knitted gifts

Last New Year's Eve, as we were waiting for the ball to drop, I picked up my notebook and a pen and made a "Knitting To-Do List" of all the projects I hoped to complete in 2014.  It was a pretty ambitious list for me, but I wanted to branch out and try some things I'd never tried before, and above all, I wanted to make gifts. I wanted to knit and then give. Have you ever given someone a gift that you made yourself? It's a great feeling. You're offering them something that you've usually spent a good bit of time on, something that you've thought a lot about, something that you love and made specifically with them in mind. I love giving handmade gifts. 

So when I made my list, although I did include a few things for myself, most everything was for someone else. I've already given a lot of them away since they weren't all going to be Christmas gifts, but here at the end of the year, I have some projects that I'm hoping to complete just in time to put under the tree. Here's a little look at what I've been working on and what I've got stashed in my basket.

I finished Sommer's birthday blanket about a month ago and decided to take it to her when we stayed at her house last weekend. Her birthday isn't for another few weeks, but it's been so cold I thought I'd give it to her a little early. Dani says she loves wearing it as an Elsa cape :)

I finally finished the pretty purple blanket I've been working on for a friend's baby. It's been in my basket for quite awhile, and I'm so glad to finally get to hand it over really soon. The fingerless gloves will be a gift to my sweet Grama for Christmas (don't worry, she's already seen them and knows they're for her!). 

I just picked up these pretty skeins at the yarn store the other day and can't wait to get started on their planned projects. It took an enormous amount of willpower to leave the store with only these four, and if I'm being completely honest, I'm secretly hoping that I'll run out of something so I can go back and get more. Those up there will be a honey cowl, a scarf, and a pair of fingerless gloves.

If I finish the above projects in good time (and I intend to...we have back-to-back weekend trips coming up where I can sit in the passenger seat and knit the whole way...hooray!), I'm hoping to knit a couple new hats for Tommy and Annabel with the above Quince & Co yarn that I picked up at a cute little store in Portland, Maine when we were up there over the summer.

I also have yarn for a pair of socks for Will and a pair of fingerless gloves for me (!!) that I may or may not get to in December. We'll see. 

So that's a little look at what I'll be working on in my spare time (mostly while waiting for preschool pick up or watching Hallmark Christmas movies - I'm addicted)! Do you have any projects going on for the holidays? Happy crafting!