Hello, this is Meri. Finally, I would like to introduce Maha .
One year during the COVID-19 pandemic, the spring Parade collection was carried out in a format where I selected the designs, decided on the approximate measurements, and had the designers knit and write the patterns. Some of you may have noticed, but the names of the Parade patterns that Amirisu puts out are the Author Series (except when there are overseas designers or a book theme). For now, we have been using the names of Japanese authors, but Harada Maha is a novelist that both Tokuko and I like. So we decided to give this name to the patterns we particularly liked. I am very happy that the Maha pattern we released that year has become such a popular pattern. Thank you so much to Hiromi for finishing it to the end.
So, this is a pattern I really liked. I wanted to knit it right away, but I liked the sample colors so much that I couldn't think of any other color combinations, and I couldn't knit it for several years. Then, I saw Tokuko knitting an outfit using mini skeins she received from Aimée of La Bien Aimée, and it occurred to me, "That's it, I can use this for Maha!" The body is actually a combination of Wanderlust and Parade, but since I was using the Sock mini from La Bien Aimée, I decided to use that instead of Parade and match it with Wanderlust. However, I wanted to keep the ribbing part simple, so I just used two strands of Parade. Below is a brief explanation of what I did at the time.
The size I made was second from the bottom.
(1) I used two strands of Parade (Paris) for the elastic knitting part. I had about 20-30g left over from each skein.
(2) For the body, I used two strands of Sock mini and Wanderlust (Antarctica). The amount of Wanderlust used was the same as in the pattern.
(3) For the first part of the Sock Mini, work 13 rows at a time. After 13 rows in one color, work one row in Fluro Morganite (fluorescent pink). Once the sleeves start, work 12 rows at a time. The two colors you use most until you join the sleeves are the ones you use the most, so 12 rows was the limit. There was no way I could work 13 rows!
(4) After joining the sleeves, I could have gone back to 13 rows, but it would have looked weird if the stripes were thin in that area, so I continued with 12 rows all the way to the end. By the way, I thought the sleeves of the original were a little long, so I shortened them.
When knitting larger sizes, 13 and 12 rows may not be enough, so I recommend 10 rows of each color. Again, it all depends on the gauge of the knitter.
Actually, it took me a lot of trial and error to decide on this color order, lining up the mini-cassettes, taking photos, and sending them to Tokuko for about two weeks. The biggest problem was where to place the Fluro Morganite, which stands out too much, so I struggled with how to make it blend in with the other colors. When I came up with the idea of putting only one layer, I was like, "This is it!" I also took care to sprinkle a blue-green color all over. If you add colors by knitting a larger size, try to be careful not to let the dark colors clump together (and not bring them to the top). I recommend bringing the colors that look good on your face to the top.
Everyone, please give Maha a try with the mini-case.
Meri