Baby, it’s cold outside

Back in July, when we embarked on our summer holiday. I had in my project bag a number of commissions from Let’s get Crafting magazine. I had already completed a pattern for knitted and crochet stockings for the tree. Now we were into the full thrust of Christmas crafting, how funny. I can remember distinctly working on these baby Santa mitts very, very early in the morning, when the rest of the house was fast asleep. Happy silent making, fortified by a strong filter coffee. Don’t they look sweet on this bonny baby?

I also made these angels, which were actually really satisfying to make and I think you could use them for place settings as well. You could use all sorts of decoration to embellish them. It would also be a nice idea to embroider the date on the skirt if you were giving one of these away as a gift for Christmas.

Finally, perhaps my favourite project for a long time. These mug hugs made me giggle from beginning to end. I loved making them and then Little B and I spent time positioning their arms. Lots of fun.

Over the years I have amassed quite a few festive patterns which I make as gifts. Knitting and crochet for friends has already begun. One of my favourite finds is  a ball of Lumio from SMC which has a reflective strand throughout the wool.

I found this ball when visiting friends at Black Sheep wools. I have set myself a challenge recently to see if I can make something that Little B will wear, and this techno yarn geekery spoke to me. So I made this chunky hat last night. I also found this gorgeous faux fur  pom-pom. This Rico Wild Wild Wool fur pom-pom is very good quality and worth paying for if you are giving this hat as a gift. You could keep one as a pet. Well as the predicted the pom-pom is not required but the novelty of sparkly hat is looking promising.  How cool is that!