I knew that if I wanted to get any better at this hobby or make any of the goodies I saw on the various crochet websites, I’d eventually have to learn how to use a pattern.  Crochet patterns were still a mystery to me – although I knew what those stitches were, my brain was having a hard time translating all of those letters into actions.  I figured if I could do something fairly simple, with one stitch type and lots of photos, that would be a good start.

So I used this pattern:
https://wilmade.com/easy-crochet-vest/

I had to adjust it up a bit, since the original was an extra small and the yarn I was using wasn’t quite as bulky.  Except that the notations on how to adjust for sizing, although they seemed correct in theory, didn’t exactly work in practice.  I watched the videos and double-checked everything, but when all was said and done, the neck was still WAY too small.  So I had to undo some of my work and make some of my own adjustments.

I used Red Heart Soft Essentials – four in dark grey, three in light grey – and a J/6mm hook.  These were my sizing/correction adjustments (I learned my lesson and documented):

110 total

Top front – 27
Do one more row than the pattern suggests before reducing
To reduce:
Inward: reduce by one, last stitch single crochet
Outward: slip stitch, single crochet, half double crochet.
Last two rows: do not reduce

Sleeves: do same as pattern, but only do 66 rows.

The stitch used for this sweater is a half double crochet, which is a very dense stitch.  So this is really more of a jacket than a sweater, very sturdy and warm.