Cables

Does anyone recognize this scarf pattern? Yes, it's the Irish Hiking Scarf. I'm knitting it for my husband from yarn that he selected (Jo Sharp Silkroad Tweed in Ivy). It works up quickly and is an easy pattern to memorize. No wonder it's so popular. When I first started knitting, I mistakenly thought that knitting cables was something reserved for only the very advanced knitter. However, I soon learned not to judge the difficulty of a knitting technique solely on the complexity of the result. Cables look complicated, but they are not. If you have never tried them, I would recommend this pattern as a good place to start.

P.S. I think I'm finally getting back to normal after having the flu for a week. It's no fun to be sick at Christmas, but I was still able to have a good time. I just had to rest more than usual. It was great to see my daughter, but hard to have our visit come to an end. Miss you already, Robyn!

Merry Christmas Everyone

This pillow is a gift from my neighbor. She does such beautiful work. I love it!

Well, tomorrow is the big day. The tree is decorated, the presents wrapped and all is ready. Only one little hitch--I have the flu. I'll be doing my best not to share this with my family this Christmas. My daughter and her husband made it in from Arkansas very early this morning. Having them here is a gift in itself. So, even though I'm sick, I'm sure to have a great Christmas and I hope you do too.

Another Christmas Hat

Thanks to everyone who commented on the hats in my previous post. Your encouragement is greatly appreciated! Those hats were my favorite, but I was also pleased with the way this design turned out.

A simple Christmas tree shape with a star button on top. I was able to knit four of these.

I ran out of time to knit a pair of booties for every hat, but I was fortunate to find some tiny socks at the store to which I added some Christmas embellishment.


Now it's time to concentrate on getting things ready for Christmas day. Only six days left! We were way ahead on some things this year like gift buying, but way behind on other things. Finally bought our tree this weekend. It's not decorated yet, but at least it smells like Christmas now.

Wishing You...

joy, hope, peace, love

These hats were knitted using this pattern and duplicate stitch for my favorite charity.

Mittens

This is the beginning (and end) of the mittens I mentioned I was making for myself. I decided to use some of the Brooks Farm yarn I bought recently and the pattern guide for basic mittens from Ann Budd's The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns. I realized something though--I have never owned a pair of mittens. Afterall, there's not a huge need for them in this part of Texas. I usually just wear a pair of store bought gloves if the weather gets cold enough. Because of this I really have no idea how mittens are supposed to fit, but I'm pretty sure they should fit loose enough to have some wiggle room for your fingers and this one does not. Too tight. And though I love the yarn, I now know I would rather have a pair of mittens from worsted weight yarn, not the fine guage this is. This yarn is too nice to use for something I'm not thrilled with. So, live and learn and rip out and start over.

However, this pair of mittens turned out just as I hoped they would.

I found this pattern yesterday on Diana's blog. They way I understand it, she took the pattern for Holiday Mitten Ornament from Frugal Knitting Haus and clearly rewrote the instructions. Also, it looks to me like she modified it to be knit with dpns, which I love. Her instruction page includes little boxes for checking off rows completed. Good idea! Since I knitted two mittens, I checked the boxes for the first one and erased them for the second one. A convenient way to keep track of your place. These mittens are about the size of a regular business card, not including the thumb. I'm using them to dress up a Christmas gift and later they can be hung on the Christmas tree. They were fun and quick to knit, only about two hours for both. For yarn I used Lion Brand Cotton-Ease. I think Diana used left over Cascade 220. It doesn't take much so use what you have.
P.S. When it came to finishing, I just ran the yarn through the remaining stitches instead of using the kitchener stitch. I also crocheted a chain and attached it to the edge of each mitten.

For The Babies

These are the Christmas hats, booties and blankets that I'm sending to The Preemie Project. It may look like a lot, but it doesn't take as much time as you might think to make these little items. In my case, I can knit a pair of booties in an hour and a hat takes an hour or two depending on the size. So, it is very possible to knit a whole set in an evening, two at the most. The blankets go together even faster. This work brings me joy. Can you tell I love workin' for the little babies? I'm going to knit some every day anyway, why not spend a few hours making something for someone else? And still, there is time to knit for myself. I'm loving my new socks and with the weather a little on the cold side (even here in Texas), I've had a chance to wear some of the things I finished this year. My wool scarf kept me warm yesterday and I received several nice compliments. I was wearing nice warm socks too. And, this shawl has seen some action lately. Right now I'm working on mittens from some of this lovely yarn. So, if you've been thinking of knitting for a charity, but weren't sure you had time, I would like to encourage you to give it a try. The Preemie Project would love to have you as a volunteer...something to think about for the new year.

Socks!

Two socks, finished and ready to wear. These are the Go With The Flow Socks (Interweave Knits Summer 2005) that everyone's been making. I was full of doubts when I was knitting the first sock. My guage was off just a little, so with each stitch I wondered if I could fix things where they would fit. Well, it was a relief to find I could, so the second sock was much more fun to make. I'm happy with the results. I've only worn them long enough to photograph them, which by the way was not easy to do, but they seem to fit fine.