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december 11, 2003
wimpy, wimpy I spent the last couple of days thinking about how to avoid all that knitting at a tiny gauge. And then I wimped out. For my last two knit-gifts I'm going to use two strands of the Prime Alpaca held together which gets me comfortably up to DK weight and a US6 needle. It'll be much easier on me and should also make the winter wear even warmer. So I started by casting on for some sort of cowl and was trying out different numbers, when I realized that what I'd knit so far wasn't really wide enough for a cowl, but it was perfect for hubby's hat.
Only one problem, it's not double-knit like he wanted. I tried turning up the bottom as you would for a hem and picking up the cast-on edge for the second set of stitches so I could continue the hat from this point as double-knit, but the first double knit row wasn't looking clean enough, so I scrapped that idea. It'll be a regular hem instead, but a large hem that will cover his ears. That's two layers of double-stranded alpaca over his ears. That should be pretty toasty! Any more holiday gift-along updates to share? What gifts are you most proud of so far? Any you're dreading finishing? Do tell! posted by alison at 8:25 am | in
a christmas story
Comments
I'm up to 16 of 21 gifts completed!!! Nothing too excited really. I'm so ready to be finished with the holiday stuff so that I can move on to fun me stuff. It seems like everyday I think of something new that I want to knit for myself. If only I didn't have to work of a living!!! Posted by: kimberly at December 11, 2003 8:50 AMYou are so diligent in your holiday knitting!! I've been super busy at work and traveling a lot so I fear that I will not reach my goal. I am in the middle of three gifts right now and hope to finish all of them this weekend. That will only happen if I resist the urge to finish a sweater that's all blocked and ready to go. Wish me luck! Posted by: Sara at December 11, 2003 8:56 AMI love the generic coziness of hubby's hat. His ears will be toasty indeed. Posted by: michelle at December 11, 2003 9:00 AMAllison - I wish I had 2 done - I have 1.5 to go. Dad's socks are still zooming along. Hopefully I'll get them finished up this week so I have another week for my brother's. Its getting tight! Gina Posted by: Gina at December 11, 2003 9:39 AMSo far, I'm 6 of 9 down. Still have some HWBS duplicate stitch and seaming to to do. My favorite gift by far is the felted clogs that i knit for my friend Marcy. I felted them on Monday night and they look great! can't wait until they are completely dry! Photos in my blog soon! Posted by: Stella at December 11, 2003 11:32 AMFinished two scarves -- one in Boa and one in Eyelash. Dread the ends-in-sewing, per usual. Finished a Boat Neck Shell -- just the side seams to do. Working on gloves for DS, using the formulae in the Winter IK...hope they're not too big!! Posted by: Marg at December 11, 2003 11:59 AMOK, I know I didn't officially sign up for the holiday gift along but I'm having major headaches with my one last gift that I have to make so I thought I'd take the opportunity to share. Its a throw for my mum. Using lots of lovely Colinette yarns and following one of their gorgeous throw patterns. I have no idea why I'm not loving it. The yarn is gorgeous, the pattern is fantastic, the finished item is going to be perfect. I just keep finding a million uses to not knit it. I can see me sitting up until midnight on Christmas Eve frantically knitting away. Perhaps I'll turn it into a scarf instead! (thanks for the rant forum - she reads my site so I can't talk about it there!!!) Posted by: kerrie at December 11, 2003 12:00 PMI'm up to 14 completed out of 23. Most of them are small (kitty mice, chenille washcloths), and the rest don't need to be finished until I arrive at my parents' house on Christmas Eve! So really there is plenty of time. The one I like the best so far is the All Around Companion I made for my best friend's daughter. It came out so nicely in Kureyon 124. This favoriteness may be supplanted by the modular scarf I'm making for my aunt -- I just cast on for it last night and the yarn and design are amazingly beautiful -- I hope I can do it justice! I'm slightly dreading the two remaining felting projects, since I have to felt by hand and it's kind of a pain. Oh well. Posted by: Becky S. at December 11, 2003 12:06 PMI think a double layer of alpaca over the ears should be quite toasty! Isn't alpaca reputed to be the fiber that keeps you warmest? Posted by: Silvia at December 11, 2003 12:44 PMheh heh. Somehow my list of 5 went up to 9 and I only have 1 completed. I have several started though and I have knit group at my house this weekend so I will definitely be productive! Posted by: Libby at December 11, 2003 12:48 PMI finished two more gifts and gave up on knitting some of them. Currently, I'm 5/12. I'm an unofficial "holiday gift-along"-er as well... I've gotten done: Nearly done: Somewhere between not started and half done: I think that's it - so I suppose I'm not TOO bad off ;-) Posted by: Eklectika at December 11, 2003 2:18 PMGreat updates and great projects! Can't wait to visit everyone's blog and see all the pics. Good luck finishing up in time. Hang in there, Sara! Kerrie, what's up with us and the Colinette yarns? I should be knitting my mother's vest, but just can't bring myself to do it. Even though I do like the yarn. Sending you all the mom's-Colinette-gift good vibes I've got! Best of luck. You'll be so proud when you've finished it. Posted by: alison at December 11, 2003 3:05 PMI am pretty impressed that I have so many fininshed already! Last year I gave up after 2 or 3 and that was the end of it. I am really happy with the muff I designed with Fun Fur it came out just like I pictured it, but the DNA scarf is dragging me down. I hate charts I don't even want to pick it up. I am also a bit tired of mittens but I am on my last pair. Yay! Posted by: Nancy Mathews at December 11, 2003 4:45 PMI've now completed 8 of 10 planned gifts. Of the two remaining, one is almost half done, and the other not started yet. But I feel the pressure is off, I can relax now and even do some "me" knitting (maybe even the stalled ribbie cardy). This has been a great knit-a-long, thanks Alison! Posted by: Brenda at December 11, 2003 6:06 PMI'm at 5 of 9, and one is not due until January 2nd, because it's a birthday gift for my husband :-) The one I'm most proud of so far is a scarf I just mailed off today for my sister-in-law, made of Lamb's Pride Bulky held together with S. Charles Collezione "Ritratto." I made really long, lush fringes for the ends. You can see them at my blog. Now I'm dreading the giant triangle shawl that just keeps getting bigger and harder to stay interested in with every row! arg. Maybe I'll change that one to something more fun... Posted by: larissa at December 11, 2003 8:36 PMI finished my doubleknitski hat. Very cool. I think I may have gone around twice on the purl side once as the inside seems a little longer than the outside but that was fine, I just turned it inside out. I have to make my mother a felted Lily bag and finish up a charity hat and I am done. I decided against my nephews hat. He will get one but probably in February as I plan to make his sister a hat kit I got from Bea Ellis but just not for the holidays as I got her too much stuff as it is. I am hoping he is getting a new winter ski jacket as his old one is starting to look small and I can match his new hat to that. I may add a watch cap to use up the yarn left from my fathers hat and my father will just get two hats but again, that may be January relaxation knitting. Then it is onto something for me, me, me. My Whitby Gansey has been languishing since October. Thanks for the doubleknitski pattern, it was fun to do and fun to watch it become two hats in one. Hi Alison- Oh my God ! My knitting for Xmas is really late ! I have just started Significant Other's hat... and the ribbing is taking a lot of time ! Plus the fact that I would like it to be a surprise, so I can't knit it while he's around !!! Nor post photos on my blog... I'll tackle his gloves this week-end. Hi I have finished 3 of 7, but some of the 4 left at least 50 % is donne! And I have only some days more to work - jipiee!! Love your knittings! eve Posted by: Eve at December 12, 2003 2:07 AMI admire how you remain focused on your holiday knitting! I still need to knit my niece's cardi and have not even started. Ack! Husband's sweater, too. Double ack!! But I finished a few bucket hats :-) Posted by: Becky at December 12, 2003 3:22 AM9/9 hats plus a charity cap all done! I even threw in a few more hats just in case some didn't fit. Everything was sent to the land of the snow in November. So now, I'm missing the holiday gift-along. Snif! Posted by: Marie at December 12, 2003 7:01 AMHoliday? There's a holiday coming? Posted by: claudia at December 12, 2003 8:29 AMGreat updates, everyone! Brenda, I'm looking forward to seeing that Ribby. |
