Happy Thanksgiving!

Remember my project that had me stumped at counting to 3? Well, I finally finished it! My Barber Pole Cowl is ready for inventory. It was a very entertaining knit, once I figured out the 3's thing. The cowl is knitted as a tube, in the round, and then the last row is bound off and sewn to the cast on row, matching up the stripes and giving it a seamless look. Because the stripes line up perfectly, all you can see is a crease of sorts. It almost looks completely seamless. I really enjoyed making this cowl and suggest if you try it that you also pick highly contrasting colors to make it easy on yourself.

 Another VERY quick knit is the Reversible Boot Cuffs. I made these with leftover stash of Malabrigo Worsted using size 8 needles and the Magic Loop method of knitting both at the same time. I managed to whip these up yesterday afternoon and I'm not at all a fast knitter. It's a great stashbuster project and gives you two uses for one garment.

 I started a pair of bed socks on November 21 for my Dad for Christmas. Using the Yankee Knitter Designs pattern for their Classic Socks (a great pattern which gives details to knit socks from baby to adult in three different weights yarn) I mashed up with Very Pink Knits video tutorial for knitting two at a time, toe up, on magic loop. I swear knitting socks this way goes much faster than one at a time, which doesn't really make sense. You would think knitting one sock after the other would take the same amount of time as knitting them simultaneously, but it seems otherwise! I'm using Classic Elite Yarns Liberty Wool, a superwash worsted weight yarn. As of this writing, I have about four more inches of cuff to knit and they can be wrapped.

 Boredom and inspiration struck me at the same time last week so I squeezed in another cowl. The original pattern, Leaving Cowl, called for sport weight yarn but I had a skein of bulky calling my name and wishing it were wrapped around someone's neck soooo....Voila! A few adjustments to needle size and stitch count and there it is. It knitted up quickly because of the larger gauge needle and yarn too.

 Now, if you've ever waited in line to ride Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom in Disneyworld, Orlando, you might have noticed some crazy socks hanging inside out in the base camp as decorations. My son was there in October and photographed them to show me and asked if I could knit him a pair. I said I would try but that they were obviously Fair Isle socks that were hanging inside out. He didn't care. He liked them with the strings hanging and intends to wear them that way. After knitting these I'm thinking it might be a good idea since it could be dangerous to catch a toe in one of those threads! Well, I know that with all that Cascade 220 yarn they will definitely keep his feet warm when he goes hiking.

 I really shouldn't surf the net when I should be knitting but that's when I get the best inspiration! I had these 3 skeins of Malabrigo Silky Merino sitting on a shelf acting like they were their own BFF's and didn't have the heart to separate them. So the knitting fairies must have heard me fawning over them and sent a pattern my way that is just perfect for the combo. The original pattern is for a heavier yarn but with some fiddling around, I made it accommodate the yarn I have. I can't wait to see it finished. 

 The Chicks are all at home preparing their Thanksgiving dinners while I watch my contractor tear my kitchen apart. Timing! So my family is going out to dinner tomorrow. I don't mind! No 5AM cooking and 2PM dish washing for me this year! I am very thankful for that!

It is snowing here and the weather report has predicted 6 to 9 inches before it finishes, so let me wish you all a safe and blessed Thanksgiving. Catch you next week when the Chicks return to knitting.