Purple Sweater Done

I finally finished my FRIENDS sweater. I love the purpleness of it. I love the yellow frame on the pockets. I love how warm it is. I will definitely be wearing this often. 

This sweater really challenged me. I have never crocheted something like this, and the only sweaters I have made were knit as one piece. Sewing it together was the most challenging part for me. I have also only knit the few sweater I have made. Learning new techniques and stitches really worked my brain. I am excited to continue to learn my crafts. There are more patterns I will make from this book. 

Using Birthday Yarn

 

My sister bought me yarn for my birthday on Amazon. She chose the type of yarn and sent me a link to choose which set of colors I liked. I, of course, chose the most purple combination offered. 

I have been so involved with other projects since then that I hadn’t taken the time to look for a project that would suit this yarn. However, with the hats for my kids and my sister’s family done and my sweater at the stitching phase, I am now ready to make something with this yarn. 

Yesterday, I sat down and used the advanced search option on Ravelry, put in the attributes of the yarn, and searched for the perfect project. Unfortunately, the first 3 or 4 that caught my eye were discontinued patterns (how does this happen so much). Then, I saw a pattern for a pillow type thing. It is perfect! Would I rather be knitting? Yes! There just wasn’t a pattern with an existing pattern with the yardage requirements that fit what I have. It is a fun project, but I have made a few tweaks that work better for me. I have a feeling this will be another quick project. I wonder what I’ll do next. 

Sewing the Sweater

 I started sewing the seams on my sweater today. Fist, I laid it out on the table to make sure it was set to be seen properly. Once it was laid out, I got start. So far, I have seen the left front to the back. I’m hoping to finish the rest tomorrow. I’m so happy this is working out so well!

The Purpleness

I may have a bit of an obsession with purple. It snuck up on me. I didn’t used to like purple so much, but I am drawn to it now. It doesn’t even seem to matter what shade it is. 

When I was a kid, purple was the color I was given, and I hated it. My sister would get things in pink, and I was stuck with purple. I remember hating that my mom bought me a purple scripture case because I was stuck with it for the foreseeable future. I still have that scripture case with the stuff in it from my adolescence. It is a reminder of so many things including my mom. 

As I grew up, I tried to avoid the color for many years. I honestly don’t remember when I gave into accepting it. I remember that my favorite shirt my freshman year of high school was a royal purple, but I swore I didn’t like that color at the same time. I remember having a shirt I really liked when I was in my early 20s that was lavender, and there were a few here and there for a while. At that point, I knew it was one of my favorites. It was one of my wedding colors for my first wedding, after all. However, it wasn’t an obsession as far as I remember. 

By the time I married Chad, I knew I loved purple more than any other color even though it was not one of my wedding colors for the most important wedding of my life. Chad had always known of my affinity towards purple and even encouraged it. 

Now, I am sitting at my desk wearing a purple shirt and purple nail polish with a purple stone in my engagement/wedding ring while knitting a purple sweater as I live my purple life. 

Sweater Restart

I have been faithfully working in my purple sweater for about two and a half weeks. The back was getting huge, and I was using more yarn than I thought I would need. I even ordered more yarn just in case. 

Today, I held up the back panel to see he progress. It was huge! I held it over my back to see if it was my imagination, and it was bigger than I thought. It reached below my knees, and I still had 20 more rows to crochet. I read the instructions for the main stitch again, and realized that I was doing it wrong which made it much bigger. 

The only solution I had was to take it out and start over. That meant unraveling two and a half skeins of yarn. It was a sad process, but I know it would not have worked in any way to keep going. 

I have restarted it, and I am still excited about the sweater. I can’t wait to get it finished. I know it will take longer since I start classes next week, but it will be with it to have the final product. If I have too much yarn, I will make the matching bag. 

Samantha’s Hat

 

I made my niece, Samantha, a hat that matches the purse I made her in June. I love the way it turned out! I feel like it is the perfect hat for this little girl. I used some of the left over yarn from the purse and a free pattern from Ravelry. I was honestly loving the pattern and may consider making one again. I just have to find the right person.