My BKB....or How A Sweater Found Its Home

This is Jenn.
Doesn't she look fabulous?


Jenn and I met about three years ago, while we were both pregnant with our second babies. We were introduced by the owner of one of our LYS's, who just KNEW we would be fabulous friends. When we got to comparing notes, it was kind of scary to find how many things we had in common - from the ages of our children and the close proximity of our anniversaries to having lived in the same condo complex once upon a time. However, we were both pregnant and busy and so nothing much came of it.


Apparently, life had a different plan for us. After the Pixie was born, I found that I kept running into Jenn in the oddest of places. grocery store....mall....children's play areas...yarn shop (which wasn't so surprising) It was as if I couldn't go anywhere without bumping into her. At some point, we realized that we were supposed to get to know each other, so we planned a play date for the kids. Since that first play date, I don't think I've gone more than a couple of days without seeing Jenn and/or talking to her on the phone.

Recently, Jenn dropped by my Garden Party Shawl class to say hi. Without thinking about it, I introduced her to my students as my "Best Knitting Buddy." The class thought that was hilarious, and so did Jenn. So now she is my BKB, and the name has stuck.


The night before my big closet purge, I called Jenn after leaving my acupuncture appointment to talk to her about my wedding ring and my clothes. My plan had already begun to form, and I had one very specific item that I knew I needed to deal with first.


That item was my Tatami Kimono.


Last fall I decided that I needed to knit something for myself. Long story short, I decided to use some delicious Ellen's 1/2 Pt. Farm Merino/Silk from my stash to make Melissa Wehrle's (Ravelry Link) Tatami Kimono. I was VERY excited to be knitting for myself, and FLEW through the project, completing it in about two weeks. The yarn was perfect, the pattern was stylish and I was in love.


You can guess the 'but' coming, can't you?

BUT, I chose to knit a size which was much too small. It was yet another one of my delusions along the lines of, 'I'm loosing weight, and by the time I'll finish it I'll need a smaller size,' or, 'I hate to put the time and energy into something that will wind up being too big because I'm going to be thinner.' Consequently, the poor sweater - beautiful as it was - was thrown into a drawer never to see the light of day. Every once in a while, I'd take it out and sigh over it.

Of course, lest anyone feel too sorry for me, I'm very much a process knitter who's exceedingly detached from most of my finished projects, so really it wasn't that painful. More than anything, it was just annoying.

Which brings us back to that phone call. Once I finished relating to Jenn my conversation with my acupuncturist, I informed her that I would be giving her the Tatami Kimono the next evening, and that I didn't want any arguments. She eventually agreed - so long as I understood that if I should ever change my mind I could simply ask for it back. Good thing she couldn't see me roll my eyes. I had made up my mind, and was comfortable with my decision already.

The next night, I gave her the sweater, and as soon as she put it on I knew that the sweater had found its home. In fact, it looked as if it had been knit for Jenn. Simply perfect. She's worn it several times since, and every time I see her in it, I smile. That sweater went from being a painful reminder of my own failings to a cherished gift for someone who would love and use it.

There's nothing more that a knitter could want.