Is there help?

I wonder if there's a support group for mini-sweater-knitting addicts? And if there is, I wonder if it's permissible to knit during the meetings?

After Christmas I'm always ready for a break from dollmaking and the craft-fair push. That's when I especially love to knit because it's so relaxing. And somehow, these little mini-sweaters have caught my fancy. They are quick to make, and they're very portable for taking along to places where knitting is permitted. Like the senior center knitting group. They understand me there, and they know about knitting addictions. In fact, they are great enablers.

So now it's time for show-and-tell.

Mr. Gadget got me one of these for Christmas. It's a Kindle and it's my newest favorite toy. It even has a spiffy red case with a book light.

You can't see the light in the picture, but it pops out from the right top corner and gives off enough light to read in bed without keeping your lazy-bones partner awake. I had resisted the ebook idea for a long time, since I've always been a big fan of libraries. In fact, I've prided myself on having library cards on both coasts. But then I realized there are lots of free books available for Kindles and I liked that idea. I'm still gonna keep my library cards though. Just in case the Kindle gives me an attitude.

And Big City Girl, who knows how much I love handmade gifts, gave me a wonderful set of greeting cards that she collaged and had printed.

There are 20 cards in the box--5 for each season--and they are 4" x 6" with a glossy finish. I plan to use them as birthday cards mostly, since I'm not fond of going to the card shop and spending big bucks for a card with someone else's sentiments. These are blank inside, so I can include my own witty and/or wacky wishes. I especially like the snowmen--each with a different hat.

BCG has an unusual talent for cutting letters out of paper without actually drawing them on the paper first. A friend of a friend happened to see her doing this one day and thought it bordered on the amazing. In fact, he was so taken with this seemingly unique talent that he requested a special sampling of random letters--which she provided for him a few days later by U.S. Mail. I guess wackiness doesn't fall far from the tree....

The blizzard almost ate my blog

There were so many times during the last two days when I thought the condo complex was really just a house of cards that would blow away any minute.

We've just had a blizzard--my first official blizzard since moving to the northeast in 1983. There have been a couple of pretend blizzards, but they were nothing compared to the real thing. How does one recognize a blizzard, you might ask? One doesn't have to concern oneself with that. That's what the Weather Channel is for. They'll tell you if there's a blizzard going on. You'd think they'd come up with a catchy name for one too--like they do for all the other weather extravaganzas--but this time they fell down on the job. Mr. Gadget and I were sorely disappointed. We like nothing more than to have a good laugh over the Weather Channel's choices of names for weather happenings. It's not unlike being entertained by a good crop of football-player first names.
Here is Mr. Gadget shoveling some "surprise" snow from in front of our garage door. I had just told him I wanted to walk out onto the driveway to look around the neighborhood--during a break in the blizzardness.

"Our driveway looks pretty clear," I said, after noticing most of the snow had blown across the street. He looked out the garage windows and agreed, and then opened the overhead door.
I must say, he was a good sport about it though. While I took a few photos he shoveled....and cautioned me to watch where I stepped because he feared I might re-injure my Thanksgiving knee....and then who would heat up the Christmas leftovers?

So now I'm feeling a little tired. A good blizzard will do that to you. I think I need to sit a while near the fireplace with my feet up and enjoy a cup of coffee, and knit more mini sweater ornaments. Maybe Mr. Gadget will throw a nice crocheted afghan over me and I'll just sleep till New Years.

Tagging along

I was feeling rather smug at 11:00 a.m. this morning--the official time of the completion of my Christmas shopping. Soon, I began to ponder what kinds of fun things I could do to fill my time between now and Christmas--other than the always-exciting food shopping and gift wrapping. Before long I was up in the Treehouse looking around for crafty supplies to make gift tags.
Luckily, I had everything I needed: card stock, old rubber stamps, gel pens, scissors, a hole punch, and red crochet thread.
Santa's beard could probably use a little more coloring, but then...of course....he wouldn't look primitive. I kinda like things a little rough around the edges.

I think these are my favorites. With a red bowtie colored in, he was transformed into a Christmas kitty. I'm fond of his neon green eyes. He was just a sleepy-looking thing till I colored those in. Now he's looking a bit wired....like he just ingested some premium catnip.

I'm hoping I've made enough tags for the gifts I've purchased for Mr. Gadget, Tech Guy and Big City Girl. If not, I may have to take something back. No. Just kidding. But I'm going to leave all my tag-making supplies on my work space--the dining room table--just in case I have to make more. Then, it's very likely I'll be making what I make best. Dinner reservations.

Where's the fire?

I finally got our guard dog properly outfitted for his holiday job as the front-door greeter. Though I must confess, I didn't knit the whole hat. Just the white band and pom-pom. I was having so much fun with the swornament-knitting that I just couldn't put it down long enough to knit a whole Santa hat. I think greeter dog would much rather go for a ride on a firetruck than sit here day after day by our front door. Maybe he could hitch a ride on the hook and ladder when the firemen go shopping for their chili fixins'.

So now let's talk about felting. I crocheted a flower long ago--while we were still in the old house--and I tried to felt it in my washing machine. You might be familiar with the Murphy Laws of Felting. It works something like this: When you put your nice wool sweater in the wash by mistake it will felt into a wonderful tiny doll sweater. But when you put a crocheted flower or a knitted bag, or some other fiber project you want to felt in the machine, not even a hint of felting happens. That's what happened to my flower. So I banished it to the curio thingie and labeled it a dismal failure.

Then, the other day, I decided to give it one more try. I took it out of the curio thingie and put it in my new front-load washer without an agitator (usually a requirement for felting). I threw it in with some towels and t-shirts.
And what do you know! It felted ever-so-nicely. I sewed a pin to the back and passed it on to Santa to put in Big City Girl's Christmas stocking. Maybe it will make a nice accessory for her dustmop sweater, or all the handknit dustmop scarves I've gifted her in recent years. If BCG reads this, which I don't think she will, she should rest assured that I'm just kidding. Now that she's a grown-up business woman living on her own in the big city, I'm sure she hangs up her clothes. But maybe just to be on the safe side, I should knit her a mop.

Merriment

This morning as I was enjoying my coffee in the great room--a room where dirty dishes and clean laundry can't be left untended because there's no place to HIDE them --I noticed the sun coming in through the kitchen window and illuminating my ceramic gingerbread house.

I grabbed my camera on-the-quick because I thought it was really quite striking. Then I decided to scout around for other scenes that might be photo-worthy.

Here are some little block candle holders I made one year with clay robin standing watch. Do you think he needs a Santa hat?

This is the clay Santa I made last year. Remember how I added a bit of whimsy on his backside?

Kinda hard to see, but he's got cheeks. It really wasn't my intent. Sometimes clay has a mind of its own. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Santa and dog-who-cannot-see are keeping each other company next to the fireplace. Poor Santa. He looks like he's had too many pre-Christmas treats. I know just how he feels. I'll bet he was noshing on the chocolate chip cookies. Sure glad I didn't do any nibbling....

My holiday motto: "No flat surface shall go undecorated."

My little photo excursion brought back memories of Christmases past. I remember how dear-ol'-dad, who was an especially handy person, cut big Christmas figures out of plywood. My sister and I helped him paint them, and then he attached them to our garage door and lit them up with a spotlight. That was back before icicle lights and blow-up lawn Santas and antlers for your car. I kinda miss those days. Those were the days when what kept you awake all night on Christmas Eve was the excitement of Santa's visit instead of that darned arthritis in your hip....

Doggone it!

If a person hasn't started their Christmas shopping and has yet to purchase a single box of Christmas cards, I think it makes sense to start a new project--something like knitting Santa hats for all the dogs in the house.

The big wooden Dalmation that sits by the front door keeping watch on the street has a lighted wreath around his neck and soon he, too, will have a Santa hat.

Maybe then I'll start on the cats. Or not. I don't suppose the elves will be showing up anytime soon to do my holiday chores.

"Sooo-EEE!"

I'm not much of a country gal, as you know, but I'm pretty sure that's how a farmer calls his pigs--at least here in the US. I hear tell it's "Hooo--EEE" in the UK.

I made this little piggy for a friend who was in need of a gift for a pig-collecting friend. He's not quite finished. I'm contemplating eyebrows. I know real pigs don't have eyebrows, although I've never gotten close enough to one to take a look. But in my whimsical world all things are possible.

And would you look at all this buttercream!
It's giving me a sugar high. I'll need a nap soon. And what about this scene outside our window this morning....

The curb-installing crew was at work. And I'll just mention that all of those vehicles, with the exception of the dark red Honda, have back-up beeps.

So today Mr. Gadget made his annual trek up from the basement with the box containing our artificial Christmas tree. When we ponder our options: 1) going out into the woods and paying a lot of money to cut down our own tree; 2) bringing the box up from the basement; and 3) skipping the tree altogether and just decorating the mantle, the box always wins.

My job is to assemble the tree and fluff up the branches. I'm the family fluffer. They don't call me Fluffy for nothing. Mr. Gadget's job is putting the lights on--with a minimum of expletives--while listening to Bing Crosby singing Christmas carols. Sometimes there's eggnog. It's almost more excitement than we can stand....especially on a day when we've already been abundantly entertained by the curb installers.

Nice ice

Mr. Gadget and I took a ride up to the old hotel yesterday afternoon to check out my doll sales. As we approached the entrance I noticed that the brick walkway was lined with ice candles.This brought back fond memories of the year I made ice candles. I put them out on the back deck--at the old house--in the snow where we could admire them through the family room windows. Mine were smaller than the ones in the picture--which appear to have been made in buckets of some kind. I used plastic gallon milk jugs.

I cut off the tops of the jugs far enough down so the sides were perfectly straight. (This part will be important later.) Then I put an empty tin can inside the jug and filled it with rocks--or something else that would provide weight. Next I filled the jug with water up to the level of the can. Then I put it in the freezer, or outside if it was below freezing. Once frozen, I set it in the sink for a few minutes till the ice melted just enough to allow the can to slide out, and then I slid the large piece of ice out of the milk jug (this is why the straight sides are important.)

Very quickly I carried it outside and put it in a place for optimum viewing pleasure. I placed a small candle inside--votives are a good size--and lit 'er up. These will last a long time in wintery weather and they're very festive! And if you really want to go all out, put a little food coloring in the water.

Oh, yes. About the dolls. Six of 15 were sold, including Santa with the bunny slippers. So this has got me wondering...as I'm wont to do about so many things....would a slightly smaller pair of bunny slippers make a nice ornament? And would I then have to call them slornaments?

More swornaments

I've never been able to knit a sweater in a day until now. These swornaments are kind of addictive. This is the latest batch. I took them to my knitting group at the senior center the other day and the ladies were quite impressed. Truthfully, I think they were most impressed with the hangers (see previous post). "Where did you get them?" someone asked. "Target," I said, "in their mini department." No, I didn't say that. I gave all the credit to Tech Guy. Luckily, he gave me a tutorial on hanger-making because I know he won't always be available to make as many as I'm gonna need. I'm guessing, though, that after knitting a couple dozen or so I'll be more than ready to swear off swornaments.