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Gussied Up


Gussie, my grand beagle, needs a sweater.  The winters in Minnesota are C~O~L~D .  It is not unusual for somewhere in Minnesota (usually tucked right next to the Canadian border) to be the coldest spot in the U.S.

So when my DIL asked about my knitting a sweater for Gussie it made perfect sense.   I looked into Ravelry and found patterns like the two shown below.  My thoughts were these:
    Sign_patt_3_small2
    Signature Turtleneck
  • Gussie is walked outside a lot, easily an hour or two per day during the week and more on the weekend.  This sweater needs to be knit with warm yarn, but perhaps not high-end wool.  I wouldn't want her to overheat.
  • The walking is done in woods and marshes not on sidewalks or paved spaces so this sweater is going to get dirty often.  
    • Bettychristmas080223_small2
    Hearts and Bones
  • A classic design with either cables or Fair Isle elements seemed to me to be the right type of design for Gussie because beagles seem regal to me and I think of the owners as being a bit classy in their own rights. 






So imagine my reaction when my DIL said she and my son were looking online and thought this pattern was what needed to be made:

Image of Bunny Dog Costume
Bunny Dog Costume by Lion Brand Yarns
This was absolutely the opposite of what I had in mind for Gussie, but I love my kids and in matters such as this they get what they want.  While I was in Minneapolis my DIL purchased some acrylic yarn on sale from a big box store.  Gray suited the dirt factor better than the light pink shown above and my DIL decided the brightest neon pink that could be found would be best for the highlights around the leg and face openings and inside the ears (BTW I think the pompom above the tail needs to be pink as well.)  

Yarn appropriate for a costume for a dog
Measurements of Gussie have been taken and the body of the sweater is almost done.  I looked for a model to see how things were coming together and Mike was placed/forced into action.  He was certainly fine to have the sweater pulled over his head and his legs placed through the holes.  (Mike weighs 12 pounds, the sweater will fit a 30-35 pound dog.  It was quite roomy for him.)  Mike even looked at me when I called his name for the first couple photos.  Then he started wiggling, the ball of yarn fell to the floor and he managed to get out of one of the leg holes causing him to trip himself as he continued to move around.  The last few shots were of a less than happy cat, one ready to get out of his dog costume.   

Happy Mike the model

Unhappy Mike the model.  See he has that leg out of the leg hole and the yarn now on the floor is pulling at him.

This sweater will fit because it is designed for a beagle and Gussie has been measured.  And if you look at this Lion Brand's link you will see there are costumes for a Santa, Preppy, Octopus, Animal Lover, Dragon Slayer, Patriot, Modernist, Proud Supporter, Sports Nut, Proud Puppy, Turtle and Jack-O-Lantern sweaters.  Odds are good Gussie will be getting all gussied up for other occasions in the future once I knit a few more of these costumes.  Poor girl, that Gussie, she and Mike might have more in common than we, their owners, want to admit.  Although we love them, occasionally we don't mind making them look a bit silly, gussied up or not.







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