Tag Archives: ben berroco

All done!

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And just in time for a heat wave, of course. I finished my kid’s sweater on Monday. Tuesday was a chilly 50 degrees, so we busted it out right away on a little trip to the woods near our house. He looked like a cross between a baby hobbit and a little old man. Frankly, my ideal kid aesthetic. (Though I think the cute factor could be upped with the addition of elbow patches.)

And literally by Wednesday, it was in the 70s, and over the weekend it got into the 80s. So, it seems like this super-cozy, cabled wool sweater will not be getting a lot of play until next fall.

But, thank goodness, I managed to make the sweater big enough that it’ll definitely fit all the way through the next year (probably). There’s plenty of length in the sleeves, and if I blocked it out, I’m sure I could get some extra room around the belly and chest. I haven’t blocked it yet, because it fits just about perfect as is, and it’s extra-squishy and fluffy pre-blocking. It’s possible the neck will be a little too tight if this kid’s gigantic head keeps growing at its current rate, but that would be an easy fix.

I’m so happy to have this sweater finished! I truly don’t know the last time I finished any project, much less a full sweater. And, I’m so glad it turned out well! Now I’m thinking of making myself another Ben sweater to match… My current one is definitely “well-loved.”

Have you finished any projects lately?

So close I can taste it

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I’m thiiiiis close to finishing my toddler’s sweater! Miracle of miracles, I got it seamed up over the weekend, and the sleeves actually look proportional to the rest of the sweater! I had serious doubts about that, but hey, it turns out that my math was correct! Who knew?

It’s so cute, and all I have left to add is the neckband! And, I suppose, block it. But that’s it! I honestly didn’t think this sweater was ever going to get finished. I’ve gotta say, it’s a nice feeling, getting close to finishing a long project. It’s been too long since I managed a bigger project like this.

And it even looks like its still going to fit the kid… maybe even next year!

Have you managed to finish anything lately?

Halfway across the island

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Woo! It’s starting to look more like a sweater! It’s going to need a nice blocking (and assembly) to really see how it looks, but I’m feeling more optimistic that this will be done before my toddler is in high school.

Anyway, here’s the sweater all laid out. Obviously, I haven’t sewed it up yet, but it’s getting there. Despite my best/worst attempts at math, the proportions look more or less correct. And I just love the “little old man” aesthetic for my slow-moving, cheerful, and thoughtful little guy.

One funny thing that happened though, is that the sleeves are literally wider than the body pieces. It’s an oversized sweater with generous sleeves, so it’s not that surprising, but still, when they’re laid out like that… it looks a little funny.

Now I just have to make the other sleeve… and sew it together… and block it. I’m basically done, right?

Are you working on any long-term projects?

Making Progress

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You guys. I have very very exciting news!

Is it precisely related to knitting? Not on its face, but I think the connection will become clear.

My kid had a playdate yesterday. Our neighbor from down the street came over (by himself!) and the three kids played on their own for just about 2 hours. We’ve never had a kids-only playdate before, and as much as I like having adult friends over, too, this was shockingly lovely.

The kids barricaded themselves into the bedroom, played trains and trucks and LEGO and pretended to be dragons and came out only to ask for a snack about halfway through.

YOU GUYS!!! I GOT TO SIT DOWN BY MYSELF AND KNIT WHILE MY CHILDREN WERE AWAKE AND IN THE HOUSE AND IT WAS AMAZING!

It really feels like this is the beginning of a new era of parenting.

Plus, I got the front of my toddler’s sweater done up to the split for the V-neck. Shocking.

When was the last time that you got surprise time to work on your knitting?

Bigger than expected

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I’m cruising along on my two-year-old’s sweater. It’s turning out cute. It’s really reminding me why I like this cable pattern so much that I’ve made it 3 times at this point. It’s just complicated enough to keep it interesting, but also is super easy to follow. There’s never any question about which row gets the cable crosses.

I have to say, however, I’m shocked by how much yarn this project is eating up. In my head, my kid is still a teeny baby who I could make a whole sweater out of a single skein in a weekend. Not so much anymore. I actually used more than one skein just to make the back! I’ve only got three skeins total, so I doubt that I’ll have to enough to make it all the way.

I’d rather not place another order, so I think I’ll just let it ride and cross my fingers until it’s undeniable. (Which will probably be in about two days when I finish the front and have less than a skein to do the sleeves and collar.) Or maybe there’ll be a miracle, and I’ll magically have enough yarn to make it all the way through.

When did my little baby get so big!?

When’s the last time you tried to play yarn chicken? Did you win?

A Sweater-ish Cowl

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I’ve gone through phases as a knitter. There was a while when I started knitting that I almost exclusively knit mittens. Then it was stuffed animals. Then socks. And lace shawls (for some reason…). Lately (as in the last few years), it’s been sweaters.

I love making sweaters. I’ve probably made a couple dozen over the last few years (more, if you include baby/kid sweaters). I find sweaters to be just the most satisfying project. I love everything about them, from designing them to adding details to picking yarn to thinking about the practicalities of their construction. I love knitting sweaters that are my own designs, and I love knitting sweaters other people have designed.

However, two factors are getting in the way of my sweater-dreams these days.

  1. Covid means I haven’t been to a yarn store in 8 months. I’ve been slowly draining my stash of any sweater-quantitates of yarn. Sure, I could probably cobble together a sweater’s worth of sock yarn or something, but… that sounds difficult. And annoying.
  2. As I write this (in late October), I’m less than a month away from the birth of my second kid. Which, needless to say, will cut into my knitting time.

So that means I’m making a point of knitting non-sweater projects.

But that doesn’t mean I can’t dream, does it?

This is one of my favorite men’s sweaters to make (and wear). It’s a super easy, FREE, cabled, comfy, pieced sweater. I’ve knit it twice- once for my husband and once for my father-in-law. I have since more-or-less adopted my husband’s sweater since apparently it’s “too warm for Seattle” for him. It’s the perfect “I’m having a day and just need to be comfy” sweater.

I kind of want to knit another one.

But instead, I’m going to hold myself back and use up the skein-and-a-half of Knit Picks’ Twill I have in my stash drawer to make a nice, cozy Ben Cowl. (I had hoped the gray-blue would have been enough, but it’s not quite as tall as I wanted. Luckily the burgundy looks nice enough with the blue, so we’re going to pretend it was supposed to be color-blocked.)

What other small projects should I work on? Do you have any favorite one-skein patterns?