Finished Project: Emma's Jacket

A friend of mine recently gave birth to her first child, a little girl named Emma.  Emma may be the most treasured little girl in the world - her parents went through a lot on their way to parenthood - and my friend had a scary episode about a week after giving birth that could have ended very, very badly.

For some expectant mothers I will cast on for a project once they announce their pregnancies.  For Emma I waited until she was safely delivered before I cast on.  I really didn't want to jinx anything. My friend had been through enough.  This entire sweater was knit in two days.  Yes, it is a newborn size, and it was knit on worsted weight wool and size 8 needles, so it was fast.  But there was such JOY knitting this sweater for Emma, I couldn't put it down! I shipped it a few days later, and it arrived while my friend was still in the hospital.  Her mother brought the package to the hospital for her to open there.  I am glad I could brighten her day!

Pattern: Ribbed Baby Jacket by Debbie Bliss, from Special Knits, but was available as a free download for a while. Size 0-3 months.
Yarn: Rowan RYC Cashsoft Aran, in Oat, 2.5 skeins. Sadly, this yarn is discontinued. And the yarn color changes in the light. I put it on a green surface so it looks more pink than it is.  Most of the time it is a lovely oyster/oat color.
Needles: US 8s for the body, US 7s for the lace.
Mods: I decided to replace the plain ribbing with something a little more special - feather and fan lace.  At the bottom of each button band I knit 3, then was able to fit the lace pattern into the called-for number of stitches.  A single vintage button from my extensive button collection was sewn down with DMC embroidery floss.

More color-accurate - oyster with a hint of dusty pink.

If I do knit this sweater again I am going to make some serious changes to it.  Some kind of edging for the bottom and sleeve cuffs, a better cast-on method for the sleeve edges (NIGHTMARE to sew up in a way that looks half-decent), and a change in gauge, perhaps.

It was a lovely, quick knit that just flew off my needles and bumped up my monthly yardage tally nicely. Welcome to the world, Emma!