The Big Dig

I find it very apropos that the day I finished the digger sweater was the same day The Big Dig was completed. The tunnel construction project in Boston cost way more than expected, faced delays with errors in construction and continues to receive tons of criticism. From Wikipedia, "The project has incurred criminal arrests, escalating costs, death, leaks, and charges of poor execution and use of substandard materials."

Okay, so maybe I'm exaggerating.

But, here's the sweater story. I switched yarns because the pattern called for wool/cotton. I wanted the boy to actually wear the thing in Texas, so I chose Rowan Handknit Cotton. I swear I checked my gauge, but when I started on the bottom half, it could have fit me. Frog. Start over.

I switched to the basic pattern from the Handy Book of Patterns and just used the chart from the original book, Handknits for Kids.

The rest of the project went well, except for the occasional knot in the yarn... what is up with that? A few times I just knit along, but now I see those knots poking through and I wished I had unknit and cut the yarn where needed. Lesson learned.

So, as with the Boston Big Dig, construction was delayed with my 3 month knitting vacation (aka first trimester exhaustion) and I finished a month or two later than expected. I finally finished the week before Christmas just when it's getting cold enough to wear it. I showed it to Donovan and with his usual enthusiasm he said, "I want to wear it!" He will continue to be my favorite knitting customer with that attitude (hint, hint, future knitting recipients ...).

We go to get dressed and Jim tells me it won't fit. What? I knit the size 4 knowing it would be too big, but he could wear it for a couple years. The neckline is too tight. It won't stretch over the kid's head. After we try over and over, Donovan falls down on the floor crying. Not sure if it was due to pain or because he wanted to wear the sweater. Sigh.

I tore out the collar and one shoulder seam, crocheted in a button hole and crocheted a chain stitch along the collar. It doesn't look as good as it originally did, but at least he can wear it... and nobody died during construction.