Jaime Finds the Perfect Summer Knitting Project

I love a good summer tee. For that reason I was pretty eager to follow up our Atlantica Knit-Along with our Casual Summer Tee Knit-Along. Summertime knits are so quick and rewarding. My new Anker's tee is no exception.

Pattern: Anker's Summer Shirt

Yarn: Coastal by Elemental Affects in Copper

Size Made: Large at different gauge for a finished 35" bust

Modifications: knit with a different gauge of 23 sts to 4" (see below)

I was really excited to work with the new Coastal yarn by Elemental Affects. Our friend Jeane DeCoster produces this sustainable yarn made with a dreamy blend of US-grown wool, Belgian Flax, and Mulberry Silk and then dyes it in her studio in Desert Hot Springs. This yarn is the perfect summer yarn incorporating the memory and stretch of wool with the breathability of linen and the hand and strength of silk.

Coastal is a sport weight yarn and when I swatched it, I loved the fabric that I got on my size 5 needles which was 23 sts to 4." Unfortunately, this pattern was written for 20 sts to 4." Math time! This is a simple sweater design - knit top down with a forgiving ribbed yoke so I felt fairly confident that I could knit a larger size with my smaller gauge and end up with a sweater that fits. I did some math based on my gauge and the number of stitches in the bust of the various sizes to determine which size to knit. It worked! I sized up to a Large and ended up with a 35" bust sweater which fits great.

Once all my math was finished, I was free to enjoy the casualness of our summer knit-along. I took my knitting to a coffeeshop with friends, on road trips, and spent lots of time knitting in my back yard. We hung out with other knitters on Zoom and in the park and it was a lovely, summery knit-along. Thank you everyone who joined us!