little girl blue

The vital statistics
Pattern: Jeremy from Favourite Designs for Toddlers by Patons, a pamphlet that I picked up at an op shop in Tasmania.
Yarn: Patons' Jet - shade 508, a bright gunmetal blue.
Needles: 5.5mm blue plastic - they were fine.
Start to finish: 7 November 2007 to 3 November 2008 - well, there was a zip involved.

Comments: This was a great knit, I really enjoyed it. Yes, again it was the finishing that kept it in progress for so long. Just a mental block about sewing in the zip. I followed instuctions from the Reader's Digest Complete Book of Sewing and Knitting which involved tacking the zip opening closed with some contrasting thread, then pinning in the zip. This ensures that the zip sits in the same place on both sides. It sat pinned for months until I finally stitched it in place. The zip was (of course) too long so I had to sew a good number of stitches at the top of it then trim it. Finished product looks good and works properly.

I made a couple of changes to the pattern but really, it was so long ago that I can barely remember. I did the raglan decreases two (even three?) stitches in from the edge and those stitches were in garter stitch. This gives quite a ridge to the raglan shaping.

Verdict: The Jet has knit up to a lovely weight and texture. It's very soft and I think will also keep baby bear very warm. I chose the bright gunmetal blue because I thought the pattern had quite a 1940s post-war look to it. I had planned to do some embroidery on the collar to pretty it up - a couple of daisies with yellow centres, some green leaves and a few french knots in red - but the weight of the collar's rib unfortunately doesn't lend itself to that. I'm going to declare it finished for now but will keep searching for some matching brooches or appliqués to add at a later date. It is a tad too big for baby bear so with any luck will serve another winter. All in all, very happy.