In Honor

My grandma is an incredible lady. She’s raised a family, run a household, held various jobs, and still - at 80, now - manages to be active and happy. Possibly more active than I am. She has seen some amazing things, and lived in interesting, and sometimes difficult, times.

I’m not going to go into detail, because I really don’t feel like password-protecting this post. But I imagine that you have all known wonderful people in your life. She is one of the wonderful people in mine.

This (and the picture above) is what the finished, post-blocking doily looks like.

I think it turned out quite nicely.

And then there’s the sweater that started it all…

She helped me make this sweater many years ago. (Luckily I came into my full height at a young age, and haven’t gained much weight since then, so the sweater still fits well.) I spent a week visiting one spring, and she taught me to knit. Then, as a birthday present, we went to a yarn store and picked out yarn for a sweater that we would knit together. I didn’t know at the time just how not-beginner-level the yarn I picked out was. I don’t remember the details, but I think it’s a mohair blend. I do know that I often had trouble with the fuzziness of the yarn, and that Grandma knew what I was getting into, but let me do it, anyway.

She knit the patterned pieces and the shaping (like the sleeves and the neck decreases). But I got to knit the body of the sweater. I remember being a bit annoyed at the time, because I wanted to knit the “fun” part - but I know now, as I didn’t know then, that the pattern was beyond me on that yarn. I could do it now, I’m sure. But I am also sure that I couldn’t have then. I would have gotten so annoyed with the yarn messing up that I wouldn’t have ever finished the project. And the shaping! Don’t even get me started on how badly I would have handled that. My tension was great for straight knitting, but it’s only recently that I’ve been able to keep it even on shaping or pattern work.

Ever since tag-team-knitting that sweater, I was determined to be able to do it all for myself. I did have several years where I let the knitting slip by the wayside, but in the back of my head I still had that goal. So now, having completed two sweaters for myself and two for gifts (in addition to the various other projects), I can look back and remember where it all started. And smile.