Ho ho ho, I'm looking at snow!

The holiday season has started and it is the countdown to Christmas.  I finished a fingerless mitt for the shop.  I did only one so they could put it on display for the open house last weekend.  It was good to catch up with friends and I took a bit of time to knit a couple of rows of the Eala Bhan.  This afternoon (Sunday) Jim and I will go over to Mom's and decorate her tree.  We put up some decorations yesterday and found that she needs new lights--we had plenty here and they are the really bright ones, so her tree really sparkles!
I have a few small projects to finish and get in the mail, and then it will be time to work on Christmas cards.

I stepped outside to take a photo of the snow.

Jim brought these home from work.
The marshmallow had chocolate in the middle.
The packaging is very cute.

Baby vest 2.  

Über pom pom

It's a cute hat--I made the smallest size.

Today I made a shop sample (in under two hours, even with the gigantic pom pom) using some oddments of super-bulky yarn.  I went a bit overboard with the pom pom maker.  I thought it was a bit much, but Kathy liked it and she had me secure a button on the inside to stabilize the pom pom.  It looks cute on the shelf at the shop.  After finishing the baby sweater, I made three crowns for the older sisters.  Very cute in bright colors.  I do not have much pink in the stash.  Last week I whipped up another baby sweater.  This one is plain, and was a quick and fun project to knit.
Eala Bhan is coming along at a slow pace.  Right now I am on row 19 (again) and hope to make it past row 21, which is where I mucked it up last time.

Baby-baby-baby oh baby!

No, no, not the Justin Bieber song...I needed a quick project for a couple of new babies. I found this pattern while browsing the free patterns online. It takes less than 200 yards of yarn. It is a quick knit and fun to knit, which is important.

Baby vest front

Baby vest back

It turns out that the couple had a little girl (which now makes 4) and the little sweater will go in the mail this week.  I am making another vest from a different pattern.  Photos will follow soon.

UFOs hovering about the house

My hands certainly get a work out.  We are back to painting the Advent banner as of Friday.  It is so close to being finished!  I took some photos.  It is large and we do not have much room to move around.

I finally got through the first couple of rows of the Eala Bhan and now I am working Chart A.  The Nepali Hat had the strangest fit, so I hand-felted it and manipulated the heck out of it before blocking it on my wooden form.  It will have a cloche-like appearance rather than making me look like a conehead and I call it the Kathmandu Cloche.  I have to dig through the project bags to find x_OTangledO_x, aka the Sakori Vest.  I think it has aged enough and it is time to add the edgings.  I know where the XO Vest is, but for some reason it will age a bit longer.  Of course, I received my Kauni solid yarn in the mail this week and now the New Box of Crayons, aka the Paintbox Scarf is calling to me.

We finished the Advent banner this week.  Today (Thursday) after Morning Break, we glued the edges of the canvas down.  This one will be up the Sunday after Thanksgiving, and I cannot wait to see it.  Lynne's design is amazing and it was a joy to work on this piece.

You can see our small work space.  

Speckled eggs in the lower right corner.
The yellow will be touched with gold,
so when the light hits it, it will glow.
The golden thread runs through the painting.

I like this area of the painting.
The drawing is Lynne's design and we
worked from it.

 My Kathmandu Cloche.  

The yarn for New Box of Crayons

Eala Bahn in progress on size TWO needles!

New Hat

I finally finished the Nepali hat for the shop.  It really was not difficult to make, but for some reason I was having a brain block.  Once the lightbulb turned on, it was a breeze.  This sample is sized for a child.  It is a neat design with the built-in earflaps--a stash dive is in order for this afternoon!

This is the side view with the "earflaps."

We went on a drive to Stillwater and across the river into Wisconsin.  Jim was mapping out a bike ride.  We came across a little cheese house and bought a sampling of cheese.  After we finished the back road tour, we stopped in Stillwater.  I found a great skirt for $10 at Bronze, we stopped in the yarn shop (lots of goodies, but I resisted), and then had coffee and something sweet at the Bikery at the top of the hill.

A wonderfully creepy house across the river.

Tying up loose ends

Road Trip Beret

Well, I don't tie knots, I weave in ends! It is time to get some of those WIPs finished. I started the Eala Bhan in class last night. Using 3mm needles and fingering weight yarn will make this a marathon endeavor. I think it will be a lovely sweater, though. I was going to top. off the Road Trip Beret with a little I-cord bump, but I did not like the look, so it will just have the stitches pulled tightly as in the pattern. The Halloween decorations are down and I went to Target and found a couple of decorations on sale--a cute door decoration and a felt table runner that looks good on the hutch.

The pom pom finishes off the hat!

I finished the Road Trip Beret.  It needed a little pompom on top and I like the color run back to the brown.  It's cold enough to wear it today.  Now to finish the shop sample hat.  I did not like making it, but the color and design show off the yarn nicely.  Next for the shop will be some scrappy toys.
The Eala Bhan swatch is coming along, although I have to drop a needle size already.  The 3mm is too big.  I am hoping that a 2,5mm will do the trick.