First, to the known gift. At Christmas, Kylie gave me one half of a pair of Monkey Socks made from Cherry Tree Hill. The lone sock came with an IOU attached and on the weekend, the pair were united.
Love love love. The Cherry Tree Hill just works so well, I think, for a pattern such as this. And Monkey does lend itself rather nicely to be made from variegated colours. What knitter doesn't love being given something a fellow knitter has worked so hard on? Kylie, you're a gem. Thank you. Next time I'm running late with a pair of gift socks, I'll take inspiration from you and go with the IOU. Brilliant.
The second gift was passed quietly across the table at dinner by Shelley, aka Caffeine Fairy. I took the modest little pink box and lifted the lid, utterly curious to know what was inside.
It was, I soon saw, a lace shawl. Swallowtail Shawl. Here she is.
Can anyone guess what the yarn is? At dinner, all knitters present were stunned to learn what it was, and we consider ourselves pretty well versed in what's out there. It was even a yarn we all knew.
Here's a close up.
It's Zitron Trekking XXL. We were all surprised to see that it worked so beautifully. Not that we don't love Trekking. Not that we don't love shawls made out of sock yarn, but that it looked like this, just perfectly balanced, no striping or pooling, was a joy to behold.
And what was the reason for this gift? Is it my birthday? No. Just because. A knitted hug, Shelley called it. And like all the best hugs, it was given generously and kindly. I was speechless. Someone made made a shawl for me? Goodness. Really. I feel hugged. Well and truly.
Socks and a shawl. I'm not sure a knitter could really fare better. Thanks guys. Love you lots.
Bells
|