Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Zig Zag

Here's the latest Xmas gift finished:




Rambler's Scarf by Elizabeth Sullivan

Actually, it just occurred to me that this is the third from latest gift. A shrug and tea cosy followed it. And now I'm back to making another one of these scarves in a different yarn and colour...

But isn't it pretty? Plus, it's easy, though I did alter the pattern by increasing the width by about an inch (4 stitches) and neglected to adjust one element of one row in every 8. Just slightly. Don't tell.

OK, crafters (and apologies to the non-crafters - I have to finish the 20 gifts I've committed to by next week(ish) before I'll have much energy to speak about other topics. Don't worry, though, I've got a few lined up...):
  • Do you think making rectangular scarves is ultra-boring? I mean, I know they're lovely and everyone needs a great rectangular scarf, but man, the repetition!
  • How far along are you on completing your knitting or sewing gifts?
  • Are you starting to resent everyone cuz they're about to get some seriously stylish and useful objets, while your 18 projects languish in the corner?
After the knitting, I start the baking. I've decided to make, as my core gifts, sable (see this ye olde post for a summer presentation of the shortbread) and fleur de sel caramels. I just ordered, and received, the most adorable packaging! I don't know that I'll order wrapping online again - the experience had its drawbacks, though client service wasn't one of them. I think there must be a great packaging place in downtown TO that can sell me the same calibre of item at a lower cost.

At any rate, I'm going to put the cookies in perfect gift-sized windowed cookie bags and the caramels in these little velcro-sealed boxes.

8 comments:

  1. 1. Yes. Which is why I bought one a few weeks ago. I'll consider making a scarf only if the finished product is interesting enough to warrant me slaving away over it. And it's not something simple I can find in a store. I've had the Ulmus Rectangle shawl in my queue for the longest time, but I can't make up my mind which colours to use.
    2. I don't knit for others.
    3. See #2.

    Your scarf is pretty!

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  2. So handsome! The perfect man-scarf, although I could imagine myself wearing this as well.
    Curious to know if you're like me in smiling, grinning even, as the textured pattern begins to emerge in a new project. It's always such fun, almost magic.

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  3. Lovely scarf! You are great for making SO many homemade gifts. I'm sure the receivers will all be appreciative:)

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  4. Raven: :-) I have to check out that shawl. And I can see your point of view about not knitting for others. That's my philosophy on sewing.

    F: You will not believe this but, at work today, my colleagues (to a one) either disliked the pattern or the colour of the one of these I'm knitting now (it's a kind of terra cotta). I've never had so much bad reaction to one of my garments. You know what? I still think it's a good item. The main complaint: It isn't manly enough!

    Victoria: I sure hope so. I want some good reactions :-)

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  5. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on your injury and recovery. I broke my right wrist (and I'm right-handed) a while back and WOW, all the mental stuff you go through with losing any kind of ability. And mine was temporary. I hope it made me more sensitive to those who deal with disability as an unchanging fact of life.

    RE: Knitting scarves--just picked up knitting needles for the first time in YEARS to knit a simple garter stitch scarf for myself. I could never knit for someone else, although I sew for friends and relatives regularly. And my husband and I have a holiday tradition of baking tons of cookies for neighbors and friends. I'd love to find good wrapping for them.

    Love your blog, though I'm an infrequent commentor.

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  6. It is very pretty. Unlike your work colleagues, I like both the color and the pattern, and I know my man would wear it. So there.

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  7. Valerie: Thanks for your comment. How's your wrist faring with the knitting? One of the things I thought (and continue to thing) when I broke my foot was: Thank goodness it wasn't a hand/wrist/arm. Although neither is a good alternative, that would have meant I a) couldn't work and b) couldn't do anything while recovering!

    Susan: I knew I could count on you to back me up! Hope you have had a lovely Thanksgiving!

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  8. It's incredible, and any alterations you made are your imprint on the project. Just lovely.

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