Knit-fitting

Several disparate themes that have been floating in my mind came together today. I've been thinking about possessions quite a bit lately, how we thoughtlessly accumulate them, refuse to part with them, identify with them. On a completely different tack, after finishing the baby sweater last week, I'd been thinking about why I compulsively knit hats and scarves but shy away from knitted garments.

These ideas came together when I pulled out my honeymoon cami this morning. I finished it last summer, using up some pale peach-pink Berroco cotton that had languished in my stash for years. I've only worn it twice because everything is just a wee bit off - the border bulges when worn with jeans, the drape is too heavy, the knitting looks uneven, the decreases (which I carefully fit to myself) don't actually fit my body. But I fiercely refuse to give it away, because I feel so much of myself has been put into it. Does anyone else have trouble parting with your handknit pieces, even if they never make it out of the closet?! Why such attachment?

It also sheds light on why I have trouble knitting anything except hats and scarves -- I'm picky about fit and not very skilled with fitting. Are there recommendations out there for garments with 'automatic' fit? Wrapped sweaters, perhaps? Full body ribbing?!

Anyways, when I decided to wear the cami today, and take pictures to have a visual accompanying these thoughts, I was confronted with a third theme that has been quietly lurking: how to look more photogenic. Compare the two photos, please. Suddenly I have curves! And that blasted heaviness to the fabric has disappeared. Note to self, and anyone else about to face a platoon of photographers, and anyone else dealing with too-drapey knit camisoles: toss back those shoulders!