Yarn Along – 19 October

{joining Ginny over at Small Things}

It certainly is getting nippy out there these days! At the beginning of autumn it seemed like I had endless days to knit up this seasons cowls, hats, mitts etc. Now I seem to be running out of time! This afternoon the girls and I went for a walk. We put on our lovely new hats and cowls to keep warm. One thing was lacking however – mittens. There seems to be a shortage of the things. So although I have two other projects on the go which I will share with you in  just a minute… I am resolved to using some left over yarn from the Norwegian  house slippers to knit up a couple of pairs this week.

Karen Andreola shares in her Charlotte Mason Companion how, when she was growing up, there always seemed to be endless pairs of mittens in her home. Her mother would knit mittens each autumn, preparing for the cold days ahead. A picture of a basket of mittens by the front door sprang into my mind at her description and a simple living concept born! Children – being children – always seem to loose mittens along the way and they NEVER seem to be available when needed! So, I plan to bring to life my picture of a basket full of mittens resting by the front door for this coming winter. All shapes and sizes – something to fit everyone. No designated owner, just a simple basket of mittens.

This week my needles have been flying along and my heart inspired. I finished off another slouchy hat for my youngest daughter and a matching cowl. I am pleased to say that she was thrilled.

I’ve also started two secret knitting projects. Christmas is drawing near and I really want to give my children some lovingly crafted hand-knits. Both these projects have to be done after bedtime or when the children are out playing – the mittens are for broad daylight knitting ;o)

first up…

a pair of socks each. My girls have been begging me to knit them socks for well over a year now. I have tried to avoid it as they are really hard on their socks and so much work goes into them. But knowing how warm hand knit socks are (I mean NOTHING can compare), my mothering heart wants to keep little – and some not so little – feet warm and cozy this winter.

My other secret project  has been inspired by my friend back in South Africa who shared her beautiful blankets earlier on this year that she crochet for her children. I LOVE how they turned out and wanted to create a special blanket for each of my girls to wrap up in this winter. What I love about this project is that it grows so quickly and I only need to buy the yarn as I need it ;o) I plan to do one in black, bright pink and bright purple and the other in black, bright blue and …. still getting my head around number two. Any suggestions?

Reading is still happening in snatches – here and there. Right now I am indulging in a little weekly mag called The People’s Friend, simple and quick little reads.

That’s all my knitty news for this week – happy knitting ;o)