I love December. We're a family that celebrates both Christmas and Hanukkah and my birthday is the week before Christmas too. When you're the mom of small kids, you have a lot to do to pull it all off, between the shopping, baking, decorating, but for me, Christmas is not a chore at all. I love to decorate my home and make for a festive mood. I love that sense of excitement and anticipation, as do the return of beloved holiday traditions: decorating Christmas cookies, building a gingerbread house, cutting down the tree, opening the doors of the advent calendar every night before dinner.
I love doing the advent calendar, but have been ready to dispense with the 99 cent cardboard ones with the chocolates, mostly because the chocolate sucks. So I'd been on the lookout for a permanent, reusable one, but have rejected most that I have seen as too cutesy or too country or too juvenile for my taste. Until I saw this one from Garnet Hill, which was perfect!
I actually considered buying it, but decided to make it for several reasons. Besides knitting, I am not a crafty person, and cannot sew or paint or otherwise make things, but many of my most favorite holiday decorations have been handmade - the cross-stitched hand towel from Aunt Ruth, or the peg-doll ornaments from Aunt Kathleen. So I loved the idea of making a beloved family heirloom that also represents something special about me. I can customize it for our family, making a special one for my birthday on the 17th, and can include a nod to Hanukkah, by including blue and white in the color scheme. Besides, it is the perfect thing for using up leftover bits of yarn!
I have the first eight hats finished, except for the pom poms or embroidery. I am making things up as I go along, but both hats and mittens knit up in less than a hour. It's all going so quickly that I plan on finishing up Forecast before I knit any more!
14 comments:
What a fabulous idea! And how fun that you will have something to pass down to Rosebud or Pepe when they are all grown up. *sniff* Thankfully, that is a long way off.
I, too, treasure the handmade and vintage ornaments. My parents' tree topper is a construction paper that I made as a kindergartener in coughhack1978coughhack. We also have the homemade ornaments from Aunt Ruthie, Aunt Virginia, and Aunt Donna. It's wonderful!
I totally am with you about being excited for the holidays! Our calendar is already filling up with fun get-togethers and we're hosting a hand full of our own. I LOVE LOVE LOVE to decorate for Christmas and entertain family and friends.
I've been on the lookout for a nice advent calendar as well. I love this idea! I don't think I can fit it in with all of the other holiday knits I need to finish, but I'm going to file away this idea for next year.
AGGGHH!! That is so great!! I love advent calendars - I too wanted a keepsake and finally bought a wooden house one on ebay last year. Which is great and all....but I just love the mitten idea.
I'm a December baby too (12/12!) and when I was little I called it "Present Month!!". Okay, I still do.
What a perfect holiday knit! This is such a great idea!
That is such a cute idea! I love having homemade ornaments around, we used to have a homemade nativity set for years, before the saltdough finally went mouldy. I'm amazed it lasted so long really. Aww, I'm getting all excited about starting the decorations again now!
I was going to knit that too! But with all my current holiday stuff, I am planning on it for next year. I'm so glad you're doing it!
You really do a fab job with the holidays and you truly enjoy yourself.
Oh! Now I must make one, at least for us. If successful, everyone will be getting one ...
Perhaps we were separated at birth? I too am fond of holidays, and have fun at Christmastime no matter what. This seems to annoy nearly everyone I know ...
I only have one or two Christmas things from when I was small, most were ruined/destroyed in floods or fires over the years. (I just realized that sounds like I grew up in Biblical times. I am old, but not THAT old!)
I love this. Love it! So beautiful, and it will truly be an heirloom because your heart and hands went into creating it. I may just take on this project--I need some knitting that reminds me of the joy of the season.
I, too, love the winter holidays, esp. advent calendars. I'm so old school, I buy ones with the pictures (chocolate? when did they start having chocolate advent calendars?) every year...but your idea is brilliant! Can't wait to see the FO in action soon.
Bring on the fa la la!
This is such a cute advent calendar! And a great way to use up the little bits of yarn. Yay :)
Oh, these are perfect Liz. I think I am going to adopt the mitten idea for an Advent Calendar for LS. I suppose I should get moving on that...
Way to reinvent the holidays with your own unique twist!
Cute! My sister wants me to knit a similar advent calendar; however, my hats/mittens haven't turned out as well. Are you knitting yours in the round?
I would love to make the advent calendar similar to the one from Garnet Hill. Instead of reinventing the wheel would someone share their "pattern" for the hats and mittens? Thanks so much!!
Post a Comment