It is Paul's birthday this week and we got him a gift certificate. That's right. I bought him a piece of paper with the money he makes so that he can go and "spend" said piece of paper. He'll be okay with it. I'll make him a nice cake.
Earlier this summer I attempted to use up a bunch of the knit that I bought at last year's Outdoor Sale. It coincided with Mariko's Craft Book Buying Bender, which was handy. This is a great, great book. The measurements are reasonable (finished measurements are often on the how-to page, in metric, and the "size" measurements are usually at the beginning of the book). The ease on this pattern was huge and while I used the pattern pieces to put this all together, it looks nothing like the picture without the drawstring at the bottom or beautiful woven fabric (I'm saving all that for mine).
Instead, I used a very lightweight dark brown and cream knit-- it's almost tissue weight, but I think there's some synthetic in there so it should be sturdy. I hemmed the bottom edge and took in the sides a bit, so that it would fit properly. It's just the right weight for autumn evenings. Again, I don't use a serger or coverstitch machine for knits. I'd like both of those things, but for now I put everything together using a long straight stitch.
I'm always scared of making clothes for Paul because he uses a lot of fabric and what if it doesn't work? Wasteful. So I'm especially happy that he's happy with this.
People that know Paul usually like him. I mean, really like him. Usually they like him more than they do me, and I don't blame them. He's largely unflappable, generally funny, and he loves his family-- the boys and I-- more than anything in the world and he shows it. He is unassuming and kind. We are a lucky bunch. Happy Birthday, Mister.
