Mother Bear Monday

Yesterday I finished my third bear to send to the Mother Bear Project. I named her for my Grandma, Erma, and this will be a Christmas gift to her this year. I'm crossing my fingers that if I get the bear mailed out right away, it may be matched with a child before Christmas and I'll be able to show her a picture of the bear and child together. If not, just a photo of the bear along with a pamphlet about the Mother Bear Project will certainly fit the bill.

I'm hoping to get a few more bears done by the end of this year. My ultimate goal is to get into the 100-Bear Club, but that will be a while!

MOM Monday

Here's a quick update: I finally have a picture of the Baby Jesus that I made for my mom's Knitivity set!

Sleep in Heavenly Peace

She was really thrilled with it! Now I have to decide what to make next...

MOM Monday

I finally have anew piece to share for MOM Monday! It will be part of my Mom's Christmas present, but she has promised not to read the blog until after the holiday so that I can share my newest creation.

Behold! An angel of the LORD among us!

This is the angel for my Mom's "Knitivity" set. I have also finished the Baby Jesus, but you'll have to wait to see pictures until after Christmas, because I forgot to snap a photo before I wrapped him up (oops!).

FO Friday

Holiday knitting is in full swing, and alas, though I have finished several projects over the past few weeks, I can't post them all lest I spoil some Christmas surprises. Here are a few things that have already been gifted:

A coworker of mine has an Elf on the Shelf named Buddy who is spying on her three kids for Santa Claus. Poor Buddy was getting cold during the trips back and forth to the North Pole, so I made him a sweater to keep him warm! The sweater is knit in three colors of Knit Picks Palette.

Another coworker (who happens to share an office with the coworker who got the Elf sweater) is expecting a baby boy on Christmas Day. She found a photo of a little baby in a hat with big pompoms on it, and was really excited about it. Naturally, I had to make one for her! I don't know who was more excited about the finished product, her or me! I couldn't wait to give it to her, and she can't wait to put it on Baby Boy when he makes his appearance. This hat was made in Knit Picks Biggo, in the Wonderland Heather colorway.

MOM Monday

This weekend, I finally got started on the first piece of the Nativity set that I'm making for my mom from the book Knitivity by Fiona Goble. My mom gave me this book as a gift this past Christmas, and I decided to try to make her one piece per month so that she will have a complete (or nearly-complete) set in time for Christmas 2012.
The book offers two options for making the dolls, the "traditional doll," which has separate legs but cannot stand on its own, and the "standing doll" which is cone-shaped and stands independently. I decided to start with Mary, and I'm making her in the "traditional doll" style, as she will likely be seated in the scene, and this way, she can also sit on the donkey.

Here's a picture of my progress on Mary so far:

The construction is very interesting, but easy enough so far. I don't want to divulge the designer's secrets, so I will leave it at that! Stay tuned next week to see what progress I make on Mary between now and then.

Happy New Year!

Happy 2012 everyone!

Phew! I can't believe that I've neglected my poor blog for nearly two months! Shame on me! I don't really "do" resolutions for the new year, but it is definitely a goal of mine to make blogging a more regular habit in the coming months.

Here's what I've been working on since I last blogged...
1. I finished the February Baby Sweater! I even sewed grosgrain ribbon in behind the button band. It will be going out in this week's mail.

2. I made a moose! For TMG's mom for Christmas, I made a Confused Moose. She loves him.

3. I'm not quite finished on the gift I've been working on for my best friend, who may or may not read this, so it shall remain a mystery for now.

4. I finished the Fuzzy Farm Sheep that I started making for my mom YEARS ago! All the poor thing needed was a face and some legs. He will be this month's MOM installment.

5. I made three Little Birds for my Grandma for Christmas. I only got a photo of the first two, as I finished the third whilst traveling.

6. I finished the first of my Crevasse socks, but didn't take a picture yet.
7. I worked a few rows on my Haruni shawl.
8. I sewed two pairs of fabulous flannel PJ pants with OWLS on them! Photos are pending.
9. Saved the best for last! I finally jumped on the bandwagon and started HEXIPUFFING! I'm hopelessly addicted and I have already declared 2012 the "Year of the Hexipuff." Here's a picture of my first five 'puffs... I won't say how many more I've made since I took the picture:

For those of you who may have been living under a rock, hexipuffs are little modular units that, when put together, comprise a brilliant pattern called the Beekeeper's Quilt. Don't worry... more on that to come!

Happy New Year, and happy knitting!

WIP Wednesday

My recent bout of finishitis seems to have passed, and last week I cast on a new project. I am making a Lola Gilet out of Malabrigo worsted in the Whales Road colorway, which I have christened my "North Whales Road" sweater as a play on both the name of the color and the name of the town where I recently moved. I am making quick progress on this project, and can't wait to wear it. This is my third sweater in Malabrigo, the other two being my Featherweight Cardigan and my Persimmon Cardigan, respectively.


I realized today that this should probably be my last new "for-me" project before I commence with my Christmas knitting. Whether or not it will be, well, that could very well be a different story. With only 74 knitting days left before Christmas (yes, you read that right, 74!), I am determined to budget my time appropriately!