DISASTER sweater.

I can't fully describe how much of a disaster this was. I thought it would be a great Christmas present for Mom, in her favorite color. She didn't even bother to take it home, but quietly suggested I just take it apart and make something else. How depressing.

METHOD:
I found the pattern on the internet, and it recommended LionBrand Chenille Thick and Quick. Royal Blue is mom's fave color. This took almost 5 skeins. LOTS of fiber. I probably should have done it on #12s, but I ended up doing it on #13s for reasons I can't remember. It ended up being too loose, and the dang chenille looks awful.

AND WHAT DID WE LEARN?:
To NEVER work in chenille again. That's pretty much it.

Einstein Coat for my mom-in-law

(This is NOT her coat -- this is from the website. But the coat looks like this, only in blue.)

Wow. This was almost scary. I wanted to make something for my mother-in-law for Christmas, so I figured the Einstein Coat (from the book The Knit Stitch) would be a nice idea. I think it turned out pretty well, and hopefully I'll get a picture of it soon.

METHOD:
I bought Reynolds Lopi Wool, in Denim Blue. Did on #9 and 10.5 needles, all in garter stitch. I made the bust 50 inches, which was a little big for her, but worked out okay. I bought neat silver-look spiraly buttons for it, and I left a little slit in the cuffs so if they were too long, she could roll them up. I thought it was a very neat touch.

AND WHAT DID WE LEARN?:
That the one year I make a coat for a Christmas gift is the one year that our average temperatures were like 50 degrees out.

I expected this would be really boring, since it's all garter stitch, but it wasn't. One thing I don't like is the sleeve seam. I think it looks like a mistake.

When I finished this I was worried that it was going to be too short, so I got it wet and hung it in the shower. It pulled the stitches down nicely, so it made a great looking pattern, but the shoulders got kind of out-of-shape. I hope mother-in-law can fix that.