Back on the Needles: My Hot Cakes Pullover for My Daughter

After what felt like a long creative pause, I finally picked up my knitting needles again, and oh, how good it felt. Between starting a business, juggling a full-time job, and parenting a very energetic two-year-old, crafting had taken a bit of a backseat in my life. But this little pullover — the Hot Cakes Childs Pullover by Jodi Lemieux — was the perfect project to ease back in.

I knit it for my daughter, who, at two years old, is already full of opinions and personality. She saw me choose the yarn and immediately said, “Are you making something for me?” I chose a size four so she’d have a bit of room to grow into it. As any knitter knows, when you put that much love and time into a project, you want it to last for more than one season!

The yarn I used was worsted weight, in the dreamiest mix of pastel purples, greens, and pinks. Although it was a commercial yarn, it had the charm and character of handspun — slightly lumpy in texture, almost thick-and-thin in places, and with a bit of a rustic, scratchy feel to it. My daughter promptly dubbed it “spiky,” especially around the neck (toddler honesty strikes again!), so we’ve agreed it’ll be a “skivvy underneath” kind of sweater. But despite the scratch factor, she wore it one cool evening and seemed genuinely pleased to have something mama-made wrapped around her.

The process of knitting this sweater was deeply enjoyable. I’d been missing that sense of rhythm and calm that knitting always brings me. Getting back into this project reminded me just how essential making is to my well-being. Since finishing it, I’ve found myself spinning and knitting again every night — my hands and heart are finally back in their happy place.

So here’s to handmade sweaters, even the spiky ones, and to carving out space for creativity in the chaos.