Once upon a time, when I was young and carefree and childless, my eldest sister turned 50. I was then spending my days lounging by a pool in Santa Barbara, waiting for a work permit, so I thought this was a fine excuse to make her a sweater, which I did. I think it was a blue wool/acrylic blend, and lacy vertical panels.
It was too small, and she had to send it back to me and I unseamed it and made new side panels, and might have done something with the sleeves but I forget, and sent it back to her.
A few years pass, and my next sister turns 50. However, at this point I was not carefree, but having my first baby! I started well in advance by making something so gigantic that it had to be totally ripped out, and then, finally, late, I made a vest, with some great Norah Gaughan diamond cables. I figured if it fit me, it would fit her, but didn't take into account my nursing-mom voluptuosity, and it was still too big.
Then, in my family there is a big gap before the next 50th birthday. But, if one looks around, one will find a sister-in-law to fill the gap. So I made her a sweater a few years ago. This one I actually have a picture of!
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That still left me several years before my brother's birthday. I had been on a quest (which, as a
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I started in England. I knew my timetable -- lots and lots of time. All went well till I got to the yoke, where I figured I'd put the clothesline of icicles. But, the yarn was already doubled and quite dense, and stranding doubled icicle-coloured yarn around would have made it incredibly lumpy. And, how does one make short, not totally regular, icicles look like icicles and not just little badly formed rectangles? It was not to be. He might recognise them, but no one else would, and the result would be an in-joke and a lumpy, funny looking sweater.
Now, if we can just avoid the size problem... It's long on me, which is good.
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I have many many part balls of Lett-Lopi left, which will also make us sneeze. Some of them have already been dealt with. (I'd never looked at that colour card before; I think I used about 15 or 16 of the colours, along with a couple of full balls of Kureyon and a zillion scraps.)
With this year, my leisurely approach to 50th-birthday sweaters is over. In the next 6 years I have 2 SILs, a husband, yet another sister and myself! And then.... I think I'll wait till people start turning 100! Ohmygosh, my dad's almost 90!
Added later: My brother writes: Thanks for the lovely sweater, which fits as if it had been made for me.
Well, thank goodness for that!
Sister-in-law Mary M says: I often wear my lovely 50th BD sweater which I have had for a few short years already...and I always get compliments on it, usually from complete strangers! and furthermore, I have lost those 5lbs and! it is now a *perfect* fit!
ReplyDeleteLucky family -- the idea of the sweater inspired by the award winning photo is great.
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