Knits, Cooks, Cats & Books: FO: Napoleon's Coat

This was done in time for Christmas, but I only just now got some good pictures back. This adorable fellow is Napoleon, my brother’s girlfriend’s dog. He spends a lot of time at my parents’ house. As a tiny little thing, he finds most people pretty scary and is super-aggressive to them. However, around my family, he is the sweetest little angel. He loves to cuddle up to us, and one of his favorite places to be when I’m in bed is sleeping on my chest.

He’s also always really really really cold. The poor darling shivers all the time. My parents bought him a winter coat, but it’s really not that great- it’s too big, light blue (it’ll get so dirty!), and just looks kind of weird on him. I decided he needed a nicer coat for Christmas. How could I not want to make something nice for someone who adores me so much?

I chose to knit it in superwash wool because I wanted something that would be warm and also be able to go in the washing machine when he decides to roll in something yucky. I had a picture in my head of how I wanted the coat to look, with a cable going around the whole edge, but I couldn’t find a pattern that fit what I wanted. I ended up having to design it myself. I knit the cable at the butt-end of the coat and picked up stitches along it for the body, using some short rows to shape the corners. I’m pretty happy with how it turned out, especially since I didn't have Napoleon with me to try it on as I designed it.