Garter go!

Garter stitch isn't normally my favorite, its intriguing characteristics* notwithstanding.  But I also prefer knitting to purling, so I started to think about designing a tank top using garter stitch, worked in pieces to take advantage of that nice Knit-Every-Row quality. 

What about garter stitch as a background to set off other stitches?  Nothing too complicated, or it might mess with the ease and speed of Knit-Every-Row.  Perhaps...a border of some coordinating stitch pattern, and then columns of slipped stitches to play off the garter's texture.

I came up with a few possibilities.  I swatched.  I want to use a discontinued yarn for this project (Karabella Empire Silk in an incredibly rich gold, shown in the lower left corner of the 2nd photo), so I came up with the idea of writing up the pattern for different gauges--and so I swatched a few other yarns just for gauge.  Clockwise from upper right:  Tilli Tomas Fil de la Mer, Berroco Touche', Classic Elite Premiere, the Empire Silk, and RYC Cashsoft DK.

*It doesn't curl.  It's reversible.  It can be worked with knit stitches only.  The row gauge is twice the stitch gauge, making things like mitered constructions and picking up stitches along the side edges quite simple.