Crafting Alphabet C: Christmas

As Christmas approaches, I want to have a focus on why we celebrate Christmas. Not the panic or stress of Christmas shopping, buying gifts that will put me in debt, but focusing on God's grace in my life. I don't deserve His daily mercies that are new every morning. Lamentations 3:22-23 says: "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning, great is your faithfulness." 

As finals press closer and stress builds, I try to take a few minutes every day to knit a few rows, read my Bible, breathe. 

Over Thanksgiving break, I had a wonderful time visiting with family and got to go on a few walks through the park near my home.

Here's my sister modeling the blue hat I knit this summer from New England Knits with a swirly, fluffy scarf that I learned to knit this week. I didn't make that particular scarf, I made another like it. It's fun to see my sister layer on the hand knits for the winter weather.

My other sister happily modeled the beret from last week on this blog. 

When I returned to school, I put up some little white lights and put a little Charlie Brown Christmas tree in my window. I made Christmas wreaths with friends a few weeks ago while singing Christmas carols together.

I'm currently working on a pair of gray hand warmers. Pictures will follow. 

In the meantime, please leave a comment about what you're doing for crafts, reading, or any other traditions this Christmas season. Are you making your Christmas gifts? Knitting? Any other crafts? What are ways that you and your family celebrate Christmas? I love to hear new ideas, so leave a comment!

Vacation and Gift Knitting

I went on vacation to the beach this past week to Oak Island, NC. It's absolutely beautiful! Besides boogie boarding, swimming in the ocean, and getting sunburned with my siblings, I sat on the beach knitting, mostly gift knits.

I knit a baby boy sweater from the pattern In Threes, that I knit many times last vacation. I was having trouble matching buttons to it, until I realized that it really isn't a "true blue" but is a beautiful tonal of purple and bluey-greens which as a whole, looks "blue." I found a set of pale green buttons that match; I have to find a thread to attach them with and then it will be finished.

I knit two hats from the book "New England Knits" by Cecily Glowik MacDonald and Melissa LaBarre. The pattern is the Brattleboro Hat, designed by Melissa LaBarre. The first hat I knit in a hand-dyed yarn in a colorway called "Autumn Leaves" from my cousin, from Greenberry House, http://blog.greenberryhouse.com. The two leather buttons are from my maternal grandmother's button collection.

The second hat I knit from Malabrigo Rios, in the same yarn for the baby sweater. For some reason, it looks more blue than the other ball even though they were from the same dye lot. Perhaps the pattern changed which colors ended up next to each other. The two buttons are also from my grandmother's collection.

I also knit a basic stockinette hat with a garter stitch brim. It's long enough to keep the wearer's ears nice and toasty.

And finally, a quick shot of two of my models. Somehow, they were a whole lot happier without winter wool hats in the July heat. :)