Christmas headway

I've been adhering to a strict 'buy no more knitting yarn' vow for a couple of months, making small inroads into the 3 drawer knitting yarn stash I have accumulated. At the recent Guild stash sale I caved and bought these three balls of acrylic with sparkle. I immediately saw beanies to wear at Christmas lunch. In the past I have made the Christmas bonbons from reusable cloth, cardboard cylinders, a snap and ribbon, knitted beanies and a non-plastic novelty. Last year I trialed eco-friendly bonbons from the Leprosy Mission Shop. They were well received, so I've gone for them again this year. The only thing in them whose eco credentials I doubt are the paper hats. I still have 4 of the Christmassy beanies I made in 2023,  These balls of Christmas bling struck a chord. 

Buying them was the easy bit.

I began with a ball of the red and k2 p2 band. While knitting I began to wonder if I could make crowns, or coronets instead of beanies. Beanies are not especially appropriate on an Australian Christmas Day. I went on a hunt for a pattern, and found one. It had a k2 p2 band and garter stitch peaks. I didn't much like the garter stitch peaks, so thought I'd just substitue stocking stitch. I  had already knitted the band, so began on a peak, using stocking stitch. To my surprise the peak kept falling over at the stocking stitch row. When I switched to garter stitch it staightened up, although it flopped at the stocking stitch rows. I had no similar problem when I used garter stitch all the way on the next peak.

I finished the coronet sticking with the pattern, then found some wire to insert in the weak peak and moved on. 

I wasn’t fond of the garter stitch peaks, so my second try  kept the rib going on the peaks. I liked the result.

Next I tried the band in plain stocking stitch. I should not have been surprised when it curled over as I knitted it, but I was. I stopped and did a bit of reading. 

Yes, stocking stitch always curls because the knit side pulls tighter than the reverse. This can only be countered by edging with  either rib or garter stitch. In 70 years of knitting I’ve never thought about this - although I’ve experienced it. When you mostly follow patterns, you rarely ask why. It also explains, of course, why my stocking stitch substitution above did not work!  I’m very pleased to have (belatedly) learned this.

To confirm, I switched to rib and, lo, the curl was contained. 

I decided to make use of it on a headband, hoping the curl would work neatly on the cast-off as well, which i did.  

The band sits nicely with a bit of hair adjustment.

I continued with the ribbed coronets, shortening the peaks, one with a k1, p1 rib, one with k2,p2. 

I wasn’t confident the 10gm of wool left would make another, so switched to the ball of multicoloured chenille.

It has a chunkier, firmer, knit. Although the finished coronet looks smaller, it has more elasticity and fits as well as the other.

I used the remaining red to work, first the centre of a headband edged with a multi-colour roll, and then the reverse, red edge with coloured fill. I think this is my favourite.

It was hard to judge how far the remaining yarn would go, so I used a k1p1 rib to knit a band, then judged I had enough for peaks. This resulted in the one at the top of the right hand column. You can see the left-over. It might stretch to 4 rows. Not sure I will try. I'm pleased with the results and will put them away for Christmas Day. 

Back to being a bag lady

Late in October (I think!) I bought a bundle of Christmas fabric from the Embroiderers' Guild trading table. I wasn't sure what I'd do with it, but it was a bargain and bound to come in handy. Once I got it home and needing to find space to store it,  I was less sure. 

A week before Christmas, when I got to organise my Christmas presents, I realised I could do with a few more gift bags. For a couple of decades now I have been making fabric bags in lieu of paper wrapping. It gives me pleasure in the making and the bags are recycled numerous times.

I decided to use the Christmas fabric to make the bags I needed. That done, and my presents organised, I decided to use up all the Christmas fabric on bags. 

I figured if I didn't do it now the fabric would sit there for at least another year so I grabbed the scissors and cut the whole lot into bags. There was probably around 5 metres in various pieces, all crisp and new, so easily cut.

Most of my bags have been made with recycled fabric, sari scraps, kimono pieces, dressmaking left-overs, occasionally old clothing. I cut them as the piece dictates and zoom them up on my machine into drawstring bags in the easiest possible way, stitching on the inside. Having so much crisp new fabric presented opportunities - and challenges - for a more careful finish, something dressmaker and quilting friends had long suggested.

I took up the challenge and got out my iron - a rare occurrence in my bag making ventures.Where the piece was long, to be folded vertically, I turned under the sides and ironed them down, then folded over a hem at top and bottom.  After stitching down the two hems, I folded the piece to stitch the side seams on the outside giving a neat seam as well as a channel for the cord. 

I realise this is de rigueur for quilters. I am much more slapdash. This time, however, I ended up with a pile of cut and ironed fabric before I touched the machine. That worked a treat.

Next an evening, with my ribbon stash and bags spread all over the floor while I watched television (nothing more challenging than Midsomer Murders, Lewis or Vera), I found drawstrings for each bag. I nearly had enough ribbon, just 2 bags short, but they were large bags, requiring over 2 metres of ribbon per bag, so a trip to Spotlight was called for. I now have a future supply of ribbon.

My next session resulted in a bundle of 30 bags with ribbons, ready for the cords to be either tied together ( where double drawstrings were used) or have a stopper applied to the ends to stop the cords disappearing into the draw channel.

                                                                      

Now to raid my button and bead boxes for suitable ends. Once identified and allocated, these were attached in a final session in front of television.   

The bags were taken up quickly by family and used this Christmas. The Christmas fabric was very    popular. The bags will be recycled over several years.   I had fun, the fabric is put to good use, the Guild has benefitted and present wrapping was made easy and pleasant for busy people. 

    All wins for this bag lady.

A Mad Hatter touch to Christmas.

This year I tried my hand at the Shetland Wool Week Hat - The Bonnie Isle Hat by Linda Shearer. Each year, for Shetland Wool Week, there is a competition to design a knitted hat. The pattern for the winning entry is made available free, and woollen mills produce their own colourway for the design, which they offer as a kit. Photos of the many versions of the hat knitted around the world, are posted to the Shetland Wool Week site.

This is the first time I've tried it. I intended to use it with the left-over wool from several Marie Wallin projects but thought I'd try it first of all in 4ply cotton - of which I have rather a lot. 

The first one knitted so well I decided to keep going. The pattern came in 3 sizes (achieved by changing needle size, not the pattern). I knitted one of each and tried them on various family members. The middle size fitted everyone.

This was back in August. I got the idea to make enough for everyone at Christmas lunch. Last year I made reusable Christmas crackers. Rather than create more waste paper making hats for the crackers, I thought people could choose a knitted hat. They won't fit in the crackers - but people could choose.

I had the initial 3, and 10 different coloured 4ply cottons, most of them pale. I added in a cone of bright orange in a silk/cotton mix and began mixing and matching. I needed at least 8 for Christmas Day. 

I put it aside to knit a couple of vests, returning for  a marathon in early December.

Although the pattern had pompoms, I wasn't sure about them so I consulted Veronica, my fashion oracle, who thought no.  I agreed and proceeded, although others shook their heads and said 'pompoms'. 

However, on Christmas Eve I capitulated and decided to add pompoms. At this point, Veronica, in the Christmas vibe, also said yes. I got out my pompom maker and set to work. I've used it before, but not for a long time. 

I wasn't thrilled with my efforts, and reverted to a technologically cruder method. They still weren't plump, rounded pompoms, but the floppiness had a kind of charm (guests agreed). I think I need pompom practice!

In case there were pompom objectors I attached the pompoms on the inside with safety pins. No-one objected.

I finished the 9th on Christmas Eve, and the pompoms just after midnight. 

It turned out to be the right number, and, somewhat to my surprise, they were a hit.

Each one has five colours. I varied the pattern very slightly in a couple of places, but not by much.

A number of people wore theirs all afternoon - and I must say, they looked really good. It was a hot day, but cool inside. The cotton is comfortable to wear and shapes softly. 

I'm not promising to repeat the exercise every year, but it was a fun exercise for me, used up yarn, looked good, and gave pleasure. 

That's a happy result - and I wouldn't rule out repeating or extending it.

Successful family events don't just happen. Immense planning and effort by my daughter's family went into hosting the highly successful lunch. I'm glad I could contribute in a small way. 

If the Christmas hat fits, wear it!   

Much Joy at Christmas.

Christmas sacks

I think it was my grandson's first Christmas - fourteen years ago, that my late husband and I bought two Santa Sacks in which to place our Christmas presents for our two grandchildren. We bought them at Cheap as Chips. They were made of red felt, with a Christmas motif on one side - and much bigger than the children. I appliqued the initial of their first name on the front.

When their twin sisters were born two years later, we managed to get two more, with different motifs, and again, attached an initial to the other side. We  used these every year for Christmas presents for the children, and I have continued this in the five Christmases since my husband died.

The sacks, however, are a bit ragged and tattered. Some years they have been opened in the garden, acquiring a few burrs and prickles. I have never dared to wash them, lest they felt further. They are also very large - more suited to bulky presents for young children than adolescents. The children, nevertheless, have become very attached to them.

A few days before Christmas I got the bright idea that perhaps I could make new replacement bags. I fell asleep planning a visit to Spotlight for some Christmas fabric. In the morning I decided I should first check my stash, since I was sure it contained at least one piece of Christmas fabric. Half an hour later, there was fabric all over the floor and I was sorting it into piles so I would be better able to use all my discoveries.


I found one piece of designated Christmas fabric and several pieces that would, as my mother used to say, pass with a push.

Abandoning the plan to shop for fabric (or anything else, like food) I cut out fabric, stitched  bags, found ribbon, variety of matching buttons, bells and toggles.

By 1.30pm when I needed to be at a friend's place for an afternoon of stitching, I set off with four bags, a safety pin, needle, thread and an assortment of ribbons and fixings. As my friend cut out squares for her next quilt, I finished off my sacks.







They are smaller than the original Santa Sacks, but still fairly large. I needed to convince the recipients that change was a good thing. The older two were willing to give it a try. The younger two were reluctant. I didn't want to push it, so suggested I place the new sacks inside the old ones.

So on Christmas Day I set off (no, not to St. Ives) with two felt Santa Sacks. Each sack contained two ( no, not cats) new sacks and a drawstring bag for each of the adults. When I arrived at my daughter's place for lunch, I unpacked the older children's new sacks and the adults' bags, leaving the younger children's new bags inside the old Santa Sacks. Everyone was happy.

Everything in the sacks (or bags) was of course, in its own drawstring bag, mostly from the supply I made last year - no wrapping paper for me! These bags get recycled many times, which pleases me no end.
I haven't asked whether the younger children are happy to transition next year. Maybe I will keep a couple of the old felt sacks to transport the new sacks and their cargo of bags - a bit like a turducken. Maybe a Sansackag.

Christmas Bling.

Last year I made this little fellow on the left for a friend of mine who is into penguins. I have made a few penguins for her over the years, and this one, part of a kit, fitted the bill.

This year I added a companion (green scarf, rather than red!)













My friend has this year excelled herself in the Christmas penguin theme on her tree! I especially like the little row of penguins riding on the cow's back.





One of these hearts was last year's offering to another friend who likes to decorate her own tree with hand-made ornaments.

My offering to her this year is a little stocking. These were designed to be merely an ornament, but I prefer a working stocking, so added a felt back. It's nice to add a chocolate or two.






For myself, I have this year finally completed Casper, the third beaded Wise Man. His companions, Melchior and Balthasar, have been waiting since 2012 and 2013 respectively for him to join them.

There is much rejoicing amongst the reunited Wise Men.

I'm pleased to honour their story by completing the task - but am not planning to expand into a full beaded nativity! I'm not sure I have yet found all the beads that escaped from their container down, around and under my sofa!

We three kings of Orient are
Bearing gifts, we traverse afar
Field and fountain
Moor and mountain
Following yonder star

Happy Christmas!

Oh, star of wonder, star of might

Star with royal beauty bright

Westward leading

Still proceeding

Guide us to the perfect light

Here's to perfect light!