More than 20 years ago, I knit my husband one of the ugliest sweaters ever created by human hands. I made it in three colors of boucle (I know!). It had big pale blue buttons that looked like Necco wafers. The body was too short and the sleeves were way too long. The button band was so loose it was hard to tell what was a buttonhole and what was just a huge gap in the stitches.
He called it his “Sunday stay at home sweater”. Because it was so cozy, he said. Because he never, ever wore it outside the house, I realized. But he wore it at home for years.
Eventually I convinced him to let me make him something new. He picked out a vintage raglan pattern from the 1940’s, with a complicated knit and purl texture, hemmed edges and collar, and a zipper front. To save time and heartache, I suggested I make something like it in a simple garter rib, with ribbed edges and collar, and (tasteful) buttons.
And he loves the sweater. He wears it constantly–and he isn’t ashamed to be seen in it! It was such a smashing success that I decided to try making it into my first pattern for publication. And here it is, the Rugged Softie Raglan Jacket.
Pattern available on Ravelry
Looky Knits 