As an avid knitter and someone who regularly gifts handknitted garments to loved ones, my favourite thing is to see those people actually wear the items.
It’s quite rare that I get proper pictures of the finished knitwear, and even rarer to capture it on the wearer, I always forget! I did get proof-of-wear recently of my darling god daughter wearing two knitted gifts and I’m so excited for it. She wasn’t too keen on posing and doesn’t yet speak more than a few words so I don’t know if she actually approves but at least she didn’t rip them off herself.
There have been a few occasions where someone says ”oh it’s too precious, I can’t wear it, I’m too afraid it’ll rip”, when I’ve graciously gifted them something handmade. Safe to say those people are never getting anything knitted from me ever again, it would be a waste of my time. If I make you something, I need to see you wear it until it’s totally tattered and I tell you to toss it so I can make you a new one.
On the opposite side of the spectrum is my mom who still wears the hideous legwarmers I made probably almost 20(!) years ago. When ever I see her wearing them I try to make her bin them already but she claims she likes them because their flaws actually work for her; they are quite short and really flare out at the bottom so she can pull them down on top of shoes at the ankle to prevent getting snow in them. I really need to make her prettier ones that still serve the same purpose.