Amidst secret and not-so-secret holiday knitting (grandma afghan status: 2.5 panels of 4 done)... I managed to forget to make something for mom. Now, okay... see, last year she asked for (and received!) the merino-silk Hanami stole I knit, so I wasn't really thinking as far ahead as having a gift this year, just slipped my mind. She doesn't know I forgot, and she's one of those that would be aghast that I "forgot her"-- so stash diving I found some yarn that could be knit up in two days...
Alpaca with a Twist Big Baby-- 100% baby alpaca, bulky wt
...a really great pattern that would make a bulky alpaca hat even warmer, some gigantic needles, and yay!
A bulky baby alpaca set in two days with room to spare :)
For the scarf, I used 3+ skeins of Big Baby, doubled and knit in garter st over 12 sts on US 17 (12mm) needles. The hat is Thorpe, a fun top-down earflap hat that comes both plain and stranded. I knit mine using a skein each of 'natural' and 'harvest' on US 10's to give it more room (coming from big-headed stock)...
See?
I probably should have knit the headband/earflap panel on smaller needles, it is a bit larger than the stranded portion but still okay. I am hoping the stranding will help the alpaca keep its shape and not grow too much-- used garter for the scarf for the opposite reason and hope it will stretch even more than the 6' it's at now. I just discovered I like long scarves :) It is *crazy* heavy, and thick... warmer than Hanami for sure.
And mom will never know I forgot :)
Have a good holiday! And if Santa's listening-- what I *really* want is a year membership to the Grafton Fibers Colorways fiber club... 2 Grafton spindles plus a Grafton Fibers batt a month for a year! (I have not wanted to join a club so badly since... well since aVfKW, since Black Bunny Fibers, since the Bellwether's Rhyme Times... but still!! :))
Miss you!
Alpaca with a Twist Big Baby-- 100% baby alpaca, bulky wt
...a really great pattern that would make a bulky alpaca hat even warmer, some gigantic needles, and yay!
A bulky baby alpaca set in two days with room to spare :)
For the scarf, I used 3+ skeins of Big Baby, doubled and knit in garter st over 12 sts on US 17 (12mm) needles. The hat is Thorpe, a fun top-down earflap hat that comes both plain and stranded. I knit mine using a skein each of 'natural' and 'harvest' on US 10's to give it more room (coming from big-headed stock)...
See?
I probably should have knit the headband/earflap panel on smaller needles, it is a bit larger than the stranded portion but still okay. I am hoping the stranding will help the alpaca keep its shape and not grow too much-- used garter for the scarf for the opposite reason and hope it will stretch even more than the 6' it's at now. I just discovered I like long scarves :) It is *crazy* heavy, and thick... warmer than Hanami for sure.
And mom will never know I forgot :)
Have a good holiday! And if Santa's listening-- what I *really* want is a year membership to the Grafton Fibers Colorways fiber club... 2 Grafton spindles plus a Grafton Fibers batt a month for a year! (I have not wanted to join a club so badly since... well since aVfKW, since Black Bunny Fibers, since the Bellwether's Rhyme Times... but still!! :))
Miss you!
5 comments:
It's awesome! I'm sure she'll love it :)
(and yes, the Grafton fibre club? So tempting)
Have a Merry Christmas!
Wow; that looks great! Love the way the hat and the solid color scarf go together. Nice work!
Hey. Ran into your site. I love it. wish i had talent with my hands... i only have the gift of the gab, though. Would love to hear from you sometime... xiomi13 at yahoo.com -xiomara
Honey, you are EVIL (well, I don't believe in evil..) for showing me that Grafton Fibers club. Should we split one?????
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