So, wow... we did our gift exchange .

Yay Christmas gift giving has completed! No seriously...... we did our swap for our group of friends... it was great! Here we go, for gifts that I gave today... and the goodies I was gifted later.

Mitts for Julia, inspired by her dog Strider......

She squeed... it was very gratifying. I really wanted to make sure that the fingerless gloves that I made for Julia were perfectly suited for her.  I did begin with a pattern that I was familiar with, but it didn't work out, so I had to make it up as I went along. The dog I found in a Selbu mitten book, and I tweaked it to look more like her furry big guy. I really like how they turned out.

I made her two tea cosies, and I only got one photographed. The first one, was begun out of recycling a sweater..... it was a great adventure, but I had total swap anxiety about it..... so I tossed it in the pile of fix it later, and went with a back up plan of lopi yarns and knitting..... and the lopi made me break out in cold sores! So I had to get a pinch knitter... Thanks Jen! When I was discussing my trouble with Jen, she got a chance to see the recycled sweater project, and was sure that Julia would love it.... so I finished it off too....

As you can see I felted a sweater and did some embroidery on the front. And lined it with some great botanical fabric. She liked it, I also liked it, and I think I will be making a few more. Seriously this was a inspiring project, I have so many notes on new ones that I plan on... and one cut out sitting beside me now. LOL

Sorry about not having the other cosy photographed, but I also like that pattern so much that I am on my third one... really easy and so easily made to match other peoples tastes. I will have pics of the others.

Finally I knit a Multnoma in a colourway that I thought she would love. And she did! YAY!

Here it is on a blocking board.
It looks great around the neck, I may see if I can get her to model for me....

On my needles.... two tea cosies, a sweater or two, socks and mittens. More on that later. Have a good Sunday.

Hello... how are you?

Hi there! Busy long weekend in the works? Not for me.
At least, I hope note.
So far this morning I was at 88 Stitches for a nice sit and stitch with the owner and a pal of mine. Lovely muffins and coffee on a blustery day.
Then on my way home I stopped in at a favorite nursery for potting soil and two new house plants.
Now I am blocking shawls, blogging and spending sometime getting back on line. I seem to be exhausted when I get home from work lately, so I avoid the computer altogether ..... but hey, What can I say. I really want to see what everyone is up to so I really can't stay away. LOL

So news. Fibres West was a great day last Saturday. Jane has a great little synopsis on her blog ... go check it out. There was a great vendors area, althought no presentations that we wanted to see while we were there. Lots of local yarnies, and some great hand-dyers.
We saw some friends grabbed some lunch and spent some money. I wish I had planned a little better, last year I had notes on the patterns I was intrestd in and the yardage i would need..... not so much this year. I was just happy to have some time out with the gal pals.

The Three purchases.
One: Soak Unleashed I was out of wool wash, and this was at a booth, YAY!

Two: Sweet Georgia's Silk Crush Sock Yarn ..... yummmy. The color is named "Saltwater" and this photo does not do it justice. It is beautifully deep and a lighter shade of blue. Not softer, just lighter, if that makes sense.

Three: Licorice twist from Unwind Yarns, which I have been stalking for a year. I wished that I had bought it last year and so this year I found it and took it home.

I was wearing my completed Central Park Hoodie! YAY  I finally finished it. I love wearing it! It Is so warm and comfy, so I am considering making a second ..... we shall see.

I have started a new sweater and I am not really  along enough to show it off, so I will save that for another day. In short it's a design by my friend Jane, mentoned above, called Sedum. I did have much in my stash that would work for it, so I was doing some swatching, and  finally settled on a yarn that I already own. That makes the process way easier, so I started, and I am almost to the arms which makes it just a strip of knitting at the moment. As I said pictures when it is a little farther along.

Hope you are well and getting up to something that intrests you. I look forward to reading about it. I think my next post will be about something neat to get up to on rainy days......