I finished the crazy sweater, and even wove in all the ends – of which there was a lot, due to both the stripes and the shaped construction.

It didn’t come out quite as I had pictured it. The stripes could have been more uneven in width and distribution. Now I just eyeballed things, and clearly ended up converging at some kind of comfortable width and comfortable distance. Also, I had imagined a more drapey look, but the garter stitch made the fabric a bit stiff.

To let the stripes and the crazy yarn get most of the attention, I kept everything else as simple as possible. No ribbing or anything around the neckline, just one row of single crochet to even out and strengthen the edge, and nothing at all along the cuffs and hem. I rather like this simple, pared-down look.

Initially as I finished the sweater and looked at it, I wasn’t sure how much I liked its combination of loose fit and thick fabric. But then I put it on and it felt amazingly comfortable – soft, loose and very stretchy without being baggy. And it is kind of fun. So now I’ve been wearing it around the house in the evenings almost every day. I think it might be a perfect sweater for the in-between seasons, especially when lounging at home. It may not see much use outside the house – it’s too bulky to fit under a coat (at least under any of mine), and somewhat loosely knit so not much protection at all against the wind on its own.