punk rudolph

I hope that everyone who celebrated had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Mine was lovely even though I had to work a half day. Being in the healthcare profession, it is a given that weekends & holidays are not necessarily days/nights off. But I do think that it's sad to see Thanksgiving Day, the one major holiday that has traditionally not been overly commercialized, is now not the case. The shopping malls and big box stores around us were all opened yesterday. And the ones who were closed had early openings on Black Friday. It has been a number of years since I have ventured out of the house on Black Friday. Can't imagine waking up that early to shop! Or standing in those kinds of lines for anything other than a concert ticket to a favorite band or let's be honest....yarn! I would much rather stay home and knit gifts for my loved ones. "What kinds of gifts" you might be asking? Oh, how 'bout a Punk Rudolph Hat?!? 

Is it my imagination or does my beginner's attempt at bobbles make these guys look like reinducks?

It's the perfect holiday headgear for a little guy who loves to follow the beat of his own drums and adores singing along to loud boisterous music. This free pattern is by the fabulous chrisknits. I love how she incorporated the adorable reindeer chart originally used for a sweater into a hat in three sizes. Yes, even adults are not left out of all this reindeer cuteness! In fact, Punk Rudolph was knit in the adult size since the little guy has a huge noggin for his age. All the yarns used were from the stash. Sometimes shopping from the stash can lead to some unexpected color choices. This one even surprised me! Now off to do more stash diving for the hubby's hat. And then mine. Knitting a couple of reindeer hats on Black Friday....now that's punk!

One big pompom coming right up as soon as I figure out how to use my Clover pompom maker

spirograph headband

I love small & practical knits like this spirograph headband. Especially since I usually wear my hair up in a ponytail or bun. This quick to knit accessory keeps my head and ears nice and toasty while corralling my unmanageable hair. A definite winner!

It seems that winter is arriving a little early this year...cold & windy here in Maryland, but at least we were lucky to miss out on all that snow. My MIL lives near Buffalo, NY where they are getting pounded by massive lake effect snow storms. My heart goes out to everyone there and pray for their safety. I went to college in Buffalo but was lucky to have never experienced such a storm.

(check out all the Friday Finishes over at chrisknits)

quiet november

Savoring these beautiful quiet days of autumn before they come to an end all too quickly:

Putting the garden to sleep & enjoying one last harvest

Making some holiday knitting plans: a trio of Reindeer Hats

Preparing for winter: Spirograph Headband

Living in the moment