A Sweater With No Mercy

Francis by Amy Miller

Yesterday knitwear designer Amy Miller published a new collection of five patterns, Classics, on Ravelry.  It has already proven to be extremely popular, with hundreds of favorites in less than 24 hours.

Proceed with caution!  Francis, pictured at right, is extremely unforgiving.  Unforgiving, that is, to anyone with any excess flesh between their neck and knees.  This sweater will hide no bags, sags, pooches, rolls, cellulite, muffin top, saddlebags, back fat, or any other name we give to those parts of our bodies which we love a little less than other parts.  If you look closely you will notice that it doesn't even hide the indentation of Amy's belly button.  This is a design that will look as fabulous on you only if you have a body as fabulous as Amy's.  I hope that all of the 375 people who had tagged it as a favorite on Rav by 10:30 am this morning have rock solid abs.

Harrison by Amy Miller

Earl by Amy Miller

The other two sweaters, Harrison and Earl, do a little better.  Harrison has a cowl to provide some interest in the upper torso, and it's length does not cut across the upper thigh.  But it is worked in seed stitch which not only adds a lot of texture, i.e. visual bulk, but is a stitch that not a lot of knitters enjoy, especially for a full sweater.

Earl is a cardigan, one of our favorites.  But, like the rest of the collection, is knitted with Aran weight yarn.  And we know that the bulkier the yarn, the more weight it adds to you.  It's a testament to Amys' figure that I couldn't tell how heavy the yarn truly is.  She is definitely model-thin.  I think Early would benefit greatly from a tie belt to hold it closed and draw focus to the waist.

Amy is a talented designer, as well as drop dead gorgeous, so I would direct you toward one of her more forgiving designs, Olive Basket.  Again, it's a cardigan, but it's worked in a dk weight yarn.  There's a close fit through the upper torso, and a lovely v-neck.  It does have an A-line hem which isn't readily apparent in the photos.  So, if you are not happy with the width of you hips, you might choose to cast on few stitches to bring the fit in closer and reduce excess fabric.

Olive Basket by Amy Miller