Clearly Helena: Chinese Box Top in Clean Mosaic Crochet (CH0352) (pattern listed)

Chinese Box Top is made for charm and comfort with a dash of stylised Chinese characters. This was made using the Clean Mosaic Crochet method, featuring a loose, comfortable shaping that I really appreciate.

The Chinese Box Top features stylized Chinese characters. While I cannot read all the characters (and some might have been stylized out of their original meaning!), I did make the Mosaic Crochet hem with a stylised “double happiness” character. Who could possibly say no to a dose of double happiness!

This top is ideal for the cooler climes of autumn and spring by using, as I have, cool yarns like cotton, viscose, bamboo. It can also be made in other yarns to make a warm and toasty winter top. I have made this particular one using a beautifully luxuriant and soft yarn comprising of 50% bamboo & 50% viscose.

WHERE TO BUY THIS PATTERN

• Chinese Box Top in CMC – PDF download, graph pattern on ClearlyHelena store

• Chinese Box Top in CMC – PDF pattern, graph pattern on Ravelry

Materials & Specifications

Approx. Size:	Loose Fit. Australian Sz 8-12 (Please see FAQ below for suggestions on other sizes.)
Yarn:	ICE YARN. 50% Bamboo, 50% Viscose (or any Fine {aka Sport-weight / Baby / 4ply} yarn)
Crochet Technique/Stitch:	CMC (Clean Mosaic Crochet)
Crochet Terminology:	American & Crochet Symbols
Level:	Intermediate to Advanced or anyone familiar with Mosaic Crochet; preferably CMC. Need to be comfortable working off charted/graphed patterns
Manufacturer's Recommended Needle/Hook Size:	3-4 MM
Hooks Used:	2.2mm (body); 2mm (bands)
Number of Colours:	2 (or more)
Final Nett Wt (approx.):	950g
Work Time (approx.; excl. prep & graphing):	(lost count!)
Care:	Recommended cold/warm gentle hand wash. Squeeze (not wring) out water. Roll in dry towel to absorb more moisture. Dry flat.

GAUGE (approx.)	[10×10 cm] = 21.8x20 (stitches x rows) (2.2mm hook, sample worked in CMC technique)

Status: n/a ℋmine

Just a working draft to firt imagine how it might look.

FAQ

Q. Size – this is too small for me. How do I make a bigger size?

Ans.
I am sorry that I have not made additional graphs in larger sizes. However you can still make larger sizes just by doing any of the following:

• use large hook sizes &/or

• use thicker yarns (I suggest DK weight for sizes that might fit Au Sz12 – 16)

Important that you make samples to check your gauge. Many people don’t bother making a gauge sample but, while it only gives you an approximation, it will still give you the best guess as to whether you are going to end up with something that is way too small, way too large, or just right … ask Goldilocks!!!

Q. Mosaic Crochet method – Can I use other Mosaic Crochet methods?

Ans.
This is ideally suited to CMC because you do not have cut ends and you do not have to do “redundant” rows which adds to the length of the pieces – something you might not want. I haven’t and won’t make this project in other Mosaic Crochet methods but I would think it is possible to use any of the Mosaic Crochet methods, be it the Chain-Space (aka Inset) method or the flat Overlay Mosaic Crochet method.

If using Overlay Mosaic Crochet (with cut ends) method, you will just have to find a way to deal with the numerous yarn ends on each side of the pieces.

With the Chain-Space method (aka inset method), you will have to keep an eye on the length of the pieces, making sure that neither the body nor the sleeves is not too long!

(Please refer to Mosaic Crochet Overview - the Different Methods, for explanation of the different methods just mentioned.)

Q. Your Yarn – I like your yarn. Where can I find it?

Ans.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE this yarn too. It is cool, with good drape, not too thin, great to crochet with, and feels very quality-luxuriant.

However, I am so sorry to say it has been discontinued. I have searched and searched for this yarn or something with the identical composition. But the suppliers (Ice Yarns) have for some incomprehensible reason, discontinued this yarn.
(This top was made from my precious hoard. Quite reluctantly, truth be told. But I sternly told myself that I must use what I have because… honestly, I am just about out of storage space!)

My best suggestion if to just find a comparable Fine/Sports-weight yarn. There are quite a lot of bamboo/cotton; bamboo/linen; cotton/viscose combinations out there. Or go the more traditional route of wool, alpaca, cashmere for a warmer and more winter appropriate top. I am sure it would be wonderful for winter gear with warmer yarns. I may even make another winter-appropriate one for myself! Next winter …😃

Behind the Scenes

The pattern for this top was inspired by Chinese/Asian characters. I have more or less, stylised them – with a bias more towards artistic appeal than to the meaning of the characters.

I have however deliberately graphed the “Double Happiness” character for the hem. I love the meaning behind that and wish the same blessing for anyone who decides to make this top. ❤❤ … or even if you don’t!

Chinese Box Top – WIP Photos

Some of these photos will be of especial interests for anyone who buys the pattern – especially as an additional visual confirmation of their work progress. Additionally, while I don’t dictate how the pieces are to be joined in the pattern, I do show how I did it here in the photos below.

Sequence of Work
All the bands are worked in the round. It is always bulky and awkward to keep turning a large piece of garment when working in the round. So to minimise this bulk, I have worked the Chinese top in the following sequence.

Front
Back
Sleeves (2)
Sleeve seams – sew up/crochet join
Sleeve bands
Shoulder Seams - sew up/crochet join
Neck Band
Side Seams - sew up/crochet join; up to be excluding armholes
Hem Band
Join sleeves to body
Neaten where necessary

The pieces are all worked, in CMC, from the graphs which are included in the paid pattern.

For what it is worth, here are a sequence of wip photos for the front’s neckline.

SLEEVES: Sleeves, Seams, Bands

I used the Crochet Join: Raised Chains Join for the seams. You can use any method that works for you.

Shoulder, Neckband

The shoulder seams are joined and then the neckband can be worked in the round.

Shoulder Seam
I used Crochet Raised Chains Join for the shoulder seam but you can use any method you like.

Neckband
Once the shoulders joins are done, we can work around the neckband.

Detailed instructions for making the neckband (worked in mosaic crochet, in the round) are to be found in the Chinese Box Top pattern (.pdf, paid pattern). Below are some WIP photos for the neckband.

Credit for the neckband's Mosaic Pattern: based on Barbara Walker’s Fig.90/Band 47 in her book “Mosaic Knitting“.

Side Seams

Optional: I top-chained up along the side edges before I joined the front and back pieces together. This gave me a neater edge from which to work the joins. You can choose to omit this step.

And you can choose any method to make the side seams. I top-stitched along the edges for the side seams; up to but not excluding the armholes (of course!)

Hem Band

The hem features a stylised Double Happiness (Chinese character).

I discovered that I had made an error here re. the Chinese character after I finished this garment. So what you see here is not what is offered in the finished graphed pattern.

The corrected Mosaic Crochet chart for “Double Happiness” is available in the (paid) pdf pattern.