][ ho, ho, ho boy.

When people ask me about my yarn stash, I like to use the word ‘dragonish.’ I hoard certain things with all the avarice of a huge, fire-breathing lizard. (This metaphor possibly brought to you by The Desolation of Smaug. We saw it. I knit through it. Two-color drop stitch pattern in the dark. I’m pretty awesome, yo.) There aren’t many things I collect this way: yarn is one; books are another; and, apparently, vacation.

Thanks to holiday closures and the fact that I haven’t taken half my time off yet this year, Friday was the first day of my break, and I don’t go back to work ‘til January 2nd.

I sat myself down Friday morning with a fresh pot of coffee, bad holiday films on Netflix (SIDE NOTE: Holiday In Handcuffs is like the best/worst film EVER, go watch it), and my to-do pile.

This was my to-do pile:


The red thing is nearly done; I may or may not add a couple more rows, but it’s at the point where it’s on Not Worrying About It hold; the black bag contains my bff’s secret gift, which of course I can’t talk about; the rainbow-and-black yarn doesn’t actually need to be done until after New Year’s; the two sweaters are knit and seamed, but one needs blocking and both need buttons and only one has buttons picked out, even; the clear bag is a side project that isn’t actually a priority; and the kicker, the green yarn is… well, I don’t even have a pattern, just a rough idea in my head. Ha ha hah. But I’ll manage something.

All things considered I wouldn’t be doing badly if I hadn’t decided to add two things last week or so… so I can’t complain.

Some quick updates on other things:

☆ The Cowlbeast is long since finished; if I recall I bound off Halloween night, and was wearing it shortly after. I love it. I wear it damn near all the time. I cannot actually stop raving about the thing. Go look at all the cute photos on my project page, I’ll wait.

Possibly will write up the pattern for it-- I’ve even got suggestions for commercial yarns it looks nice in… more on that some other time after Christmas. Hint hint. Not that I’m up to anything.

☆ I do also still want to post a pattern for 6H, but I need to make another for some step-out photos and I’m lazy as heck. But, someday.

☆ I knit like thirty tiny pigs. They are the potato chips of knitting for me. They are my new favorite use of tiny scraps. They’re getting stuffed in Ecksmuss cards when I belatedly send them out for everyone to fill up and keep and love.

☆ I’ve already given away three knit gifts-- two coffee-cup cozies and a set of cat toys-- and they were totally loved by their recipients. One of whom gave me a gift of a couple small things, including some really lovely stitch-markers and a needle-gauge card. I’m charmed because it means this coworker of mine cared enough to notice my hobby, go to a shop, and ask someone for advice on what to get a knitter. That’s just a bit touching to me. Happy Ecksmuss and all that.


ANYWAY, I gotta jet because this green thing (with picot edging, because why wouldn’t I do a complicated cast-on on a large last minute Christmas gift?) won’t knit itself, and I have a whole new pot of coffee awaiting.