Christmas Knitting

Saturday was horrible.  It was about 7 pm when I realized that I had run out of yarn for a baby sweater I wanted to give as a gift the next day.  Optimistic, I thought I could make it a short-sleeved sweater instead and be able to finish the body with the yarn that would free up.  By 7:30, I had the sinking feeling that I really wouldn't have time to finish it and had the brilliant idea of making booties instead.  They seemed more reasonable.  After the first bootie was done and I had decided it was horribly ugly, I began to have a breakdown.  It's one thing to have unreasonable Holiday knitting deadlines, but it's quite another when you may actually finish a sweater on time were it not for lack of proper yarn or when a pattern for a bootie that looks perfectly nice in the picture yields an ugly product.  I was paralyzed.  Costin had to take the yarn out of my hands.  He tried to remind me that knitting was supposed to be fun and when it wasn't fun, it is perfectly acceptable to put it away for a little bit.  Costin, the very logical man that he is, is not a knitter.  I knew the only thing that could cure me was an FO...and quick.  I didn't care what it was, I just needed to prove to myself that I really can knit things, nice things.  Maybe I just needed a change of scene.  Maybe going upstairs would change the knitting mojo.  I cast on one of these hats in Lamb's Pride Bulky "Tahiti Teal", which is really a lovely dark blue and not what I would describe as "teal" at all.  Such a fast, predictable knit.  The relief was instantaneous.

This is my brother-in-law modelling the hat I knit him for his birthday last week.  It is the Hot Head toque from the first Stitch n' Bitch book.  I knit it using two strands of worsted weight Lamb's Pride held together.  For some reason, he looks like he is a cast member of Kids in the Hall in the picture.

Comments

[bree]

i too have become a victim of the horrible holiday knitting! im going to stockpile next summer for christmas 2006 because my fingers are cracked and hurting and the thought of picking up needles ever again makes me sick right now. ugh. i best go finish the hat for dad, the mittens for kev, the socks for amy... does it ever end?

[Stevie]

I am attempting to finish my Father's "sophisticated" man scarf while at the same time trying to get the "Random Polish Scarf" finished so I can mail it to Sudbury.

I'm just glad that I named this Christmas "Scarfmas" and refused to knit anything beyond scarves for anyone until next year's Mittenmas.

Happy Holidays!

[Nana Jan]

Well I think the toque looks great. And I am quite fond of the photo with the goofy-looking model. Stevie, I think many of us have done the scarfmas. This year was to be the sexmas, whoops I mean soxmas. (It has turned out to be neither unfortunately.) Anyway, I consoled myself by reading the new Yarn Harlot which I thoroughly enjoyed--especially the last chapter. Now you all will have to read it to see if you agree.

[Jessica]

This year my knit gifts (or knifts) consisted of 4 dish clothes and one pair of mittens. Two key lessons I learned:
1) Be realistic when choosing projects. Alternatively, be prepared to start now for next Christmas.
2) When possible, stagger deadlines. Knifts for my west coast family had to be sent a week before Christmas which forced me to finish them early.

Happy New Year Everyone!

[Stephanie]

We are sisters.