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HOOKY TREASURE
Variegated aqua-tone yarn inspired Carolyn Calderon
to make a mermaid-style shell stitch top
R
ed Heart’s It’s A Wrap Rainbow yarn was
introduced to me about a year ago. It sat on my
shelf for some time waiting for something
special to be made with it, before I settled on
the idea of a tank top. To begin, I started
swatching with different-sized hooks and stitches,
eventually choosing a size H hook to give some
drape. I wanted an easy pattern repeat and ended
up picking a pretty shell stitch. Whenever possible,
I prefer not to have any seams in my finished crochet
pieces, and shell stitch pattern is perfect for that.
Once I decided on the stitch, that also started to
inform other parts of the design. While I had originally
started with the turquoise, I realised the green would
work better at the bottom of the tank top, so lots of
frogging was required to rework the yarn. But it was
definitely worth the effort to make the colour switch.
Once I got started, I loved to watch the new colour
appear before me, picked out in shell stitch. I have long
felt that this type of colour-change yarn is addicting; I
can’t seem to put it down once I begin and I love to see
the colours slowly change.
The top is made working from the bottom
upwards, so it’s easy to customise the tank top length.There are no seams, which make for a flattering
finished garment. This pattern is written in four sizes:
S-XL, in US terms. The front and the back are exactly the
same, so it’s a fairly simple make.
The photograph with the hat is courtesy of my
son and husband. We were on vacation last summer
and they took turns taking the pictures off the dock.
We had gone on a fishing boat that day, so I wore the
top to see if we could get any good pictures. (If you
take a hundred, you might get one good one!) Taking
the photographs is a special part of the design
process to me: knowing who was there, where we
were, how silly we get – it’s all in good fun and makes
memories. I also like to take my pictures with pretty
scenery; places I enjoy going to like the beach, lake,
garden, or parks.
This tank top is special to me because I finally made
something for myself. I’m so pleased with how it came
out, and it’s in a very beautiful yarn that has all my
favorite colours in it! I hope you love it too.
This pattern is available for free on Carolyn’s website
and you can purchase an ad-free pdf on Ravelry.
Follow Carolyn on Instagram @The Purple Poncho, or
her blog at http://www.thepurpleponcho.com