Abalone Shell

I've finally finished my Abalone Shell summer top. This pattern was created by Kira Dulaney and published in the Spring 2010 edition of Interweave Crochet.

This great spring-to-summer piece has a fitted upper bodice and a draping body, giving it a romantic look that is easy to dress up or down. (Interweave Crochet).

I started this project with 300g of Moda Vera Gardenia (75% Acrylic and 25% Viscose derived from Bamboo) in purple but I actually ran out of yarn with a couple of inches to go in the body. This yarn is discontinued and Spotlight were unable to find any more stock. Rather than start the project again with another yarn I hunted around in my stash for another yarn that I could add to what I'd already done. I had a little bit of Moda Vera Gardenia in Aqua so I incorporated a couple of rounds of this to get the desired length.

The pattern was fairly easy to follow despite being quite intricate. There was one misprint in the magazine but the correction can be found on Interweave Crochet's website. I also found I needed the pattern close by for reference as the stitches change from round to round.

The finished top is a little heavier than I'd like for a summer top and I'm not sure that aqua was the right colour to add to purple but I'm glad its finally done. I really like this pattern so I might come back to it in the future and try it again with a lighter yarn.