Sweater for Baby BOY

I finished the Debbie Bliss baby sweater for a co-worker who lives in Europe. His first child is due in just a few weeks. I will be leaving Monday for a business trip to Brussels, Belgium and will deliver the gift personally to him and his wife. I am happy with the end result regarding the sweater, but after a year of Nihon Vogue training, I found it very difficult to simply "go along" with the less than adequate guidance as provided on the pattern. The majority of patterns are written to appeal to the knitting masses and have limited space for directions as mandated by the publishers. I did modify the sleeve insertion technique by seaming them first and then crocheting each into the armholes rather than sewing the side seams and sleeve seams as one effort. A twisted crocheted edge on the bottom and cuff edges to cover the long tail cast on completed the sweater. If I had had more time or energy to "re-write" the pattern I would have placed three buttons rather than two. Unfortunately, the pattern directions for short rows on the collar left a lot to be desired. There was no slip of a stitch or wrapping indicated, thus an expected hole formed. So I ripped it out and did my own version of short rows based upon what Jean taught us in Nihon Vogue. The Nihon Vogue investment is paying off!

When I showed the sweater to Rob his response was "I'll take one of those". I almost fell over with surprise. Rob is usually "warm" which is why he seldom wears sweaters and why our house is held at 62 degrees. To take advantage of his willingness to have a Henley style sweater designed and knit for him, I immediately pushed him into the car and drove to Cultured Purls in Issaquah. Whoo hooo - a sanctioned opportunity to BUY more yarn! He was considering yarn in solid blacks to which I informed him my poor eyes could not possibly survive knitting an entire sweater in solid black. Not to mention I would have gotten terribly bored with it in short order. He chose a nice charcoal tweed from Cascade Yarns that will be fantastic. I already have in mind some horn buttons from Nancy's Sewing Basket in Queen Anne/Seattle.