Getting Down to the Wire

It's only 7 days until Christmas and I haven't finished hardly any of my gift knitting. I will definitely be late again this year.

I'm currently working on a pair of socks for my niece. They are the cutest socks I've made so far:



I Heart Toe Up Socks by Wendy D. Johnson

My list includes this year:

Washington:
Sister - hasn't decided what she wants & Boyfriend - purple beanie
Nephew - black hat and scarf
Niece - socks (above)

Maryland:
Sister - cowl
2 Nieces - maybe socks or slippers
2 Nephews - hats

New York:
Sister - scarf
Nephew & Girlfriend - stockings (personalized with names)
Grandniece - matching stocking
Grandnephew - matching stocking

Virginia
Brother & Girlfriend - matching stockings (personalized)

Texas:
Sister & Husband - socks
2 Nephews - Texas Longhorn headband and socks

As you can see my list is long and I've only started on a pair of socks for my niece last weekend.

I did see this cool wrapping paper of a knitted Santa, that is being shared on Facebook which is only sold in the UK. I liked it so much I made my own chart from it and I'm sharing it with all of you. I hope you can get some use from it. I think I will be making some stockings with it.

 

I'm jealous of all of you who have finished your gift knitting, for those of you who are still knitting, good luck, I hope you get done in time!

Happy knitting, and if you get a chance come share your gift knitting here or on my Facebook page.

Giving Handmade Only This Year

I've decided to go all handmade this year. I pledge to not buy any store bought gifts this year. All my family and friends will get a knit or crochet item from me.

Over the Thanksgiving holiday, I made my list of who I'm giving gifts to and ideas on what I could make for them. I'm finding it fun to try to figure out what would be a good gift for each. I'm trying to base my selections on the person's personality and what I know of them from what they wear or shown interest in when I post on my Facebook page.

I've gotten a few orders from a few friends and co-workers, like four hats for my friend Judith who needs them for her three boys and husband. Two co-workers want a Seahawks 12th Man hat that I designed.

Another co-worker wants a pair of the Pocketbook Slippers for her son. I made a pair as an example to see how they were made and how they would fit and brought them to work to show off to friends and immediately got a request for a pair. I really liked the ease of which these are made so I've decided to give them as gifts this year.

What are some of your handmade items this year? I'd love to hear from you.

Where has the time gone...the holidays are here again!

Do you find yourself wondering where the time went? I do, I feel like I was just enjoying the long hot summer and now already we are days away from Thanksgiving and a few short weeks away from Christmas! It's amazing how fast the time flies.

I did a lot of knitting this year, but I only signed up for a few shows. I'm hoping next year I will be able to get into more holiday shows. After taking a year off from the craft show and farmer's markets, I think I'm ready to get back into it. I will spend the next few months knitting/crocheting even more so that when spring and summer roll around I will have a nice selection of items to sell.

For this holiday season, I participated in the outdoor Renton Fall Festival in October, and it got completely rained out within a few hours. The rain and wind was so bad, I thought my canopy was going to blow away, even with the weights holding it down.

I also participated for the first time this year in the Emerald Downs Holiday Gift Festival on November 14th and 15th. It was a good experience considering it was my first time there. I didn't make as much as I thought I would, but I figure I'll try again next year and see what happens. My biggest seller were my lip balm key chains. I made a few in the Seahawks colors and I sold almost all of them.

On Saturday, November 21st I will be at the 6th Annual Pre-Black Friday Holiday Bazaar at Renton Technical College from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Some items you will see at this event are:

Skull and Crossbones Headband 100% Acrylic

 

Flower embellished headbands
Grey 100% Acrylic
Maroon 75% Acrylic, 25% Wool

Hat & Fingerless Mitts Set
100% Merino Wool

Pint-Sized Pine Cone Ornaments

Holiday Ball Ornaments

So come on out and get your holiday shopping done early, there will be handcrafted items that will make wonderful unique holiday gifts. Check out the list of vendors that will be there. Also, go to the Facebook page for more information at Pre-Black Friday Holiday Bazaar.

Holidays are over, what are you knitting?

The holiday season is over and what are you knitting? Usually around this time, I'm taking stock of my inventory, but since I didn't do any production knitting last year I really don't have much stock to inventory.

A few weeks before Christmas, I sent out an email letting friends and family know that I had product that I wanted to let go of and so I let them pick through the items I still had on hand and let them take whatever they wanted so they could give them as gifts to their friends and family. Whatever was left over, I decided I would give to charity. I spent a few hours scouring the web to find charities that would take hats and cowls that I didn't sell. I found one on twitter that actually contacted me last year, called Emily's Hats for Hope. Emily is trying to reach a goal of 25,000 hats this year and I am happy to help her with her goal.

Now I'm starting fresh with my inventory and I've already began stocking up again with new items:

Hat/Cowl 2-in-1. Made using Lion Brand Heartland
in colorway called 126 Sequoia

Malabrigo Neck Thingie and Malabrigo Hand Thingies by
Anne Sahakian. Made using Lion Brand Landscapes

Baby Set (0-3 mos.) Apple Blossom Cardigan by Sarah Franklin,
Fleegle's Seamless Saartje Booties by SusanGlinert Stevens,
and Eyelet Baby Hat, by Brigitte Lang

These are few of the types of new items I will have available in my Etsy store. I'm looking forward to this coming year because I am also gearing back up to get into some new shows. I have been checking online to find local shows that I can sign up for. Once I have my applications submitted I will announce here and on my Facebook page where I will be for 2015.

Leave a comment to tell me what you are working on now that the holidays are behind us. And here's wishing you a happy new year and happy knitting!