Sunne's Azalea Tank

Sunne, one of our beloved knitting instructors, always has such great style, and we love seeing her mostly-handmade outfits. She always carefully considers every project she knits with care for how it will fit into her wardrobe, and her new Azalea Tank in Quince & Co. Sparrow is no exception! Here's Sunne with how she approached this project:

Last summer, I was obsessed with Habu yarns. Summer fibers of cotton and linen have served me well in the Gretel top and the Whisper and Whispy cardigans. I loved how they looked off the needles and they have only gotten more beautiful with time. This time, I decided to try Sparrow from Quince & Co. I wanted a neutral color that would transition from spring into summer and even warm fall weeks, so Sans was it. It's so pretty with black, white, tan, cream, sage and olives - perfect for my summer wardrobe.

Pattern name and designer: Azalea by Pam Allen
Yarn used: Sparrow by Quince & Co in Sans, 4 skeins (available in-store)
Size Made: XS
Modifications: Knit the lace in the round, then knit the front and the back separately and seamed together.

I have been exploring seaming in my knits. When do you need it? When is it optional? How does it change garments? For this garment—using my experience from last summer's knits—I wanted the lace to have beautiful drape, but didn't want the linen to bias with repeated machine washing. So I made the piece more complicated by knitting the lace in the round, then knitting the fronts and back separately. This would allow me to seam the sides, keeping them straight and still have beautiful drape without structure at the bottom. My modifications made it a harder knit, but I am very happy with the results.

Most of this knitting was done at the StrungAlong retreat in Port Ludlow, Washington. Having a lovely time at the knitting retreat did not lead to me counting my rows well. The back came out 6 rows longer than the front. Since I seamed it from the lace up on both sides, it didn't created a problem and the back actually hangs a tiny bit longer than the front, which I love. The straps were a bit fiddly with the picking up and casting on stitches, but have a nice structure to them.

Overall I'm really happy with my new tank, the finished detail of the garter stitch on the edgings looks so nice! Also, I used some left over turquoise sock yarn to mattress stitch up the side seams, I love this little hidden detail. Now that it's finally warm again, my Azalea Tank will shine this summer!