Cobblestone: You Can’t Miss It!

Before joining Brooklyn Tweed, I was on a different creative path. As a first-year student at the Juilliard School, I was invited to compete in the 2007 Veronica Dunne International Singing Competition in Dublin (Ireland) in the month of January. I was thrilled about the opportunity to be surrounded by aspiring opera singers from all over the world and excited to visit Ireland for the first time, and felt I had to share this experience with someone special to me. So, I invited Jared along for the adventure.

Armed with hopes and excitement, we buckled into our Aer Lingus flight and crossed the ocean to Dublin. I couldn’t believe I’d finally get a chance to familiarize myself with the city and its people, those that James Joyce so beautifully portrays in his masterwork Dubliners.

Each morning, the competition organizers would assign each singer a time slot for their audition and every morning Jared and I would plan our sightseeing schedule accordingly. Dublin in January is cold and wet, but still incredibly charming and gregarious. We loved it!

The night before the finals, we consulted our Lonely Planet guide in hopes of catching a night of traditional Irish music somewhere in the city. According to the guide, there was no question that our best bet was a pub nearby called The Cobblestone.

We started following our physical map (this was pre-google-maps-on-our-phones) but soon got lost in a tangle of small sidestreets. We began asking friendly passersby for help — more than one, I remember, emphatically exclaiming: you can’t miss it! (Despite our proof to the contrary.) Upon further meandering, however, we finally spotted the warm glow of the windows at The Cobblestone. That night we enjoyed the most lovely evening of music, beer and Irish pub camaraderie.

Later that month, after we had returned from our trip, Jared showed me a sweater that he had just finished knitting. “A magazine has asked to publish this design and I’m getting ready to write the pattern —  what do you think?” he asked. I told him that I would love to learn how to knit one day so that I could knit one for myself.

"Wait until you hear what I decided to name the pattern” he added with a mischievous smile. “One hint:.....You can’t miss it!”

I excitedly answered: Cobblestone! and we both laughed.

In 2019, six years after joining Jared professionally on the Brooklyn Tweed journey, I grabbed some Shelter — Long Johns and knitted my Cobblestone. Knitting my first sweater and thinking back on that day 12 years earlier when Jared showed me the very first Cobblestone was a unique kind of satisfaction. When I asked Jared what he thought of the custom modification I made to the neckline, he wittily replied: You can’t miss it!

This sweater will always have these special memories knitted into its fabric — and perhaps that’s the reason why I am tempted to knit it again. (Or maybe this time, a cardigan?)

Luigi Boccia

Brooklyn Tweed | Operations Manager