Now that Christmas is over, I can show you what I worked on the last few months. When last I posted about my knitting, I had just started a prayer shawl. That prayer shawl was finished soon after we left Grand Portage. I sent it on to Wedgewood to be included with the prayer shawl dedication. I make prayer shawls whenever I can because they provide such comfort to people who receive them. This shawl is a basic k3, p3 and is easy to knit wherever. I just knitted it until I ran out of the yarn.
Once the prayer shawl was finished, I took a week to knit a baby hat. The pattern is called “Foxy.” The pattern was a little bit of a challenge but it came out all right. I wanted to give it to Ranger Leah (Kings Mountain) who had a baby in July. Her husband Joseph and baby William came in to visit Leah one day so I was able to give them the hat and take a picture of the family with William wearing it. He looks adorable!
With these projects completed, I started on my knitted Christmas gifts. I knit a pair of fingerless mitts for my mom. She has Reynaud’s Disease so her fingers get painfully cold. I wanted some fingerless mitts that would keep her hands warm but be flexible enough for her to wear while playing piano and doing tasks around the house. I found the pattern for “Woven Fingerless Mitts” in the book “Sock Yarn One-Skein Wonders” by Judith Durant. They turned out just the way I wanted and Mom seemed excited about receiving them on Christmas.
I made another knitted Christmas gift for my father. At some point in the past, when I was talking about knitting socks, he mentioned that I had never knitted a pair for him. What an oversight! I knitted him a pair of basic socks in Berroco sock yarn. Dad’s feet are long and narrow. The beauty of hand-knitted socks is that you can make them so they fit perfectly. Dad’s socks might be a little long but he wouldn’t let me shorten them. I hope he enjoys wearing them.
My BIG knitted Christmas gift was a Mermaid Tail Lapghan for my daughter-in-law Jackie. She is often cold and loves to snuggle under a warm blanket. This pattern is nice because you can make a mermaid tail that is like a sleeping bag or knit one like a blanket with a pocket for the feet at the narrow part near the fin. I also liked the stitch pattern that ended up looking like scales. I knitted it with two colors of worsted yarn and one fingering weight sparkly yarn. All three yarns were worked together at the same time. The Lapghan grew quickly, but I forgot how big an afghan is! It was definitely my biggest project in a long time. Jackie loves it, which makes the time well spent. She snuggled under the lapghan as soon as she opened it.
What am I knitting now? I’m not telling. I want it to be a surprise for the person I’m knitting it for! You will just have to wait and see.
