Ready for Spring

I wrote a month ago about visiting Knit Purl in downtown Portland, where I bought Heidi Kirrmaier's Boardwalk pattern, and the Brooklyn Tweed Loft to knit it with.  I finished it last week - it was a quick knit and a really nice pattern to work with. 

It's very well thought out.  I love the way that the cap sleeves curve over at the top, rather than sticking out - very simply done but it works.  And the bottom band with side slits is also simple but effective. To do the neckline, you leave a square opening in the front, and then pick up stitches around three sides, decreasing along the diagonals as you fill it in.  I usually don't like picking up stitches, but this was really straightforward.  You pick up two stitches for every three rows - easy.  

I modified it slightly: I made it a little bit longer than the pattern specifies, and I knit the front and back separately rather than in the round.  That's because that way I can knit without looking very often, if it's a simple stitch pattern, so I could read at the same time.  (One day, I'll be able to knit in the round as easily - I'm practising.)

I also bought the shirt in Portland, at J. Crew.  I had read that J. Crew are opening a store in this country later this year, so I wanted to see what sort of things they sell, and bought this really nice white shirt.  I am always on a quest for a nice white shirt - they are surprisingly hard to find.  Plain white shirts are not as common in the shops as you'd think, anyway, and I have strict criteria as to the quality of the fabric.  It has to be pure cotton, soft, but thick enough to be opaque.  I don't ask for much, but usually I have to settle for something that is only OK.   But this fabric is really nice, and has tiny flecks of bright colours in it, to make it more interesting.  The design of the shirt has to be good too, of course, and this one is just right. 

I haven't yet been able to wear my new outfit - it's been much too cold.  There is still some snow on the ground, from a heavy snowfall we had a couple of weeks ago  - it has been bitterly cold.  We are past the Spring equinox, we've put the clocks forward, it's April - what we need is some Spring weather, asap.    But I think it's a bit warmer today, so maybe Spring is just around the corner.