It’s Friday! The weekend is stretched out before us with the potential of hours of knitting, and with many gift giving opportunities just around the corner, we’ll explore the magical world of holiday knitting! This year I’m way ahead of the game because I used Universal Yarn Deluxe Worsted Superwash wool to complete a Willowworks Cowl for my sister over a month before Christmas, and that alone is miraculous. Let me tell you why…
It’s Christmas knitting time for me! Thank goodness I finished the Willowworks Cowl with these lovely colors. Only a dozen more gifts to go…
Willowworks Cowl completed. One Christmas gift ready to go!
Every year, I mean every single year, I tell myself I’m going to knit Christmas decorations for my home. Every year I swear I’m going to knit socks for my entire family. Every year I promise myself I will knit a moose to send to my friend, Shoshana, and her family to celebrate Chanumucia (Christmas, Hanukkah, and Santa Lucia combined for which there is, of course, the Chanumoose as its symbol). And every year on Christmas Eve I find myself sitting beside a Christmas tree without so much as a single knitted ball to adorn its branches, working like a fiend to get that second dang sock knit for the one lucky person who’ll be the only person to get a hand-knit gift this year.
It’s true. It’s my own personal holiday tradition – the thick eggnog of disappointment mixed with double shot of last minute spicy panicked knitting.
The Chanumoose, beloved symbol of the Chanumucia season – unknit version, because I haven’t gotten around to knitting one yet.
I think in order to achieve my Christmas knitting goals I need to create a realistic schedule to keep me on track for the holiday gift giving season. So this is my schedule for 2020/2021 to ensure I accomplish my Christmas knitting goals.
- Dec 26th shop online for the Universal Yarn Deluxe Worsted Superwash wool to make a second Willowworks Cowl for the sister who was jealous, because I gave one to my other sister, but not her.
- Dec 27th cast on socks for Dad
- Dec 29th finish the first sock for Dad
- Dec 30th choose to knit a new sock pattern for my brother, because I’m bored of Dad’s sock, assuming I’ll get back to it next week.
- January 1st break down and cast on that sweater I bought the yarn for, and placed under the tree as my present.
- Also January 1st pretend to be sick, so I can stay home, avoid New Year’s celebrations, and knit my sweater
- February 1st remember I’m supposed to be knitting for Christmas 2021, because I’m now bored of my sweater, and desperately want to cast on something new. Spend the entire day searching up Christmas decoration patterns on Ravelry.
- February 13th find my brother’s half knit sock while looking for my measuring tape, and take up knitting it again to avoid knitting the sleeves of my sweater
- March start thinking of spring knitting that needs to get done before the warmer weather hits. Knit the Willowworks Cowl in between diving into my stash for that Fibra Natura cotton I put away last year.
- April forget Dad’s sock project altogether.
- May 1st cast on my brother’s second sock, so I can take it to my knitting retreat.
- May 2-4th knit not a stitch on that sock, but cast on a fabulous shawl with the gorgeous yarn I bought at the spring fiber festival.
- June knit my brother’s Christmas present sock while doing a Walk n Sock event
- July forget about my brother’s sock and knit other neat stuff
- August too hot to knit
- September buy tons of yarn at various yarn festivals. Forget Christmas knitting altogether.
- October begin feeling a rising sense of anxiety as I realize Christmas knitting is way behind. Stuff it down with Pumpkin Spice everything.
- Early November…crap! Dig frantically through my projects to find my brother’s Christmas socks. No success, but I do find my Dad’s. Oh yeeeah!
- Mid November check out my Ravelry favorites Christmas Decoration board, and plan to knit at least one.
- Late November start digging through all my partially finished projects to see which ones I might possibly have the time to knit. Find my brother’s sock again. Realize that it’s too late to knit anything that needs to go in the mail.
- Early December put up the Christmas tree, and curse myself for not yet having knit that cute little Christmas Mouse to go on it. Just throw strands of art yarn on instead.
- Mid December remember the Chanumoose I was supposed to have knit already, and plan to do it for next year.
- Also Mid December start discarding the knitting projects that I have no hope in hell of getting done by Dec 25th. My brother and Dad’s socks are the only projects that make the cut.
- Dec 24th wrap up the sock and a half for my brother with a promise to finish it asap (meaning by his birthday in April), and my sister’s Willowworks Cowl.
- Dec 25th, 2:38am sit beside my yarn strewn knitted decoration deprived Christmas tree drinking lukewarm coffee while frantically knitting the toe of my Dad’s sock.
- Dec 25th, 4:30am swear I’m never going to knit for Christmas again
- Dec 25th, 10am see the look of joy on my Dad’s face when he puts on his hand-knit made-with-love socks.
- Dec 25th, 10:03am begin planning my knitted gifts for next Christmas.
Oh…it happened again, didn’t it? Tradition’s tradition! Whatcha gonna do.
Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Awesome Chanumucia, Blessed Yule, Joyful Kwanza, and to all a good knit!
And to all a good knit!
(It’s crochet…but that’s another story.)