knitted goodness given

Now that the holidays are over, I can share with the world all the knitted mystery gifts I made! First up: knithulhu for Hubby, which Magic Baby adores. I'd like to point out this is the kid who is afraid of every doll and stuffed animal he's ever encountered. Except this green, tentacled thing. Personally, I think it's because he knows good knitting when he sees it. (It's made from an online pattern with Patons Merino Wool.)

Next up, a Blue Hills hat, also for Hubby, which he requested and will wear for work (he does construction). (The pattern is from knitty and the yarn is Knitpicks Wool of the Andes hand-dyed black/grey variegated.)

I also made three (yes, three) of brooklyntweed's Hemlock Ring blankets. Two (one for my mom and the other for one of my grandmothers) are hand-dyed Wool of the Andes from Knitpicks. The third (which I actually knit first) is a wonderfully soft angora/wool blend. I bought a ton of this yarn when a lys was closing a few months ago, and my original intention was to knit all three blankets with it. Then I started knitting and remembered I'm allergic to rabbits. Yeah, so that's why the other two were made with a different yarn. That's also why the angora one, while very soft, is also very very small. (As in, when I blocked it, it fit on a towel.) I got to a point where I just could not knit with it anymore. I tried wearing a mask and everything. I've heard of people who are allergic to wool using rubber gloves when they knit, but I just couldn't bring myself to do that. Thus, the grandmother who received the angora foot warmer/decorative couch thingey (as I called it) also got some scratch lottery tickets. (She is not allergic to rabbits, by the way.) Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of the (tiny) angora Hemlock Ring, but here are some pics of the Wool of the Andes ones.

For my dad, I made a felted book cover from an original pattern. I have to actually sew it into a cover still, but for that I need his book, so here's a shot of it blocked but not yet covering a book. (This was made with Paton's Merino wool, too. The picture is a hawk. Don't ask. It's a Dungeons & Dragons thing, and trust me, you don't want to know.)

Also finished in time for Christmas was Magic Baby's Little Star Sweater by Zoe Mellor from the book Adorable Knits for Tots: 25 Stylish Designs for Babies and Toddlers. (The yarn is Lion Brand's Cotton-Ease.) I cut it close on this one, but it was done in time and he looked really cute in it. See?

I really like her patterns. In fact, one of the next things I'll be knitting is a version of her Pirate Sweater modified to fit my seven-year-old. I bought the yarn for it at Webs this week... but for details of that trip, you'll have to wait until my next post!

Lastly, I'd like to share my Mini Weasley Sweater Ornaments from Alison Hansel's book Charmed Knits: Projects for Fans of Harry Potter. I made one for each of my kids, and on Christmas Eve, I hung them on their stockings. Big Sister came downstairs Christmas morning, saw the ornaments, turned to me and yelled, "Look what Santa made us! SANTA KNITS!!" Who knew the guy had so much free time?

(Although you can't really tell from the pictures, both are the same maroon and gold colors any true Gryffindor would wear.)

Knitting-related goodies were not only given, but also received. I promise to give more information on that (as well as what I bought at Webs) the next time I post. Until then, Happy New Year!