Sweet Olivia

I love making baby sweaters.  They should feel totally impractical - spending hours knitting something that will, in short time, be grown out of, covered in spit up, or ruined in a washing machine. But they just have so much else going for them, mostly their killer mini-size cuteness. Every time I knit an adult sweater, I find myself wishing it was for a baby. It would just be so much easier and cuter that way, and I wouldn't have to worry about the sweater being flattering or making my arms look like sausages. Baby arms already look like sausages! Plus, baby sweaters use a small amount of patience and an even smaller amount of yarn. And they provide a good opportunity for trying out new techniques on a quicker, faster project. A lace baby sweater, or pretty fairisle pullover? Maybe it's a little bit much, but they just scream heirloomy love, and warm, fuzzy knitted good will. 

And, indeed, a whole lot of knitty love went into this baby cardigan I designed for my friend's new baby, Olivia. I wanted it to feel special and sweet, but also modern and a little bit bold. Like any great baby sweater, it was a fast knit, with a few challenges thrown in for fun, and a couple of great educational moments (purple and orange are made for each other? who knew!). I got to experiment with designing my own colorwork pattern and doing a partial steek. But what really made this sweater exciting was that it was the first time I've knit a baby sweater and wished I was knitting it in my size instead. I want one of these so badly!

If you know of any hip, modern babies in need of a pretty new something, please check out the pattern on ravelry here or etsy here. It's available in newborn to 2T sizing. However, the moment I started those colorwork leaves, the adult pattern became inevitable, so I'll let you know when that comes out too.