Ready for Christmas

The Red Leafy Scarf is finally finished!

As predicted, by the end I was getting to be quite frustrated with its neverendingness, but I'm pleased with the final result.  The unblocked version was nice, with a bit of a shell effect at the ends, while the blocked scarf is quite elegant.  I'm sure my mother-in-law will appreciate the effort and I hope she'll feel spoiled - it's been a long autumn for her.

And just to complete the scarf-set (excepting the one which will now be for my gran's birthday in January), the 2nd & 3rd crocodiles were finished last Saturday:

The green croc either looks as though he's half asleep, or maybe he's enjoyed a Christmas tipple or two.  I'm not sure!

It was a late finish last night...

Phew!  The Red Leafy Scarf is finally pinned out to block.  I grafted the two halves together last night, soaked it in water this evening and I've stretched it out to dry (after the picture was taken I've repinned it so the edges are less zig-zaggy).

I'd been a bit unsure how to arrange the join between the two halves, and should really have finished each half with a WS row to make it invisible, but at least it's fairly neat.  I had to unpick the first couple of inches to get the strips lined up too.  Only I will see the imperfections though...

It's not quite finished yet, so I'm joining the WIP Wednesday again:

Pinspiration

I discovered Pinterest a little while ago, and I'm kinda addicted.  I've found all sorts of lovely ideas there and I'm using one or two for Christmas presents.  Today I've finished some gingerbread biscuit kits for for my prayer triplet (which is now 4 of us).

So that gave me an excuse to play with A's camera to see if I can get some better pictures than I've managed before...

I followed the tips on the recipe website and used extra flour (about 250g).  The test biscuits I made beforehand were yummy!  I may well make another batch to take to work.

I've enjoyed the idea of making a present for someone which they can then use to make something nice.  These 3 friends are all good in the kitchen and I think they'll appreciate something they can just throw together quite easily. And it means they can choose when to make and eat these treats - perhaps in January when they're ready for something nice in the long nights.

Endless scarves...

The scarves continue to take up most of my time...  The Red Leafy Scarf feels as though it's getting close to completion at last, which is good since I could do with blocking it in the next few days if it's to be ready for Christmas.  I'm managing about 10-20 rows in a sitting at the moment, and there are 50 to go...

I took a break from the 4-ply to do some of Crocodile No. 3 at the weekend and while we were visiting A's parents (the red scarf is for my mother-in-law, so can't be worked on when I'm there!)  I'm making it the same length as the others by adding 32 rows in the straight section compared to the pattern.  When I made the first I ripped it back when I saw how it was turning out length-wise so that I could extend it.  They're still not over-long but hopefully a bit more cosy.

The Any Yarn Scarf is on hold at the moment - if I don't manage to complete it for Christmas it can be for my gran's birthday in January instead.  Or perhaps I'll finish it on the journey north...

Finished

I've finally finished a project!  I made this crocodile scarf some time ago, but only attached the eyes and nostrils in the last few days.  It was going to be a Christmas present for one of our godsons, but his birthday present didn't arrive in time so we've done a swap.  He'll get his scarecrow puppet for Christmas now instead.

I'm really pleased with the way it's turned out. The pattern was in Let's Knit magazine a couple of months ago, although I modified it slightly to make it longer (I added about 32 rows of the straight section).  The eyes were quite tricky but I think they look good in the end.

I need to redo the eyes on the blue scarf (they're too close together and too far forward... he just looks scary!) so I can't call that one finished yet.  Crocodile no. 3 was cast on last Saturday.

I'm still working hard to finish the grown-up scarves, so I'll post about this next Wednesday...