In January, I mentioned in my blog post that I was going to knit a sweater for a darling doggie friend of mine, Miss Jazzy B.
Tah dah! Here she is (above), wearing her new sweater knit with Zen Yarn Garden’s Serenity DK in David a la Harpe (ribbing) and “Splatter” David a la Harpe (main body).
I knit this sweater for two reasons.
First, I couldn’t wait to knit something in this spectacular colorway and thought it was just too perfect for Valentine’s Day not to do it in time for February 14th. David a la Harpe is one of Zen Yarn Garden’s “Art Walk Series” colorways, inspired by Marc Chagall’s 1956 lithograph of the same name. Its reds, pinks, purples and orange are rich and vibrant, and the yarn is soft and luxurious. It’s a superwash merino (90%) with a hint of cashmere (10%), making it a delightful choice for people-wear too.
Second, I’m testing dog sweater patterns. I’m trying out a bunch of other designers’ patterns to see what I like and don’t like about each one, and then hoping to synthesize it all into a “universally flattering, customizable for all-shapes-and-sizes” dog sweater pattern.
I knit the sweater for Miss Jazzy B by referencing Traveling Tree Designs’ Perfect Fit Top-Down Dog Sweater pattern generator (available free on Ravelry). Originally, I sized the sweater to fit my own dog Kona (sorry Jazzy!), inserting Kona’s dimensions into the worksheet to calculate stitches and rows. It was an unusually rainy weekend in Southern California, so Kona and I were indoors all day, which gave me ample time to knit and try it on her to make adjustments as necessary. (Kona only “took off” once, dragging my needles and yarn behind her all around the kitchen island.) In the end, it fit, but seemed a little tight and a little short on Kona, an elderly Schnoodle with a few lumps and bumps.
However, it fits Miss Jazzy B perfectly! She came by a few days after it was finished and tried it on for kicks, and you know what? It looked great on her! So now it’s hers, as originally intended. I’m happy I could make her human momma proud. She’s told everyone that Jazzy is Izzy’s Knits February dog model…and isn’t she beautiful?!
So, sweater #2 is going on my needles tomorrow (again, we’re supposed to get rain), and I’m going to try a different technique for the chest and armholes. I’m still searching for what I consider perfection. I’ll keep you posted.