A Finished Swirl

I am currently experiencing a rare bit of delight.
{Note - I am still "glowing" about this project. I think it must have something to do with the size, scale, time & success involved in the completed project. 

Updated 4/7 with more pictures I'd forgotten I'd taken...}

I finished a project.
A Knitting project.
A BIG Knitting project!
And it's even a BIG Knitting project with a great story!!

The great story was related in last year's July 20th blog post: "I'm up to the Sleeves! Ack, Yarn Shortage. Yay, Ravelry Miracle!".

That blot-title pretty much tells the tale.
Two ladies in particular came to my rescue and provided me with the exact color and shade of yarn that I needed to finish my Swirl Coat.

This blog post is dedicated to Smallfields411 and Althea.
Without their generous spirits, my swirl coat might still be languishing in yarn-shortage purgatory or even frogged back down to skeins-in-waiting.

Again, ladies - Blogs and words cannot express...my heart-full, grateful thanks.
You are my heroes and the tales of your kindness will be retold with each wearing of my Swirl Coat or visit to these blog posts.
Blessings be on you and yours. {Happy sigh}

So - here is the Rest of the Swirl coat story: 

  

The yarn search and happy conclusion occurred in July 2012. 
This was just after the Little Brother had moved back to his own apartment near the end of the diabetes-stuff and about the time that my own medical adventure started. Ha - followed by the beginning of the Unemployment Adventure. {Jeez, 2012 was an "interesting" year. sigh}

Anyway...it was too big to carry around so I only worked on it at home - sporadically. I finished knitting with the 1/2 skein I had left from my original yarn and then started working with the yarn from Althea and Smallfields411. I specifically wanted to use yarn from both of them because I loved the idea of yarn/generosity/karma/vibes from these generous souls being included in this project. 

The coat was put aside for holiday gift-knitting and taken back up after Christmas. I think the actual knitting on the coat was completed in mid-January. Then I had to find time to finish and block it. 
About then I started attending classes for the Fiber Arts Degree Adventure. {grin}

I made some weekend time to finish it but, in re-reading the brief finishing instructions from the "knit, Swirl" book, I found I needed to block the coat first and then seam it up. 
OK-then...I needed water and daylight - and more time.

After another "pause", I made time in mid-March (Spring Break) to do the blocking. 
Outside. Away from "helpful", t-pin-stealing, yarn-chomping cats. {sigh}

I soaked it {twice - adding a little vinegar to the 2nd soak}. 

I squished out the extra water (by sitting on the coat rolled up in towels) and undertook the blocking. 

Blocking that took Quite-a-While - arranging, measuring, pinning, re-arranging, re-pinning.... {arrrrrrgh}. 

I covered it with a sheet to minimize any possible wildlife helpfulness and waited for it to dry.

The following week, I invested a bit of time to pin it together so I could seam up the sleeves/bodice/collar. 

And over the next few days, I actually performed the seaming. 
Several times. Because it took some finagling. 
Some of the excess coat {wry grin} was caused by my removing two welts to make the sleeves much smaller around {which turned out to be a very good idea}. But it took me a while to get the extra knitting to meld in with the seams. 

But now.......it's done. 
And it fits!!

Ok, the sleeves are a skoch too long {even after the instructor at Kiwi re-calc'd the pattern to shorten the sleeves for my T-Rex-esque arms} - but it's nominal.

{grin} My finishing timing is rather silly. We're not likely to get another cold spell to allow me to WEAR my new coat for 7 or 8 months. 
But still - I am delighted. And thankful and tickled. 

I'm off to work on homework. I have 3 school projects due next week. 
But large knit-project-wise, I'll now be pursuing my February Lady Sweater. 

With a little more confidence and a completed coat to my name.
Thank you again, Smallfields411 and Althea.