me down to 135 stitches. I’m a bit nervous about how it will look when I do the 10 stitch increase for the bust, like it will suddenly grow and be too big again. But since I’m a busty lady, I know that I need those stitches! Time to put on Damages and whip this puppy out.

9/5 - Done - done done done done DONE! I love that word. DONE. I didn’t get my paperwork done over the long weekend, and the house isn’t as clean as I’d like, but this tank top is FINISHED! I did wind up making some minor adjustments. To start with, it looked just perfect even with the 10 extra stitches. I needed it to grow to accommodate my bust, of course. The short row shaping was a revelation! I’ve only done the wrap and turn a few times and never on a sweater. I can totally see now how useful that technique is when a sweater just isn’t quite fitting!

I really wanted to do the awesome straps from the Lotus Blossom Tank, but I didn’t have the pattern. I requested the book for it from the library, but I’ve been waiting and waiting forever for it to come and no dice. Finally, I did manage to procure the pages I needed two days ago. Honestly, this tank top would have been done in 2 weeks if I hadn’t run into that issue. So I started working on the straps and had a total fail where I realized I didn’t have nearly enough yarn. So I played around for an evening last night while I watched Season 2 of United States of Tara, and finally I decided to do the following:

• Take a G/6 crochet hook
• Make the rest of the leftover yarn into one long crochet chain
• Play around with the chain to see what effect looked best
• Split it into 12 mostly even pieces, then use 6 for one strap and 6 for the other
• Hold two strands together apiece and braid them
• Use braids as straps

The effect isn’t quite what I had in mind, but honestly I was running WAY low on yarn. I purposely made the straps a bit longer than I knew they needed to be so I could attach them firmly to the front, then sew them into place after braiding and slowly unravel the pieces that were too long on the back. It worked beautifully. I have about 5 yards left of the blue and 1 yard of the purple. Amazing, isn’t it? I think this is one of the best fitting things I’ve ever created. I with I had bumped up a needle size to bind off the top of it, but by the time I realized it was a little too tight, I just didn’t want to rip back and fix it. I had gotten it too perfect around the underarms with the blue border, if that makes sense. I’m sure it’ll loosen up a little over time, since that seems to be the nature of this yarn. So now, I have just enough to add another row or two to my scrappy blanket! The weather has cooled down significantly, but I fully intend to wear this tomorrow with a jacket if need me. I have FINISHED another WIP! Why can’t every moment of every day feel as good as it does when another WIP is flipped?