Major Knitter

My Final Finishing Friday of the Decade

OK - that's a lot of pressure.  Yes, I know it's not actually Friday, but it is December 31st so I feel I must squeeze in one last FO for the year, and well, the decade, too.

This year I finished four more Charlette's Collectibles Santa Claus cross stitch ornaments.  These are my favorite and I work on a few new ones each year.  Here are some close-ups of the newest ornaments:

This is the last Santa of the decade - the Ski Hat Santa

 

Saint Nick Santa

 
This is my own adaptation - a NYC Taxi Cab Driver Santa

 
And finally, a 2001 NYC Firefighter in honor of the brave firemen from 9/11.   

 
 

Here's the whole ensemble of my Santa Claus brigade.  I've made twenty Santa ornaments over the past decade.  They are my favorite ornaments on the tree.  Each one takes about 30-50 hours to make, and they're worth every minute!

 
Next year I'm thinking about inventing my own Boy Scout Santa Scoutmaster design in honor of the 100th Anniversary of Boy Scouts of America.  I hope I can pull it off.  How about your decade?  What are your favorite FOs of the millennium?

The Blind Side

Tonight BF and I had date night.  OK.  Technically, it was date night with a friend.  We went to dinner and then met a friend at the cinema to see The Blind Side with Sandra Bullock.  

 

What a great movie.  I loved it and laughed and cried.  It was a feel-good movie that made me, well, feel good.  There was a little side action going on in this movie.  It could have been called The Blind Sock

 

I got this far on Secundogeniture's stockinette Trekking sock before I dropped a stitch and put the sock down for the rest of the movie.  I contemplated taking my knitting bag out to the lobby to correct the mistake and then return to my seat, but I didn't want to miss any of the movie, so I put my knitting away and simply sat back and enjoyed the movie.  Imagine that.  Just sitting in the theatre to watch the movie and nothing else.  Amazing.  Simply amazing.
 
 

One Tiny Sweater

Here's my one and only miniature sweater for a Hand Knit Wreath inspired by my dear friend Estella.

I improvised as I used Lorna's Laces shepherd sock yarn and US Size 2 needles, but it's loosely based on the similar pattern in one of the Berroco Minutia found in this post.   I think the wreath is so adorable, but I'm not sure how much time and energy I want to invest in this project right now.  It might be a slow, gradual build over the year(s).  That's probably the best approach for me.

Now it's time to start contemplating taking down the tree.  It's at this time of year that I start wishing for those ornament storage bins.  You're probably surprised that I didn't actually invent those; and shocked that I don't own any.  What do you think?  Do you have them?  Do you like them?  Should I take the plunge and order some?

The Gift of Friendship

One of the things I really like about blogging is that I have met so many interesting people across the globe.  I've also been extremely fortunate to meet some of my virtual friends in person.  James was one of my first blogging buddies in 2004.  We've been exchanging holiday gifts every year since then.  I also got to meet him when he came to the US a few years ago.

 

This year I was fortunate to receive one of his great holiday gifts - complete with: 

• a handknit red and green mini stocking stuffed with chocolates from New Zealand
• some Peachy Keen yarn from Vintage Purls (which James sells at his very own LYS - J.O.Y. 
• an oversized white chocolate bar with macadamia nuts (yum!)
• a very happy polka-dot Project Bag by Knit Knit Frog

It's such a happy gift!  The stocking went right on the tree and will remind me of my knitting friend every year.  Now I just need to cast on for a pair of socks that will be stored in my happy project bag while I eat my chocolate bar.

Thanks James!  Best wishes to you and Ian for a very happy, healthy and prosperous new year.

Finishing Friday - Christmas Cashmere Socks

I had every good intention of finishing BF's Christmas cashmere socks for our early holiday celebration on Tuesday, December 22nd, to no avail.  There simply were not enough hours in the day to bake more sugar cookies (nearly 5 hours!), get ready for the holidays, cook, and celebrate.  

Here's the batch of sugar cookies I made for our holiday dinner.  You'll notice that this one is a lighter color than the last huge batch I photographed.  After we ate our holiday dinner, the four of us devoured this cookie tray in about 11 minutes.  Hehehe.  Then we opened our gifts.  Aside from some very special gifts (not photographed here) there were many Scout themed gifts:

 

I especially like the Scout themed ornaments:

 Aren't they cute?  The Peanuts "Beagle Scout" annual ornament is one of my favorite traditions.

Now let me tell you about BF's socks.  They weren't finished.  I felt awful.  I did what only I could do.  I put the unfinished socks inside the knitting bag and put the knitting bag inside a gift bag.  Yes, I presented BF with the UFO!  He was a good sport and pointed out "Who would have thought that I was the only one to receive yarn this Christmas?!"  It was true.  It was the only gift of yarn under the tree this year. 

 

But, alas, there's a happy ending to this story.  I managed to finish BF's socks on Friday night before midnight - so technically, I have a Finishing Friday FO to share with you.  Plus, you'll recall that Friday was actually December 25th, so I finished these just in time for Christmas.  He put them on right away and wore them all day.  

Everybody now, "Awwwwww."

How about you?  Have you ever gifted a UFO?

The Day After

My Girly Girl's expression just about says it all.

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday and that now you get some rest and relaxation after all the hoopla. 

Have a Very Merry

Merry Christmas Everyone!

 

Here are some of my miniature Christmas Stocking ornaments that are adorning our tree this year.  More to come.  They're very festive and less than 3 inches tall.  I used leftover Lorna's Lace's sock yarn and US Size 2 needles.  They're the perfect decoration for a knitter's tree.

 

That Was Easy!

OK - I did a bit of duplicate stitch and them some back stitching to outline the little hearts.  Here are the finished mittens for the Build-a-Bear.

Whew!  Now all my last minute knitting is complete.  Merry, merry Christmas to all. 

Special Delivery

Yes, I took on, not ONE, but TWO special orders for Christmas.  Here are some white mittens for a special girl's Build-a-Bear.  The knitting is done, but now I have to figure out how to embroider some hearts on the mittens.  

Merry Christmas!  Ho! Ho! Ho! 

Last Minute Christmas Knitting

Believe it or not, I took on a commissioned knitting gig for the holidays.  Me - the person who never, ever knits with a deadline.  But this year it was for a good cause.  It was a special request for 5 of my miniature Vintage Boy Scout Sock ornaments.  That's a lot of money for our scholarship fund... so how could I say no?

 

And look at the Hallmark Christmas card I found.  How cute it that?  Handknit mittens hung on the mantle instead of stockings.  Hmmmm.  Might have to think about that one.  Very, very cute.