Mini Mock Neck Tank Project Review
My experience and thoughts making my first Mini Mock Neck Tank by Jessie Maed Designs.
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About the Pattern
The Mini Mock Neck Tank is a knitting pattern by Jessie Maed Designs. It is a fingering weight, negative ease cropped tank that features a mock neck and 1x1 ribbed accents. It’s knit top down, flat and then joined in the round. The armholes are knit with the body and the neckline is picked up at the end.
There are several recommended yarns for the pattern, but most fingering weight yarns will work well. Since there’s negative ease, I’d recommend something that will feel comfortable close to your skin. The pink sample on the pattern page was knit with The Wandering Flock Baby Paca (50% Extra Fine SW Merino Wool, 30% Alpaca, 20% Nylon, 400yds/100g). The pattern is graded for bust circumferences of 28-60 inches (71-152.5 cm). The recommended amount of negative ease is 4.5-6.5” (11.5-16.5 cm) at the full bust.
My Yarn Used
For my Mini Mock Neck, I was kindly gifted Sewrella Yarn’s Silk Sock yarn in the color Strawberry Fields from their Garden Collection!
Sewrella Yarn Silk Sock in Strawberry Fields
Isn’t the bright pink such a fun summer color? An unexpected pick for me, but I love how it looks!
It is a 50% Silk 50% Superwash Merino fingering weight yarn, 438 yds/100g. I got 1 skein, which was enough yardage to make my size in the pattern (size S). The Silk Sock base has luster from the silk and a decent amount of drape, but the superwash merino content keeps it bouncy and unlikely to stretch out in comparison to a 100% silk yarn. It’s a smooth 4-ply yarn that feels cooling and smooth to the touch! Definitely a yarn I would love wearing next to skin.
Sewrella Yarn sells yarn collections on a pre-order basis, so keep an eye on their Instagram page for their next collection if you are interested in the Silk Sock base. If you’re reading this from the months of June-August, you’re in luck! They are currently selling in-stock tonals with the Silk Sock base available on their Summer Tonals Palette.
Sizing and Gauge Swatching
My full bust circumference is 34” (86cm), so using the suggested negative ease specs, I should pick a size where the finished bust is 27.5”-29.5”. I landed on size S of the pattern (27.5”), giving me a finished garment negative ease of 6.5” (16.5 cm). The gauge of this pattern is 24 st x 28 rows in 4 x 4” (10 x 10 cm). I used 3.5mm/US 4 needles, and I used my Knitters Pride Dreamz birch needle tips.
I had some difficulty meeting the gauge of the pattern. With 3.5mm needles, my finished blocked swatch gauge was 24 st x 34 rows. So my stitch gauge was spot on, but row gauge was 6 rows tighter! If your stitch gauge is good and row gauge is off, sometimes you can swap out needle material and it might solve the issue. That wasn’t the case for me, so I knew I would have to make some modifications in the pattern to account for my row gauge. I followed the guide from Patty Lyons here, specifically step 4, which explains how to regrade your pattern increases and decreases based on row gauge.
My Modifications
The front and back panels of my tank were modified to account for my tighter row gauge. There are regularly spaced, gradual increases along both the front and back panels, so I couldn’t simply “knit to length” while ignoring my row gauge. I had to do some math and calculated that for every 7 rows in the pattern, I should knit 1 additional row. (If you’re curious of the math: pattern gauge was 7 rows/1 inch, my gauge was 8.5 rows/inch, so a differential of ~about~ 1 row). Knowing that “magic formula”, it was easy to sneak in those extra rows while still increasing according to the pattern directions.
I also made sure to try on the tank as I was knitting it to be sure the yoke depth didn’t get too long. I was worried about super deep armholes with this tank, as I’ve had that issue before with other tanks! Apologies for not taking exact measurements, but I ended up with a front panel that was just slightly shorter than the pattern length. It felt good when trying on so I knew it was at a good spot to join at the underarms.
I followed the rest of the pattern as written for joining at the underarms and knitting the body. I knit the neckline length to the pattern length, 1.5”. I did lengthen the body to use up my entire skein of yarn, so it wasn’t as cropped as the sample knit. I used pretty much my entire 100g skein of yarn for my tank, plus 2 gauge swatches.
Blocking Totally Changed My Row Gauge!
As I do with all my knit garments, I blocked my Mini Mock Neck Tank before wearing it. I could feel as I was (gently) pulling my tank out of the water, that it was stretching vertically from the weight of the fabric! Even after some reshaping on the blocking boards, it was clear once the tank dried that it had stretched vertically.
My measured my finished object gauge was 25 st x 31 rows in 4x4” (10x10 cm). This was different from my original swatch gauge of 24 st x 34 rows. As a result, the yoke depth and overall length of my tank lengthened. And the circumference of the tank decreased slightly.
In hindsight, it makes sense that a yarn with silk content would grow with blocking. My 4x6” gauge swatch wasn’t a great representative of what my tank would do with blocking, because the weight of my swatch is much less than the weight of the full tank. To avoid this problem in the future, I could knit a larger gauge swatch. Another option is to hang your swatch vertically and weigh your swatch down with heavy earrings or small objects to mimic stretching from the weight of the fabric. This is very useful when using fibers that are prone to stretching out, like plant fibers and silk, and superwash yarns.
Final Fit
Due to the difference in gauge and changes that occured after blocking, my tank size S measurements don’t quite line up to the pattern schematic for size S. My yoke depth was 9" (supposed to be 7.5"), body circumference 24" (supposed to be 27.5"), and body length was 10" (18" from shoulder). Despite all those differences, the tank generally fits well! I think there is a lot of flexibility with the way this tank stretches to fit once you put it on.
The yoke depth is slightly too long for my preference. I wish it were 1-2” shorter. Additionally, this tank cuts in a lot at the front. Some of my standard bras poke out the sides of the tank, but not all of them, so you might have to experiment with which undergarment works best for you. This tank is generally bra friendly if you have cross-back straps or racerback straps. Note: My straps do stick out if I wear standard t-shirt style bra straps and they slip down my shoulder a bit throughout the day.
I am glad I lengthened the tank to use up all my yarn. It hits right above where my high waisted pants end, making it a cute top for a breezy summer outfit. It does ride up my waist since it has negative ease and no waist shaping. I love the finished fabric! The Silk Sock yarn has beautiful sheen and is comfortable to wear on hot days. Delightfully soft and silky, this yarn does have a tendency to pill, so keep that in mind.
Tips on the Pattern
I don’t have too many tips for this pattern, as it was extremely well written and detailed. There were schematics, diagrams, and links to tutorials all within the pattern. I found the construction to be engaging and I really couldn’t put down this project. I finished mine in 1 week!
Since the only issues I had with this pattern were with final fit and gauge, I would recommend swatching properly and maybe incorporating a mid-project block to check the fit as you are knitting it. This is a quick project due to the tank’s negative ease and cropped style, so there’s no major harm in experimenting as you knit it to see what will work best.
I found the Mini Mock Neck Tank pattern to be very well written and easy to follow.
Final Thoughts
I really enjoyed this tank project! It was refreshing to knit a tank that didn’t have finicky triangles or i-cord straps. I LOVE how it incorporated the armhole edges into the body, rather than picking them up at the end. And the mock neck is so classy, but easily modifiable depending on your preference. Minimal finishing made this project a breeze and I’m really excited at the idea of making another one.
I did have some final fit issues, but they weren’t significant enough to rip back and start this project over. I’ve worn this tank a handful of times, including on the Cape during the stunning Hydrangea season we had in New England this year! It’s extremely comfortable due to the silk blend yarn, and even with a thick neckline, it never felt too hot or stuffy. I can totally envision this tank being the perfect layering piece for the fall and winter with cardigans.
I have an interest in knitting a second one to hopefully work out the perfect yoke depth for myself. Maybe in a highly variegated yarn to switch it up? This stockinette staple tank is the perfect canvas for any yarn, just be sure it’s a yarn that has elasticity and is comfortable next to skin!
