#49 - OFF THE NEEDLES

'Tis the season of gift knitting. Stressful, blasted gift knitting. I always make the fatal error of planning to knit far too many holiday gifts. Then, add a few commissions onto the pile and I'm in over my head. If I was wise, I'd start in August, but no, I wait until around Thanksgiving for the insanity to begin. Nonetheless, I'm attempting to pare down this year's list - small knits, in mostly chunky yarns, with very simple patterns. So unless you're willing to spend 80 hours on a gift for me and are patient enough to wait until February to receive your Christmas present, don't expect a lace shawl this year.

Ravel it!

But of course, I'm breaking my own ground rules straightaway. I knitted another Brambles, this time for a dear friend, in Cascade Eco Duo, which is an alpaca and merino blend. This time, I modified the beret by adding additional slouch and a faux buttonband.





It turned out cute and cozy, with a slight halo from the alpaca. I'm a tight knitter, so the loose twist on this yarn caused it to be a bit splitty for me, but the yarn is incredibly soft, so I'm willing to overlook it. I'm on a bit of a jag with this pattern, as I'm planning on knitting yet another one for myself with some extra slouch for the chilly months that are upon us.

Ravel it!

Luckily, I'm back on track with my plans - knitted up an Anthropologie-inspired scarflet for a family member's xmas present. This is done in Rowan Big Wool, and seriously, can Rowan just start producing awful, scratchy yarns? Maybe then I'd have a little more money in my bank account because this stuff was just a pleasure to knit. I really like the texture in this, and it was a fairly straightforward pattern. The scarflet still needs a little blocking to loosen up the stitches, but I think you get the idea with this photo. This will be super warm for the upcoming winter season.

Do you make gifts during the holiday season or just stick to shopping? If you do, what are your favorite gift patterns? I need some more ideas asap!

Until next time, happy knitting!!
xx

#29: I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED

From Knitting, etc.

It has been a long week, so I thought to treat myself after work with a trip to my most favorite LYS, A Tangled Skein. I arrived with a plan: buy two skeins of Cascade Ecological Wool. An un-dyed, sturdy, beautiful, reasonably priced bulky yarn.

They were out. So I ended up chatting with the lovely gal working in the shop. Things start happening. Touching too much yarn. I get invited into the brand new storage room they're renting in the building. I'm shown an entire box of Cascade Eco Duo, an un-dyed, worsted weight, two-toned alpaca and merino blend.

It's so lovely and so soft that I think I got confused because I left the store with eight skeins and a badly dented credit card. I don't even know how that skein of Malabrigo ended up in my bag, too. It's a good thing I got a discount. Afterwards, I gleefully called my best friend on a yarn-high. A few hours later, I realized what I had done.

Lesson learned: Don't let them take you to the back storage room. You'll have no self-control.

Also... I'm still looking for some Ecological Wool, so if you have some in your stash you'd like to trade, let me know. :)