A Birthday Sweater

This is the project I was primarily working  on during our trip too and from Knoxville, but not while we actually were in Knoxville, for obvious reasons.  Owen's first birthday is slightly less than a month away and I decided that he needs a new birthday sweater.  It might actually be a little large on him.  Different designers and different pattern companies seem to have different interpretations of what "1 year" means as a size for children's clothes,  but it will fit him soon enough.

I actually began this last fall, shortly after his birth, but grew frustrated as it became evident that Owen was not really going to wear the baby sweaters I had already knitted although perhaps there is still hope as the sweater his parents liked best was a bit big and is only now the right size for Owen to wear.

So I had only knit about an inch or two of one piece of this sweater before I abandoned it.  This summer I reconsidered my selfish motives and decided to knit it anyway.  The pattern is from Mission Falls, as is the yarn.  I don't really know which book -- I was working from a coffee stained photocopy and leftover yarn, from another sweater or two I knit years ago when some friends were having babies and grandbabies. 

I've already been told that little boys don't wear purple and I should have chosen different colors.  It doesn't scream "little girl" to me, it doesn't strike me as being particularly for any gender, but this whole gender-specific color thing is a little beyond me anyway.  It looks like a box of crayons to me but I am really no expert on children's clothes.  Although Owen is starting to form opinions on many things, I don't think the colors of his sweaters is one of them, so I'll just hope for the best.

Comments

[Marji]

oh I have so much to catch up on I can see - but I'll just leave this for now - I have to get back to muslins...more later on that.
anyway, I hope that baby Owen does get to wear this uber-cute pullover. Baby clothes are baby clothes - what is this phobia with men and their color preferences - makes me want to go 'argh'

btw, looking at your inventory of rowanspun 4 ply, I can see that we each have many of the same colors. I love that stuff. Absolutely love it. I knit an Elspeth Lavold top using it double stranded last year - one strand emerald and one strand midnight - created a gorgeous blue-green. pics are in my flickr album if you want to have a look.

[Susan]

Hah - haven't you ever seen the colour combos that small children pick for themselves! They love everything and anything that is bright & fun - this sweater is RIGHT UP THEIR ALLEY - so to speak! 'Tis only adults who adhere to the 'does work/doesn't work' mantra when it comes to specific shades & certain genders. Children certainly don't self-limit the way that we do...... My 2-year old son loves his pink baseball & baseball bat, and happily chose that set over the yucky pastel blue option......

;>

[Gina]

Indeed, it is very adorable and very gender-neutral in color. I can't see that anyone would say this sweater is "girly". I'm guessing it's Cotton Stria.