After many months of spending most of my time indoors last year, it seemed necessary to knit some flowers. I imagined blooms everywhere inside my little office, and I ultimately chose the pattern Flower Child by Nora Gaughan. For those of you who find it safe to navegate Ravelry, my project page is here:
Seventies-inspired knits seem all the rage these days, but I was mainly attracted to the ingenious design of this pattern. I have never knitted a back or front in five separate pieces before and it seemed like a great challenge. The only issue is that I could not control any waist or any other shaping at all while using this method.
I cast on the pieces for the back in the smallest-but-one size as I knew with my Rowan softyak dk yarn my gauge might be a bit looser than the intended one. However, I could not downsize my needle because the 5 triangles for each piece are knitted sideways and therefore the row gauge is a more important measurement than the stitch gauge and I needed to get it as accurate as possible. In the end, my row gauge was a bit too small, so every ten rows, I added an extra two rows in each piece. I kept track of this in a small notebook.
As the back sleeves and sweater seemed huge = 46 inches around, I cast on all pieces for the front in the smallest size of the pattern since again I could not change my needle size. As a result, my front was smaller and closer to the right size.
In order to address the fit issue of the back piece, once I’d seamed the five back pieces together using mattress stitch, I hand-sewed a blue ribbon into the side seams. This way I could adjust the fit of the back however loosely or tightly I wanted by tying the ribbon behind me. I am quite happy with the end result, and since it fits well and is flattering, I believe I will wear it quite a bit. I see no point in knitting something “cool” that looks terrible on, because then it would probably be better to create a wall-hanging instead of clothes. My favorite part is the ingenious flower that is created through a combination of lace, bobbles, and cables at the center front:
Nora Gaughan is one of the most ingenious knit designers I have ever encountered. The fun experience I had knitting this piece encourages me to try more of her innovative designs in future! I'd love to hear more about what you all have been knitting, and how your projects have been influenced by what's going on in the world. We cannot but be affected, and try to find comfort and inspiration where we can. My knitting world has been such a solace and happy place in the last two years, and I am so grateful for it!