Let the Gift Knitting Begin!

With my endorphins rushing after I removed the (finally) dry Christmas stocking from the radiator, I casted on immediately for a birthday gift for my boyfriend. Gift knitting has begun in earnest. Expect little else before February (my Gramma's birthday is in January).

The 6 in the 2006 doesn't look quite as wonky in real life, but it's also not as good as I hoped it would be. Que sera, sera. DeanB reminded me in the comments that I have neglected to share yarn and pattern information for this stocking! I used Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride in (I believe) Blue Blood Red, Cream, and Christmas Green. One skein each made two stockings, with enough leftover that I could probably squeeze out a third if I changed the colors around. I purchased the pattern as part of a kit at Patternworks, on sale. I don't see it on their site now, but the pattern (or a kit) can also be purchased through the designer's website, Annie's Woolens. She has a lot of other very cute designs. In particular, I'm eyeing the snowman. Most of the pattern is just following a chart, though she does provide instruction for heel and toe. I ignored these in favor of my favorite short-row heel and the standard toe that I know by heart.




Next up is a pair of fingerless gloves for my boyfriend. Last year (or was it the year before?), I made a pair of these for him, and they were trashed by the end of the winter. I used Naturespun sport and US4 needles. They didn't stand a chance. The fabric was too thin, the yarn too flimsy, and the gauge too large. He drives for his work, so the palms felted first, then the knuckles, then the unfelted fabric started to pull away from the felted knuckles. He needs a new pair, but now I'm thinking smart. I'm thinking indestructible. I'm thinking, worsted weight yarn on US2 needles! Mohair (which makes my eyes water and gets me sneezing, but is undeniably strong)! I think these are going to make it through at least one winter. I have about one week to get them done.

Other gifts I'm thinking about? For Christmas, socks for my boyfriend and mittens for my best friend. A sweater for my mom for Christmas (though that may get pushed back). A shawl for my Grandmother for her birthday. I'm trying to keep the list small so I don't drive myself crazy, but I'll probably end up trying to adding a few things as I finish them. I would like to make a sweater for myself sometime, too!

Jolly Guts

I was patting myself on the back for finishing my first Christmas gift of the year this evening, when I remembered the ends. I had to share the horror before I buckled down with some America's Next Top Model and Lost.

I have to admit, I had to smile aat that jolly red, green and white spilling out from the top. Next time you see it, it'll be woven and blocked!

Today's post brought to you by the letter "B"

Remember the stocking I had to rip back because I messed up on the letter B?
I finally ripped it back last night. The whole process was painless, since I'm using Lamb's Pride, which is pretty sticky. I was horrified when I again forgot to do the middle line of the B again, but I decided to just do it on the next row, and I don't think it came out so bad. The 2006 on the other side looks kinda wonky, but I really think blocking will make it better. I remember the 2005 looking wonky on my other nephew's stocking last year, and blocking helped. I almost cheated and put 2005 on this stocking so they wouldn't know the difference (they're so young now, I doubt they'd remember they got stockings a year apart), but I decided to be honest about it. I have kind of a half-baked plan to make a stocking for a different family member every year. That way I don't get roped into making 15 stockings at once. Hedera is cruising along, and the scarf is progressing nicely. Right now there's an interesting red/pink pattern going on with the scarf. Too bad it'll be behind my neck when I wear it!

Lemons

Well, it turns out that the glove I turned into a sock really wasn't working out for a sock. The leg was fine, but when I made the heel (my best one yet!), there weren't enough stitches to make a proper one. I considered trying to size the foot for a child, but selfishness won out. I want that yarn on my feet! Here it is on its way to the frog pond:

I'm thinking I'm going to use the yarn for Hedera by Cookie A. The more I see that sock, the more I like it.


My pain does not end there, though! I casted on for a Christmas stocking last weekend. It's a pattern I've made before, so I didn't think much of working on it while I visited with a friend and taught her how to make cables. Turns out that you really need to pay attention to those letter charts. I made two O's instead of an O and a B. Oops.





I don't think I'll need to rip this all the way back, just to the beginning of the chart. I tried to drop the stitches and pick them back up correctly in fair isle pattern. Yeah... it didn't quite work out. But I gave it a shot!