What size?

How-to Questions
1

I want to knit the Pebble Rib Jacket from p.36 of the Creative Knitting September issue, and I have a question about what size to knit. I am a pear shaped female with a 38" bust and 43" hips. I noticed the pattern does not call for any shaping at the waist. My waist is 31". My shoulders are not wide either. So I was planning to make the medium size, which would give 4" of ease at the bust, and that would be good for wearing over clothes. My worry is that the waist will be bunchy and bulky. I’m thinking the jacket will stretch over the hips and be OK.

What do you guys think? Its already an intermediate pattern and I’d say I’m at the beginning edge of intermediate in my skills. I don’t really want to mess with trying to adjust the pattern by shaping it inwards at the waist, it seems like it would just make it too hard. Unless you know of a fairly easy way to do that??

Let me know if you think I should just try to find a different pattern that already has waist shaping. I really LOVE the pebble rib look though!! :pout:
Laura

2

I don’t have the magazine so I don’t know what the garment looks like, but if it’s an all-over rib it would likely stretch where it needs to stretch, like around the hips and bust, and it would ‘hug’ a bit more at your waist.

If not, an easy way to make the waist a bit smaller than the rest would be to go down a needle size for whatever you determine the waist section to be. You’d probably want to make a swatch though in different needle sizes to see how much of a difference it would make. You might even be able to go down 2 needle sizes for the waist section if you decide it’s a look that you like.

3

Wow what a great idea! Yes I’ll make a swatch to see what it looks like. I don’t know how much pebble rib stretches, whether it does as much as a regular rib or not. But I can tell that from the swatch too I guess.
Thanks KnitQueen!