I had no idea that the midnight-Iphone photo of the fresh-off-the-needles Baby Surprise Jacket last night was a blurry horror until I took a look at it a moment ago.
With apologies, I'll provide a better picture and show you how I figured out the way to finish the sweater.
This, for those of you who have never knitted one, is the Baby Surprise Jacket Blob.
It's a blob because you knit it all in one piece, and although I kept trying to guess at how it would fold together like a complex origami piece at the end, I just couldn't see how this strangely shaped piece could become a sweet little baby sweater. (The original pattern was written by the legendary knitter Elizabeth Zimmerman, and can be purchased in book form here.) The pattern includes a chart that labels the folding points, but my brain doesn't seem to work that way and the chart was not helpful.
There were two clues, though. On opposite sides (you can see them a bit down from the top in the blob picture) were squared off corners that looked like the front neck.
This is also the only picture that, at least on my monitor, gives an accurate impression of the colorway, which is incredibly baby-girl pretty.
The other clue was buttonholes down part of one side.
They're sort of hard to see, so here they are again, up close.
Figuring that the buttonholes had to march down the front and the two square corners had to be on either side of the front opening, I finally folded the blob to come up with this.
Hmmm….this jacket just does not like to photograph as pretty as it is in person, but here it is, and you get the basic idea. The only seams that need sewing are two short stretches at the top of the sleeves.
I'm hoping to find an accommodating small child to model it for me after it is sewn up, as the wee one it is meant for is not here yet. After knitting this pattern for the first time, I totally get its allure. I want to try one in a solid color. And I'd like to do another with stripes. And, I really want to do one in a heavier weight for Ollie next fall. It's a very cool exercise in geometry and "knitting around corners" — just the kind of thing that makes knitting fascinating.
It’s magic. Isn’t it cool that there are people out there that figure these things out! It’s a very cool looking sweater.
Joanne
it’s awesome! i’m always impressed at how great these jackets come out. i really need to try my hand at one.
Beautiful! I love the colorway. I will be making one of these for the fall. I almost feel like I have to, like it’s part of the knitter’s journey!