Another WIP completed from the WIP pile…

Here is the Masika Skirt – another lovely from Purl Alpaca…

Fiddling with the belt

This is a super design of a skirt and quite an easy knit once you get the rhythm of the cables. It is essentially a tube with identical panels of cables at the back and front. The waist and hem have some nice details of ribbing and moss stitch to help the fit.

I particularly liked the fact there are plain stocking stitch panels at the sides, where my hips are lumpy and bumpy enough so were grateful not to have cables layered on top!

Flattering side panel

I added an inch (2.5cm) onto the length because I’m not a teenager any more. There was enough yarn in the last ball to do this easily. A “top tip” is to try this on when you measure the length. I’m a typical English pear-shape and my  “child-bearing hips” filled out the skirt and made it jump up quite a bit shorter than I thought it was. Very glad I spotted that and knit more length – no one wants to see my undies at work! 😮

When I started knitting, I upped my needle size by 0.5mm as I usually do with Purl Alpaca but the skirt looked “gappy”. I tried it on and my tension was obviously way off and it was massive – I frogged and reknit on the given needle size and it worked a treat for me.

Oh, BTW – The belt is my best bargain from the winter sales – It’s the “Equestrian Buckle Belt” from Hobbs. It’s not in the stores any more but available here in the outlet store ->> My fave Hobbs belt

I think the vertical lines of the cables are quite flattering from behind too…

definitely pear-shaped…

Those of you with a good memory will remember I used this same colour Purl Alpaca yarn to make my beloved Cyrene Jacket  – the jacket is in DK and the skirt 4ply but I think they look great together 😀

Here’s the Cyrene jacket done up and looking formal…

Formal outfit…

And a casual one…

With the Cyrene jacket open

In case you’re wondering what’s going on with my right eye in that photo – I have the most spectacular green, yellow and purple black eye at the moment! Knitting accident? Vicious meeting at work? Cat attack? Nope, much more idiotic than that – I tripped over while running flat out, doing my lunchtime run at work last Tuesday. Landed on my face and shoulder – Two stitches in my eyebrow (I can report that the Doctor does not have embroidery skills) bruised ribs, knuckles, black eye  and various scrapes . I’m fine (nothing broken) but a bit shocked, battered and bruised. I just look like I’ve been in bar fight 😳