I found some African ceramic beads called Kasuri, which means small and beautiful. Their unusual palette inspired this design. My intention at the moment is to make it a sleeveless vest and use the neutral browns and grays to finish off the arms and neck.

After playing with a long swatch to get a feel for color placement, I’m making up the pattern as I go. The knitting gods are smiling on me as the bust darts have landed in very convenient parts of the color work patterns.

8-14-13 Slowly making progress. I knit a little bit and then figure out the next bit of shaping. There’s waist shaping and bust darts. The armhole decreases are finished. I’m ready to break for the neck. Really not a lot left!

9-15-13 After trying it on and discovering that the math error in the middle really did make a difference (denial can be a powerful force at times), I followed the advice I found on the Peace Fleece forum and threw the vest in the washer for a few minutes. The before and after measurements are different in some places. The knitting gods clearly are smiling on me. Time will tell whether it fits or whether some post-completion engineering will be required.

The washing machine also caused the yarn to bloom beautifully.

9-23-13 It fits! Funny thing is that it also fits my lovely model, who is about 4 inches taller and proportioned rather differently than me…