Trinity's Tomten & Christmas Knitting

Cast On:

April 4, 2008

Pattern:

Modular Tomten Jacket by Elizabeth Zimmermann

From Knitting Without Tears

Generated by Flickr Album Maker

Made for:

Trinity for Xmas

Yarn:

Lion Brand Lion Suede Solid in Teal

5.8 skeins = 707.6 yards (647.0m)

Purchased at 99 Cent Jacks

Needles:

US 10 / 6.0 mm Knitpicks Options

This came off my needles on Sunday. I haven't marked it as finished on Ravelry yet. But all the knitting is done. I am just waiting to attach buttons but I need to buy some for it.

I started this before leaving for my work conference at the beginning of April. I wanted something simple to knit during the meetings. It definitely fits the bill with this. Loads of knit stitches and very little else.

I did a simple crochet arch stitches to border the edges. It looks pretty and adds a touch of femininity. It is a simple arch which looks like a loop. Nothing fancy, but it was a good way to start with crochet. It is my first time edging in crochet at all. So I feel happy with that.

I knit it for Trinity, my grandniece (no, not that old, just have nephews around my age). I suspect it will be too large. But she can grow into it. At 4 months she was 20 pounds! So she is growing fast.

I admit I wouldn't have bought this yarn except for it was $0.99 a skein at a local store. So I figured it would be good for some baby stuff.

I dislike knitting with the yarn a great deal. It isn't a yarn I would buy again. It sticks. A lot. And the sticking leave the stitches very uneven. I may toss it in the washer to see if that helps at all. But my guess it that it really won't. It will just look uneven.

But I think Trinity's mom will like it. The yarn is very soft and fuzzy. And machine washable. So I am guessing it will be a good present.

It is nice getting a jump on holiday knitting. I figure this way it is very relaxed. I was going to knit a matching hat as part of the pressie, but I used up nearly all of the six skeins! I may use the remaining yarn as a trim for the hat. Or maybe this will be it. I do have other Xmas knitting to tackle.

Though I did learn that I am only knitting for kids up until about 2-3 old at most. I knit my grand niece who is 6-7 a couple purses which I figured she would like. She barely looked at them. It didn't make noise or light up. So she had no use for it. All she wanted to do was listen to Hannah Montana and play with her handheld gaming piece. *groan*

It kinda scares me how some kids are sucked into all these marketing fads. It is sad. The older kids all just get Target gift cards at this point. They aren't for a lot of money. But at least that way they can get what they want. I certainly don't have a clue what they want. *sigh* Ah well.

Ultimately, I hope the parents are happy. I figure that is what matters most with the little ones. I will make something for Littlest George. I made him the Tomten last Xmas and his parents love it. I didn't see how Trinity's folks liked the baby kimono I made her. They didn't come down. But they told me at Easter they liked it. So I am hoping they like this. And they have another baby on the way. So I will make something for that baby.

Other than that, I am not sure about any other Xmas knitting. I am will see. I have some patterns for quick projects that I might do for some of Paul's siblings on his dad's side. But it is just as likely that I won't. On his mom's side, the ones who knit are really good! So I wouldn't dream of it. *chuckle* Okay. Other than J who has avoided knitting somehow. I did make the socks for her last year. Though I really doubt I will knit for her again anyhow. Not unless I see something that screams that she needs it.

I may knit for my friend Kyle again. I did a cabled scarf for him last Xmas that he seemed to like. I was thinking about the Bloody Stupid Johnson hat as he is a big ol' sf geek who has been reading the Pratchett books. But after hearing about some headaches that Silvercat had, I am a bit tempted to rethink that. *laugh*

I still owe my friend Meredith a pair of birthday socks. But we just had a chance to get together on Thursday. I measured her feet. Now, I just have to dye some yarn for her. I was going to buy pre-dyed, but she didn't react well to the superwash wool. She did respond well to the 60% superwash merino / 30% bamboo/ 10% nylon blend I have. I got that from Dharmafey at Cosmic Fibers. I bought her Dexter colorway and love it so much that I bought some blanks that I can dye. I might look around though. Meredith just wants brown and/or black. So I would really prefer not to bother dyeing it. I will see if I can find a colorway in the same blend that she will like.