J's Pumpkin Koolhaas

We all know the maxim that you should never knit your boyfriend a sweater... well I never did. In fact, I may hold a record. This year, nearly 20 years after meeting my boyfriend/husband, I finally knuckled down and knit something for him:

Pattern: Koolhaas by Jared Flood [AKA Brooklyntweed]
Started: December 7, 2007
Completed: December 11, 2007
Materials: Tahki Donegal Tweed
Needles: US 6 / 4.0 mm; US 8 / 5.0 mm



Love the stitch definition with this yarn. This was my first try at the Koolhaas. The hat ended up fitting well around but being a bit long, so Joseph folds up the rib. He loves it and, I’m happy to say, wears it all the time... even around the house!



But wait — What's that he's doing? (you ask) He's knitting! Yessiree, there's a lot of good that can come from checking out Brooklyntweed, the remarkable blog by Jared Flood. In my household, that "good" was J's decision to give knitting a whirl. (Thank you, Jared, for your stunning aesthetic!) I started teaching him in November, and by Christmas he had finished his first project (that scarf in the picture) and a second project for C (see the next entry). In the picture, he's working on a tie of his own design. He now has his own Ravelry account, and you can check out his project page to see more of it.

Back to the Koolhaas:

It's a fantastic pattern. I live near the Seattle Public Library where Jared got his inspiration, so I’m partial. As of January, I’ve made three of these – given them all away – received one (knit by Joseph), and modified the pattern for children’s sizes so Joseph could knit one for our daughter. Did I mention we love this pattern?

I finished it well before Christmas and gave it to him to wear right away. Who can really wait when the guy lives with you, watched you knit it for 3 days, and knows it's done? Not me! The problem was, I had told C it would be a Christmas present. Rather than blow the whole Christmas thing for her, we kept it a secret that J was wearing the hat. He'd wait to put it on until she wasn't around. We did have a few scares, but we pulled it off. When he unwrapped it Christmas morning, she was thrilled because he would finally get to wear it!

Unfortunately, I gifted the other two Koolhaas's I made for my mom and sister before taking any pictures. My sister promises to send me some, so I'll post them sometime in the future!