Finally, a year when I got everything done  for Christmas and didn't have to knit right down to the wire!  Final tally:  4 scarves, 1 pair of socks, 2 hats.  Doesn't seem like much to see it listed.  I don't know as I have ever knitted a scarf before this (I usually weave them), and was very surprised that they took so long.  I guess I shouldn't have been, if I'd thought about it much before deciding to make them I would have realized that all that length takes time!  We all survived, though, and everyone got their Christmas gifts, so I am chalking it up to lessons learned.  This year, I may just make everyone hats!

So, what's active on the needles now?  I am finishing a re-do of a hat that I started at least two years ago.  Got it done except for the cast off and discovered it was way too small.  Or, maybe, short is a better word.  It didn't come down far enough on my head.  So I painstakingly raveled the whole thing to start over and have just been putting it off.  The yarn is a wonderful hand dyed 4 ply cashmere from HandMaiden yarns and the pattern came with the yarn.  I got it from my friend Melissa at PeaceWeavers. It is the most wonderful, soft, yarn I have ever worked with and I am really looking forward to having this hat to keep me warm for the rest of this winter.  I opted to just knit it straightforward, instead of using two balls to mix the colors, and have ended up with what looks to be a pleasingly striped hat:

Not quite finished, but probably will be today.

I also knit two hats this month as a birthday gift:

The one on the right is from some Harrisville yarn the recipient picked out about a year ago.  The pattern is the basic hat pattern from Ann Budd's, The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns.  I love that book and use it often.  The one on the left is handspun pencil roving (also acquired from my friend Melissa a long time ago).  The pattern is one I came up with by combining bits of several patterns for reproduction 18th century caps found online.  I'm quite pleased with the way it came out and think I will (eventually) knit one just like it for myself.  I think I have just enough of the same roving left but it will take me a while to spin it up as I am working on spinning some lovely indigo dyed blue roving I bought at the Franklin County Fiber Fest last fall from Woolies of Shirkshire Farm in Conway, MA.  I'll post pics of that when I get it spun.  However, it might also be the perfect project for some of that lovely historic colorways yarn from Plimouth Plantation that I was drooling over a couple of posts ago...  we'll see.  I'll have to get some of the yarn first and see what it's like. 

Next up, or other projects I really want to make (in no particular order):

The Whitman Cap pattern by Kristen TenDyke in Interweave Knits Accessories 2011.  It's a guy's hat, but I love it and think it will be just perfect for me.  Here's a picture of it from the magazine:

It's knit in Brooklyn Tweed, which is a yarn I've never used.  New pattern, new yarn.  What's not to love? 

The next is the Bandana Cowl from www.purlbee.com:

 I hate it when my neck is cold in the winter, and I love this pattern.  It's made with Swan's Island Bulky yarn (https://www.swansislandblankets.com/catalog/yarn), which is another yarn I have never used.  I love the company ethic and that the colors are dyed with natural dyes.  Can't wait to make this.

I also have stumbled over a pattern for a pair of knee socks by Classic Elite called Twin Peaks:

They look like awesome socks for winter.  As much as I love to knit socks, I've never done any knee high ones and I think this would be a great first pair.  From what I can see on Ravelry, they aren't too difficult and knit up quickly, both good things in my world right now. 

Lastly, for now anyway, is a pair of basic mittens from Ann Budd's book, but with a twist.  I plan to get some pencil roving from New England Felting Supply ( http://feltingsupply.com/) and use it like you would in stranded knitting to knit every third stitch or so to make thick, warm mittens that will eventually felt on the inside.  I've got to do some more planning and research on that so that they come out right.  The prototype will be for me and, once I get them right, I'll make another pair for someone who's been wishing for mittens from me for over a year now. 

That should keep me busy for a while.  Plus, I've got to get started on this coming Christmas' knit gifts, school is starting back up, time to get the garden planning going, and I should be moving within the next couple of months.  Yeah, definitely enough to keep me busy!