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.

I’m really happy with the results. The color looks great on him, and the coat fits him really well. It’s been keeping him nice and warm this winter!

Pattern: My own design

Yarn: Cascade 220 Superwash

Needles: US5

FO: Biscuits & Bones Dog Sweater

My first finished object of 2011 was a Christmas present that should have been done in 2010: A sweater for the dog. She gets really cold after she gets bathed, and I can’t stand to see her shivering! I chose a beautiful dark teal color of Berroco Vintage. It’s soft and warm, and makes a nice, thick fabric.

The pattern I chose, Biscuits & Bones, was admittedly rather challenging. It has two different cable patterns, neither of which is simple. I found it easier to create and copy paste the rows from the two patterns together, so that each row’s directions would show everything that would need to be done, rather than directing me back and forth to different patterns.

One of the biggest problems I had was trying to out-think the pattern. I saw "moss stitch," and thought that I vaguely remember reading somewhere that moss stitch is the same thing as seed stitch. I thought the pattern was written wrong, tried to fix it, ended up messing up, end had to unravel some parts. Finally, I gave in and just followed the pattern and, guess what? It turned out perfectly!

Pattern B makes some really cool diamond shapes in the center of the sweater, while pattern A forms the biscuits and bones for which the pattern is named.

I absolutely love how this turned it. It fits her perfectly, and it is so beautiful! The pattern is a little complicated, but really satisfying for a project this size. If I tried to do something this complicated in a sweater my size, I think I would have gotten frustrated and never finished.

Pattern: Biscuits and Bones Dog Coat

Yarn: Berroco Vintage

Needles: US7 (Body), US6 (edging and neck)

The Verdict: The pattern was great, and the yarn was absolutely lovely. I’ll definitely be knitting with it again!

Cat Meets Dog

This weekend, my parents were moving my brother back up to college for the Spring Semester. They didn’t want to leave the dog alone, so they brought her along. However, my brother was moving off campus and into an apartment, and they needed to go furniture shopping, and that is a little bit difficult to do with the dog! Since my boyfriend’s apartment isn’t that far away from my brother’s (about 30 minutes), I offered to dogsit Mia while they did their shopping. I had to bring her back to the boyfriend’s apartment because I’m not allowed to have animals in mine.

It was wonderful. I got to spend some time with my beloved, much-missed fluffball, and she was thrilled to see me, too. She was really exhausted from the stress of travelling, and promptly collapsed on the couch next to me.

Zoey, the boyfriend’s cat, had never met a dog before. She didn’t quite understand what this thing in her apartment was. She sat on the ground in front of the couch, wide-eyed, tilting her head this way and that to get different views of Mia. She opened her mouth to better smell the fluffy white thing. She then cautiously reached out a paw, touched the dog, and quickly withdrew the paw. Mia would occasionally open an eye and look at her, then go back to sleep. Unfortunately, I did not get a picture of this adorable interaction, although I did get one of them when we put Zoey next to her on the couch:

Dog time

I had a great time this weekend- I went home to visit my parents and the dogs! This is Napoleon (Po for short), a Miniature Chihuahua who visits very often. When I'm home, he quickly decides I'm his favorite person and follows me around the house (seriously, Po, I promise I can go to the bathroom by myself!)


Poor Po scratched his eye up a bit- they bug out so much that it's really easy for him to do. He looked like this most of Saturday, but looked better by Sunday.

Mia, my lovely white fluffball, is my baby. My parents finally gave into my pleas for a dog when I was in eighth grade, and she's the result. She normally looks happier than this, but she hates having her picture taken.

I didn't get much knitting done because Po demanded my attention all weekend. He's not a puppy anymore, but he still wants to Play Play Play all the time!

My father and I took the "Kids" as we call them collectively, out for a nice walk on Saturday morning. Both of them behaved themselves beautifully.

Later that day, we got to visit Mia's best friend, Emmy, at the park.

Emmy and Po played like crazy.

Mia, on the other hand, prefers to explore by herself.

It was a great weekend, and I am so glad I got my dog time in!

A Day at the Park

Dog Update

I showed you Ani, but anyone wonder what's been happening with Mia and Napoleon? No? Well, either way, they've been looking pretty adorable lately.

My mother's latest fix for Napoleon's constant-freezingness is a hooded sweatshirt:


Yes, it looks ridiculous, but at least he seems to be a little warmer. Here's a side view:


And for anyone who is fooled by that innocent looking face, this is what the vets have to do every time Napoleon visits:


He tends to lunge for hands, throats, or whatever he can get to. He was banned from PetSmart Grooming after we tried taking him to get his nails clipped there once. My mother bought the muzzle in hopes that she can cut his nails herself at home.

In Mia news....

She's been working on her begging skills:


She's staring hopefully and longingly at my mother's food. I'm surprised she doesn't get a crick in her neck!

Here's a close-up of those pretty brown eyes. Notice the nice bow; she had just gotten back from the groomer when the picture was taken:


She is very satisfied after she is indulged with a snack:

At least someone appreciates my knitting...

My boyfriend may not overly appreciate my knitting, but his dog sure does. I'd show you a better picture of the shawl, but Anika here (Ani for short) just did not want to be moved!

Hiding her face from the camera, or burying it in the shawl for comfort- I'm not sure which one it is!



A book, a cell phone, and comfortable knitting- she's a pretty lucky dog right there!

Dog + Yarn

This is Napoleon, my brother's girlfriend's dog.


Apparently, my parents saw fit to leave the door to my old room open at their house. This room is not puppy-proofed, since we haven't had a puppy around until Napoleon, and the door was always closed when he was around, since I've been gone. Well, our dog, Mia, decided that she wanted to be in my room, so unbeknownst to me, my parents started leaving the door open. Behind that door lay yarn.

This is the where the yarn started.....


...And continued....


...And ended up. Napoleon was so proud to show off what he'd found to my father. No one had the heart to scold him. After all, it was just some cheap Bernat boa, and I wasn't there to be upset.

Finally, after all that work dragging the yarn all over the place, it was time for a nap.