Knitting Group

Some people think I am obsessed with knitting... after this Christmas I'm thinking they may be right. I never would have gotten through it if it hadn't been for the inspirational knitting group I belong too. These women are amazing and really motivate me. To say "thank you" I made each one their own personal knitting notebook. One of my gifts this year (to myself) was a Bind-It All machine. These notebooks were fun to make and I love how they turned out. The inside had pages on current projects, future projects, favorite websites/blogs/books and notes. I was beside myself with excitement to day I was to present these and I wasn't disappointed, everyone seemed to love them.

Lisa, Sue, Kristin and Leslie... I THANK YOU for keeping me sane, for your support, inspiration, motivation and friendship. I hope the new year brings you all everything you wish for!

Sherri

Christmas is over...

With a BIG sigh of relief Christmas is over. All the presents have been unwrapped, Santa was good to the kids and the day was wonderful, not to mentin the fact that it was a white Christmas. My daughter actually said "this is the best Christmas ever" which made me all warm and fuzzy on the inside. There was no fighting and no tears this year. And, everyone loved their knitted gifts and everything fit. Can it get any better than that? I guess I should be knocking on wood... my Mom hasn't received her package yet so I don't know if her gift fit or not. Knock, knock and double knock, knock...

Today I finished up a pair of felted slippers for my sister (talk about last minute, I was working on them when they pulled up). They finally dried and I was able to add the suede bottoms from Fiber Trends. I LOVE these slipper bottoms and will use them again. They are so perfect for preventing holes. Plus the fact that I won't fall on my a.. when I wear mine is a big plus in my book. Shoot... I forgot to get a picture.

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and have a safe and happy new year too!

Ready for Christmas!

Tomorrow is the big day and I'm all finished with my projects. I'm just happy I was able to get everything done in time. I love how all my vests by Lisa Ellis Designs turned out and I think they will be a big hit. I probably won't post anything for a few days. I hope that you all have a wonderful holiday!

Stuck at home...

It's snowing again for the second straight day. I can't remember the last time I saw this much snow. The good thing about it is it makes for great knitting! I love to curl up on the couch with hot cocoa and my knitting. I'm finishing up last minute Christmas gifts and will post the pictures later, you can also check them out on www.ravelry.com under merrysherri. I love Christmas but, for some reason, I can't wait for it to be over this year. Can't wait for the stress to just slip away, although a few good spiked hot cocoa's could also do the trick :) I hope you are all knitting away and are able to finish up your projects. Have a wonderful Christmas and a happy and safe New Year!

Snow, snow go away...

Today was my knitting group day and through wind, rain, snow and freezing weather I was determined to get there. Then... they had to go and close school for the day. Luckily my wonderful husband was home and I was able to make it to knitting. The hot cocoa with peppermint schnapps made it worthwhile, not mention the wonderful company... I needed it today. I was able to work on a project that needs to be in the mail by Friday or Saturday. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it will happen. I can't wait to post a picture but can't do that until after Christmas since I want it to be a surprise. Little by little I'm getting my Christmas projects done. I honestly have to say I can't wait for Christmas to be over this year.

The other day I picked up a new book called 'Knitting For Peace'. It's a wonderful book filled with information on all kinds of knitting charities. Starting in January I plan to do some charity knitting and to also finally start a sweater for myself. I've never made one for myself, almost everything I knit I give away. The only thing I have kept for myself are socks and slippers. I think I will really enjoy the charity knitting and can't wait to get started. Maybe I can wrangle in some friends to join me :)

Have a great day and stay warm!

A Teacher's Gift

I can't believe how fast Christmas crept up on me this year... here I thought I was all prepared and had all my lists planned out. Ha... that was a joke. Christmas is now less than 2 weeks away and I'm getting stressed about finishing all my projects. My priority this week is finishing up teacher gifts which will be the felted lunch bags. This one is done except for the felting. I used the Cascade 220 Paints in David's Eyes. I love the colors but I'm not sure if I'm happy about how they pooled in the round. We will see how it turns out after felting. I also used only one strand, almost everything I have felted so far I've used two strands. I'm hoping it turns out OK. The pattern is a free pattern on www.ravelry.com under Brown Bag.

My other projects are for my knitting group, can't mention those because of little eyes that might read this :) Yes, I'm talking about you Lisa and Sue... Hope you like what I came up with!

More and more hats...

Are you tired of seeing hats yet? This is the year of hats for my family. My nephews are getting hats stuffed with cash for Christmas this year. Don't worry, I'm almost done with the hat thing... here are two more, one is the warm ears Taos hat in blues just like the one Hailey is wearing below. The other is another ribbed hat just like the one done in Patons below but this time I'm using Crystal Palace Taos. It was going to be for my nephew but I think it has too much purple in it. I have another ball I may use for him. Both patterns are free downloads, email me if you need to links.

Test Knit Vest

I test knit a pattern for a friend and I have to tell you... I LOVE this pattern. Check out http://www.lisaellisdesigns.com/ for the pattern. These vests will be Christmas gifts this year. They are so incredibly quick and easy to knit, it is made in one piece so NO seaming (a BIG plus in my book). Did I ever mention how much I HATE seaming... I HATE seaming. I have two more to make... think I can get done before Christmas? The race is on!

PS: I still need to block the purple vest. Did I mention how much I hate blocking? Just kidding... I haven't attempted much blocking yet. Tried it once... didn't work so well. I've heard it works wonders (if you know what your doing). I'll post better pictures once I suck it up and do it!

Who needs sleep anyway...

OK, it is now 2:45 AM and I can't sleep, my head is killing me and my husband is snoring... might as well knit right? I finished the ribbed hat for my nephew and another warm ears Taos hat for my niece. Now on to slippers (for sis) and finishing a sweater (can't say for who because she might read this), must get done before Christmas. I can't believe it is only 2 weeks away... how in the world did this creep up so fast? So many projects... so little time! I think I'll start knitting in January for next Christmas. LOL... that's what I said last year. Must go knit now!

Another hat for my nephew...

Today's project is another hat for my nephew. I found some Paton's yarn in my stash in the garage. I don't use a lot of Patons and I don't even know why I bought it but I figured I needed to use it up. The pattern is a ribbed hat from ravelry and can be found at http://www.crumpart.net/, a free download. I really like the pattern and it's a quick knit.

Bazaar

Tomorrow is the big day... the craft fair at the kids school. It was a LOT of work for only 2.45 hours but it will be fun (I couldn't imagine doing this full time). The kids have made bird feeders, Christmas earrings and candy trains. I made some of the market bags and store bought gloves with fun fur knitted on the cuff. I really like them, they turned out cute. It was a fun, inexpensive project that I hope will go over well. Guess we will find out tomorrow.