End of year FOs

A few finished pieces of knitting to show.


Turn a Square beanies for baby brother and his gorgeous girlfriend for xmas.
Monkey socks for sister - seen here on the sock blockers, almost ready to send off as a belated xmas present (better late than never). I had to send her a WIP photo for xmas. She laughed.
A xmassy cotton mitred hanging towel for a xmas swap partner.

And these snug purple stripey socks that I finished back in October, just in time for my trip to NYC. The gorgeous Grignasco Strong Print yarn was gifted to me by PomPom in a swap earlier this year.


Summer knitting continues, with a few different things on the needles - some of which, frustratingly, have been frogged or tinked back many times. But more socks will be cast on soon, a shawl will be on the blocking wires very shortly, and a cosy pinwheel blanket is progressing well. Loving catching a few short hours to sit with my knitting, watching Sensitive Skin on DVD and enjoying my all-too-short break.

Xmas traditions

I love xmas. I really do. I love that it's hot, hot, hot. I love that I spend weeks (OK, maybe days) planning the menu. Not just for the day, but for all the other days when visitors want to eat with me. I love that I can switch off from work for a week or so. I especially love that I can spend time with my loved ones.

My girls and I have a couple of xmas traditions. Well, the first one, they probably wouldn't admit to being part of, but they laugh along with me. You see, each year, I buy a xmas CD - some years it will be traditional, some years vintage, but most years it's pretty appalling.

Back in the day, I used to buy records - you know, LPs. But I won't inflict those album covers on my blog readers. Since I've moved into the modern world of CDs, I've bought several of the vintage versions, with the usual suspects: Dean Martin, Doris Day, Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole.

But some years I diversify. It was the Beach Boys that followed me home one year.

Another year, it was The Hoff (very cringeworthy and, yet, my personal favourite).

Even The Seekers have made it into my xmas collection.
This year it was a toss up among Shirley Bassey, Neil Diamond and Elvis.

Elvis won (although I'm pretty sure he never really actually sang O Come All Ye Faithful with Olivia Newton-John or Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane) with Leann Rimes.)

Ahh, I'll bet my xmas visitors are looking forward to hearing this one.

Xmas tradition number two is a bit less scary.

Last year I blogged about my grown-up daughters requesting xmas skirts each year. On our recent trip to LA, Daughter2 selected some Michael Miller Party Girls fabric for this year's xmas skirts.

But did I start them early enough for both girls to wear them on The Day? Of course not. Daughter1 is far away this xmas season, lolling about in the sun and hopefully being spoiled rotten by in-laws, so there is no way I am going to get an as-yet-unmade Party Girls skirt to her now. But Daughter2 is still insistent. It might just get done.

In the meantime, I have resurrected last year's cherry theme for a xmas bib for ma minette.

But just in case she feels like being a Party Girl too, it's reversible!