Big Sven for Little Man

I finished the Big Sven Sveater last weekend and I love the results. More importantly the babe does, too! The colorwork was the icing on the cake. Like I mentioned before, it's so nice to knit up the body and sleeves and then finish off with the fun stuff.

What I like the most about this sweater is the collar. It is super stretchy which I've had a big problem in the past. Picture it now -- trying to coax your child in to his new handknit sweater and then having him get trapped in it because the neck opening is too tight... not a good sell!

The collar is worked twice as long as desired, then folded in and the live stitches are sewn to the first row. It results in a cozy, stretchy collar that also has a great 'finished' look. LOVE! I'm going to use this technique from now on.

Big Sven Sveater is a Cottage Creations pattern. Their patterns are fun and informative booklets that you can buy at your LYS. I bought the entire series at the Pink House in WDM (now closed). Cottage Creations is better known for the Wonderful Wallaby pattern but also have a few other fun kid and grown up knits like the Rambling Rows afghan, and the Babies and Bears sweater. Cottage Creations patterns are written mostly by Carol Anderson who lives in Iowa.

I used Berroco Vintage which is a wool/nylon/acrylic blend. It'll be warm, soft, and also washable. I found this yarn was pretty slippery for a worsted weight yarn... I ended up knitting it on size 6 needles for the stockinette and colorwork and size 4 for the ribbing. I LOVED this yarn and will use it often. It's also only $6/hank for 217 yards.