gnomes

I'm months late in posting this, but Erik's gnome Christmas stocking is one of my favorite knitting projects to date. I started it on a whim one night so that I'd have something to knit while watching Guardians of the Galaxy (so funny and cute), and ended up totally addicted to the colorwork and wee gnomes.

pattern: Drops no. U-614 + Jolly Stockings

yarn: Patons Classic Wool Worsted

needles: US 7 (4.5 mm) 16" circs and PNS

my Ravelry project page

notes:

I tweaked the Drops sock pattern to make a Christmas stocking. Love the little gnomes! I used worsted weight yarn and loosely followed the directions for the largest size. CO 60, 2x2 ribbing, didn’t decrease after the ribbing.

The heel and toe are from Bernat's Jolly Stockings pattern. I think they look more Christmas stocking-y than the regular ol' heel and toe from the Drops pattern.

This was a joy to knit, and I was so happy to hang this by the chimney with care! Now to knit two more with different colorwork designs for Paul and me by the time Christmas 2015 rolls around. Paul has requested candy canes and I'm inclined toward a sheep stocking.

happy solstice!

God jul, as my ancestors would say!The tree is up, cookies are baked, most of the shopping and wrapping is done, and it's officially winter break. Hurray! There's even a Yule party on my agenda for tonight. I still have at least two knitting projects to finish for Christmas, though, so it's not exactly smooth sailing, but close enough.

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With Paul's extended family we do a drawing for a holiday gift exchange. I managed to draw the name of a dear family friend who is a doctor and owns a villa in Italy. What do you buy a man who owns an Italian villa? I ended up putting together an odyssey of syrahs from around the world. Sigh...

The other challenge was a gift for a good friend who gave me a car last winter. Yes, she gave me her old Jeep. How do you possibly reciprocate? I ended up knitting her a hat. Small peanuts, but at least it took time, thought, and effort.

Pattern: Star Crossed Slouchy Beret, by Natalie Larson

Yarn: Malabrigo Merino Worsted in Pagoda, .75 skein
Needles: US 9 and 10.5

Notes:
Super cute! I enjoyed knitting this, especially with the soft and cushy Malabrigo. It was looking a bit small and not so slouchy when I finished knitting. Then I blocked it on a dinner plate, and the plate may have been a bit too large. Time will tell if it fits properly -- I can always wash and re-block, I suppose. Great free pattern -- definitely give it a try.

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I found this at a used bookstore last week:
Fabulous illustrations by Edward Gorey may make this one of the best books ever.
I've determined that Kylie is a Gumbie Cat:

I have a Gumbie Cat in mind, her name is Jennyanydots;
Her coat is of the tabby kind, with tiger stripes and leopard spots.
All day she sits upon the stair or on the steps or on the mat;
She sits and sits and sits and sits--and that's what makes a Gumbie Cat!

But when the day's hustle and bustle is done,
Then the Gumbie Cat's work is but hardly begun.
And when all the family's in bed and asleep,
She tucks up her skirts to the basement to creep.
She is deeply concerned with the ways of the mice
Their behaviour's not good and their manners not nice;
So when she has got them lined up on the matting,
She teaches them music, crocheting and tatting.

I have a Gumbie Cat in mind, her name is Jennyanydots;
Her equal would be hard to find, she likes the warm and sunny spots.
All day she sits beside the hearth or on the bed or on my hat:
She sits and sits and sits and sits--and that's what makes a Gumbie Cat!

snowflakes

A few snowflakes danced merrily through the air yesterday, and it made my heart sing.
The holiday decor on this lovely row house caught my attention on my way to campus yesterday. Badgers spirit! Now that's what I call decorating.

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I should have spent all of Wednesday on my research, but I surfaced for air partway through, binging on Tivo-ed episodes of Bones and casting on for a new (Bones-related) knitting project -- Saroyan by Liz Abinante (rav).
The pattern is completely intuitive and makes perfect sense. I can tell this is going to be one of my serial knits (like owl hats, feather and fan shawls, and just enough ruffles scarves). Saroyan's very similar in appearance to the Cedar Leaf Shawlette, but much less fiddly in construction, plus it's free.

The yarn is Elsebeth Lavold Silky Cashmere in Cassia, purchased on closeout at a steep discount from Webs. Talk about skimpy yardage! 44 yds/skein. Now briefly ponder the blurb about this yarn on the website:

Silky Cashmere from Elsebeth Lavold is a worsted weight yarn of 55% silk and 45% cashmere. Wrap yourself in comfort as this fiber is exceedingly soft and feels wonderful against the skin. Silky Cashmere is designed for cooler weather fashions such as stoles, shawls, boleros, pullovers, cardis and blankets. (emphasis mine)

It truly is soft, with a nice sheen to boot, but can you possibly imagine knitting a blanket out of this yarn? At 44 yds/skein? Can you imagine the number of joins and ends to weave in? Or the cost? Someone was definitely smoking something when they wrote this up.

Socktober? I must have meant Scarftober!

Scarftober doesn't have quite the same ring, but apparently that's what October turned into around here.

Pattern: Crest of the Wave Scarf, by Judy Jacobs
Yarn: Madelinetosh Pastoral, Oxblood, 1.5 skeins
Needles: US 10 bamboo straights
*on ravelry*

Notes: Since I substituted aran-weight yarn for fingering, I decreased the cast-on to 41 stitches. The scarf is still nice and wide. This is a wonderfully intuitive pattern that has such pretty results.

The yarn is so soft, and it has a gorgeous sheen. It's very similar to Sundara Aran Silky Merino. Like its Sundara cousin, it bled a good amount in the wash.

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on the needles...

A scarf pattern by Ysolda that isn't terribly popular. How can that possibly be?!?!? It's even free!

It's the Ariel Scarf, and I cast on 42 stitches to make it just a bit wider. The lace pattern's almost sculptural -- I love all the texture. I'm using Sundara Aran Silky Merino in Ruby Port for this, and it's already bleeding like a mofo. My hands are red when I finish knitting, and I can see the dye swirling down the bathroom sink as I wash my hands. My bamboo needles are now red. I'll have to try adding vinegar to the wash water; I'm a bit anxious about it, especially since Sundara yarn is so darn expensive and difficult to acquire. Sigh...

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getting ready for the big show...

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on holiday knitting...

I'm considering knitting a Modern Garden cardigan for my mother for Christmas (ravelry details here). Mom has lost a lot of weight in the past year due to health problems, and this looks like it would keep her warm and cozy. As an added bonus, it would not take too long to knit! Double-stranded Eco Wool + size 15 needles. :-)

I had thought about knitting an o w l s sweater for her, but trying to guess about the waist shaping sounded like a recipe for disaster, plus it may be too twee for her.

there and back again

Paul and I made it to Milwaukee, Minneapolis, back to Milwaukee, and home again without any more meltdowns of our own. Many thanks for all the kind comments on my last post.

It's a real bitch to see your families' health declining, though. Dementia, back problems, MS, Parkinson's-like symptoms... the guilt you feel at not being there to help combines with extreme relief to create an emotional sinkhole. December 08 has been rough. My hope for the New Year is for things to be easier for a while. Heck, I think the whole country could use that.

So comfort knitting has been in order. Another feather and fan shawl is on the needles: This time I'm using Noro's Cashmere Island rather than Silk Garden. It's soft and free of allergy-inducing mohair, but I do miss the silk sheen. It's labeled as a DK weight, so I went with size 8 needles, but size 9 or 10 might be better. We'll see how it blocks out. BTW, you can score some Cashmere Island for a song at both Webs and Little Knits (which also has Malabrigo Dos).

Before Christmas a friend and I braved the snow for a trip to the Garfield Park Conservatory. It was a real treat on a grey day.

the holiday poinsettia exhibit

I received numerous warnings about how rough the neighborhood was, but it seemed OK to me, especially in the middle of they day. I highly recommend it, and it's easily accessible by the blue line. I'm already planning to return in the summer to see the outdoor gardens.

the aroid house

One more thing: a link to the Vampire Weekend concert at SXSW (from NPR).

Happy New Year to all!