Have you ever seen a yarn that instantly swept you off your feet? The saturated color and sheen of Handmaiden’s sea silk yarn is irresistible! I purchased my first ball years ago at the now retired Robbins Nest yarn and fabric shop, because I was so hypnotized by the beauty of the color that I could not look away! I had no idea of what I was going to do with it, but it has become my favorite yarn ball holder:
http://www.ravelry.com/projects/yarnstylist/netherfield-evening-bag
The tricky thing about Handmaiden’s sea silk is that it is difficult to find, and online images do not do the yarn justice. Some balls are highly variegated and some are almost solid in color. The saturation of the colors is difficult to gauge from online photos as well. I tried ordering various balls over the internet over the years, but the colors were so wildly different from what had I expected that I gave up. More years passed, and I hankered after the sea silk in vain. Lo, one day it appeared in a burst of glory in my local yarn shop, Uncommon Threads! At first I was thrilled, but then I realized my disposable income for the next year is in deathly peril! I have already succumbed to purchasing more than I should have, so keep your eyes out for upcoming projects here. My first is Adelphe, a perfect lightweight summer tank by Sarah Hatton:
The shimmer of this yarn is so spectacular that it requires a simple garment to do it justice. The silk/seacell blend is extremely lightweight, which is perfect for a Californian summer. And it has a wonderful drape:
I added a lot of extra waist shaping to the pattern, which required none:
In my opinion, the designer Sarah Hatton is at the top of her game this year, and is producing spectacular patterns, simple to knit but distinguished by exquisite little details, such as the scallop/ribbing hem:
My ribbing tends to be uneven, so I knitted this bottom edging using twisted rib. This means that I knitted through the back loop of every knit stitch on the right side and every purl stitch on the wrong side, which kept my ribbing looking even.
In my opinion, the best feature of this top is the clever use of lace to create a feminine detail without rendering the top see-through in all the wrong places. There are so many lace tank designs that are practically unwearable because of the placement of lace across the bust. By cleverly confining a single lace detail to the neckline and straps, Sarah Hatton has designed a top that is work appropriate but also transitions from day to evening wear. I may make another one of these in white sometime, I can see it will become an important wardrobe staple!
Here is the photo of Sarah Hatton's design, Adelphe, from Rowan Magazine 57, which uses Rowan wool cotton 4ply: