George’s Orange One

I can’t quite remember what came first. Was it Maya’s blog post Summer Knits in June 2022 or when a customer came in looking for yarn to knit the Camisole No.5. But either way we were both hooked on the idea of knitting Camisole No.5 by My Favourite Things and especially knitting it in Fyberspates Scrumptious 4ply. Maya started choosing the colours for hers and the more I looked at the design the more I fell in love with it. I loved the crisp ribbing and clean increase details. The neckline and armhole edgings were also nicely finished. For some reason I got it in my head that it looked like the tank top Bruce Willis wears in The Fifth Element when he plays Korben Dallas, albeit a knitted version. The ribbing really reminded me of the texture of his top. So that was it and channelling my inner Korben Dallas I picked the bright orange Persimmon 324 colour. Go loud and proud right!

I really enjoyed knitting this top, even though it was a lot of ribbing which usually puts me off. I kinda got into the meditative nature of it. The yarn was also a dream to knit, it was the first time I’ve knit with Fyberspates Scrumptious 4ply and it feels so good running through your hands. I knit the smallest size as its ribbed I knew it would have a good amount of stretch. I also didn’t swatch for the same reason. The ribbing hiding all potential gauge issues. I used two skeins and I knit until I used up a whole skein and then with the second I did all the neckline and armhole finishing so that I could try it on and get a true sense of how long it would be before knitting to the final length. I loved the use of double knitting around the neck and armhole, its something I haven’t done before and it gave a really neat and professional finish. I’m really pleased with how it came out and it have been worn a lot during summer. The Merino/Silk blend of the yarn feels really nice against the skin and have been wearing it just on its own. Though now I have gotten into wearing it as a layer under a shirt and having the colour popping out at the top of an unbuttoned collar. I can see it become a great edition to the autumn wardrobe, so much so I am seriously considering knitting another one!

Maya’s Grey One

Well the story repeats itself! It doesn’t happen too often, but sometimes, both George and I will fall in love with the same design and decide to make it together. When this happens our competitive spirits awaken and the RACE is ON, all friendly and amiable of course – but still! And every single time I fail completely! George is a speedy knitter and I’m not – still I find that when he finishes before me it gives me that extra ‘inspiration’ (or push if you’d like) to get mine done. My Camisole No.5 was done way after the weather had turned grey and colder, so I didn’t get the chance to wear it as is last summer – but I love it! My very first thought when I discovered this design was that the Scrumptious 4ply would be nothing but perfect for the design, it is my go to for anything smooth and cooling against bare skin, and since finishing I’ve been following George’s lead layering my top up to make it a year round garment. I chose the very metallic grey Blue Steel 330 for my version, as I wanted something that could go with practically everything in my wardrobe.

The Camilsole No.5 is a simplistic timeless design, it is an easy knit, at the same time it features some very flattering details and exciting techniques. Paying attention to yarn usage, wanting to add some length to mine but keeping within the 2 hanks necessary for my size, I approached the project the same way George did. I worked the body until one hank was used up, starting the second hank I placed my body stitches on hold while doing the neckline / armhole edging, which meant I could then just knit the top to the length I wanted, trying it on as I went along. This was the first time I tried double knitting, and although ‘slow’ techniques is often something that can make me fall out of love with a project, this one kept me going. Double knitting is slow, but easy to do and oh so satisfying, I was completely obsessing over how neat an edging it provides, and I am now secretly dreaming about doing all my edgings this way! It was also my first time having a go at tubular bind-off, I can’t believe what a difference this makes to the finishing – so beautiful!

The sun is shining, and the temperatures are hotting up here in London, I know I’ll be getting so much wear out of my Camisole No.5 this summer! If you’d like to make your own, choosing the Scrumptious 4Ply like we did – we’ve done the maths for you – according to your size his is what you’ll need:

Chest circumference 74 (80) 86 (91) 94 (103)cm / 29 (31.5) 34 (35.75) 37 (40.5)” = 2 (2) 3 (3) 3 (3) hanks.
Happy Knitting!