Flower City Knits

Just eleven weeks until Christmas, can you believe it? Now, I’ve only been knitting since last Christmas, so this year will be my first chance to get a taste of the angst involved in knitting for those you love in lieu of spending lots of money on them. I think I may be in good shape to pull off my modest list of knitted gifts. I’ve finished one small gift already, and started and made healthly progress on three others, and I’ve bought the yarn for everything else (thanks mostly to a Debbie Bliss sale I hit upon today at Spirit Works).

So here’s the list:

1. Flower Basket Shawl for Mom

By far the most complicated pattern on my list, I’ve completed about two repeats of seven so far. I’m going very slowly on this one so it has the greatest potential for failure. It’s in Frog Tree Alpaca Sport in #26 and its from Interweave Knits, Fall 2004.

2. Irish Hiking Scarf for Dad

I should be able to knock this one out pretty quickly, but I need to clear my size 6 needles (yes, all of them, why?) before I can dig in. It’s in Debbie Bliss Merino DK in #506, pattern from Hello Yarn.

3. Hats for Siblings

Grumperina’s Odessa in Knitting Fever Peru DK, Cream and a Cable Hat in Paton’s Classic Merino in Natural Mix.

I got a good start on Odessa today and I’ll cast on for the cable hat as soon as it’s done.

4. V-Neck Cardigan for my dear neice

I just cast on for this today, from Debbie Bliss’s Baby Knits for Beginners, my very first knitting book. I’m actually about halfway through the back part now. This will be my first seaming attempt.

And, I’ve completed this London Beanie for my brother-in-law, and I’d like to do another one for my husband.

So my list isn’t too challenging, with the exception of the shawl. I should be able to get this all done if I can just stay on task. Let’s see how I’m doing the week before Christmas, right?

Oliver looks skeptical about this whole endeavor. But then, he likes to chew on yarn, so what does he know?