Dawn Brocco's Life & Design Blog

Aside - hubby's hand surgery went well yesterday!

I started one of the adult versions of the "Kids' Striped Kimono Jacket" design, last night. Couldn't help myself! Been itching to get to it.

This first version is in doubled Alpaca Boucle on US 11's. The waist will be nipped in - I'm getting tired of boxy shapes, esp. as I still have a waist. I don't know why I'm spent so many years hiding is boxy clothes. But, even as a size 8, my pear-shape frustrated me and it was just easier to hide it that to find the right shape and length clothes to make the best of what I have.

So, the jacket will be on the shorter side, but can be easily lengthened. As a semi-short person (5' 4"), longer tops and jackets shorten me even more. Keeping the length to the hip bone or a little longer (but *not* ending at the fullest part of my derriere!) allows for a better line. 5' 4" is an odd height. The regular misses usually say 5' 5" and above and the petites say under 5' 4", or 5' 3" and under, making my height fall in the middle of 2 sizing groups!

I will later do a lighter-weight, autumn version with 1 strand boucle and about size 9 or 10 ndls.

I still have another pair of mittens and a jacket to do for the "Love Alpaca Collection" - there! I named it. Hadn't named it until I wrote it now. The X's and O's cabling, that unifies the group, made me think of love, as in kisses and hugs, but I love alpaca as well, so it seems an ideal name.

I should have the collection and the kimono jacket designs long before autumn, which is good, as there's still an aran cardigan to finish up in the wool and reknit in my dyed cashmere, more scarves to do and a book of mitten designs, I hope, we'll see.