Tesla Outing

I took my recently completed Tesla top to the Getty Center in Brentwood yesterday.

I followed Kira's pattern for the 38" size except that I started with more stitches and decreased to the proper stitch count at the waist. (I have a larger than average drop between hip and waist measurements and usually make this pattern change for knitting and sewing.) Like Claudia, I left the edges raw. I followed her advice to weave in the ends and then sew the little cotton flags to one another with sewing thread. The pattern warned not to use my 'good' scissors to cut the yarn. I used my wire cutters instead.

I am still on the fence about finishing the neck and sleeve openings with crochet and a firmer yarn. As you can see in the first photo, the shoulder straps became quite narrow after a time due to gravity and the loose structure of the fabric. I wonder if crochet can tighten up the neckline so that the shoulder straps are wider, like in Kira's version?

I used 4 balls of Tesla in color 01 but I have about a full ball left. I can find a use for the remainder, perhaps something like Airport.

I take back what I wrote earlier about how this is the easy way to knit with stainless steel. Knitting with Tesla is challenging, but not as hard on the hands as with wire. If you search this blog for wire, you can read the saga.

You may also want to read about Mardel's experiences knitting with Tesla.

Here is a close-up of the texture.



I went to the Getty with a friend to see the Robert Adams exhibit. Between the two of us, we were intimately familiar with all the areas (southern California, Colorado front range, Oregon coast) he chronicled in these photos. The exhibit was very worthwhile. We both thought it would have benefited from the addition of more recent photos showing the accelerating degradation of these places.

Afterwards, we ate lunch at the cafeteria and strolled the gardens. How do I begin to describe the lusciousness of the garden? I took over 100 photos yesterday, mostly in the garden. Here is just an example of the gorgeous colors and textures. This is just the groundcover.