knitting in secret

I haven't actually been knitting in secret...but I'm afraid I can't share with you all what exactly I've been knitting, as of late it happens to be gifts for certain blog readers. Just to warn my family members: this may be a Christmas full of knitted gifts, (or partially filled with knitted gifts) because: 1) while yarn certainly can be expensive, it's not always, and it's generally cheaper than other gifts, especially for small knitted things; 2) I've discovered I love knitting; and 3) I'm afraid the number of things I can knit for Andy and I is somewhat limited, and I'd hate to reach that limit too early in my knitting career, so I need to make things for other people!

So, some of you have seen a little something (well, anything for a toddler is little, right?) that I made Ellie...I'm trying to hang on to it until Christmas to give it to her then, but its very tempting to just send it in the mail now, since I just finished it. Here's a piece of it, just to pique your curiosity:


And, I've also started on Ben's Christmas gift. It is less than halfway done...really just "one piece done"...and here is the piece:

I guess I was in a blue mood when I picked out yarn for these. Actually, its the first time I've ever picked out special yarn for a specific project, so it was rather daunting. Ellie and Ben, being toddler & infant, needed yarn that was machine washable and dryable, but not scratchy or itchy, and of course in lovely colors, preferably not super-expensive yarn, and preferably of a similar size/gauge to what the patterns called for. Also, they live in Cambodia, with tropical weather all the time--no warm wool for these kids! So I wanted sort of light/breathable yarn, too. All in all it was a more difficult task than expected.

The one I picked for Ellie is a sort of dark periwinkle blue called MicroSpun (Lion brand yarn)--it's super silky-soft sport-weight acrylic yarn. Unfortunately, it was also kind of difficult to knit with (very slippery), though I liked the finished product. I love the color, I think it will look pretty with her blue eyes. So for Ben's I chose a different yarn--worsted weight--that is more of a fuzzy-soft than a silky-soft. I think its a cotton blend. His ended up being blue too because the other colors in this kind of yarn were rather limited and pretty boring (gray, wheat, etc), at least at the store I went to. So I guess they'll have to match, sort of. Oh well. As siblings, I'm sure it won't be the last time.

Later today Andy and I are going to another wedding...I should be getting work done now, as yesterday was an ultimately unproductive day. But of course I'd rather procrastinate...hence my escape to blogging. And just think, if I manage to put off work for another two hours, then it will be time to get ready for the wedding and I won't be able to do any work anyway!