Joining the Fray

Or is it "joining the frenzy"?

Or even "participating in the panic".

I'm not one for Christmas knitting. This will not come as a surprise to you since I'm not one for gift knitting much. Why should I change my habits just because a certain month rolls around?

However, I've suddenly decided to finally start working on a Christmas stocking for my father-in-law. If that isn't the definition of Christmas knitting I don't know what is.

Have I mentioned the Christmas Stocking saga?
I'm really not sure where to begin.

Ok, I've mentioned that my MIL taught me to knit. She also crochets. (But I think my grandmother taught me that.)

My MIL has/had a collection of Christmas stockings for the nine people who usually attend Christmas at her house. They were made by her mother or grandmother, I don't remember, and are red, white, and green granny squares.

Sure, they've been around a while, but I think her main complaint was they are a bit narrow and long, so it's hard to get presents that fit nicely.

In a fit of newly wed bliss, I crocheted new stockings for me and Hubby.

MIL thought they were grand and somehow got me to agree to make new stockings for the other seven people. Keep in mind this was early in my marriage so I was probably still trying to make a good impression.

The next "stockings" I made were actually giant mittens from a Mary Maxim kit. They are cute and worked up quickly. I got my MIL back on those as I was having trouble seaming them (it was when I'd first started knitting). So I made her sew them shut. Those are for my BIL and SIL.

Then I decided to design a stocking. This is where everything went wrong. I worked a clahhdagh symbol (the heart, hands, crown) in intarsia on the leg. That wasn't too bad. But I couldn't get the proportions of the rest of the stocking to be pleasing. The foot is too short for the leg and the toe is kind of snubbed. It still annoys me, but I was so very sick of it and trying to fix it that I just ended it and moved on. And I was using some old acrylic stuff out of stash and I swear it was squeeking.

That was year before last, I think.

Which makes it about time to make another stocking.

This time I'm being smart and going with a published pattern. The 2002 Holiday Stocking from Mary McCall on this page here. Only it turns out the pattern says "knit to desired length," which returns to the issue I had with my claddagh stocking. But other people on Ravelry put in the dimensions they used, so that will help.

I'm using some Christmas colored yarn that I got as a Christmas present from my Cousin AKM a few years ago. I wasn't sure what to make with it, but it fairly screams Christmas Stocking. In fact, when I went to the attic to dig it out the pattern and both skeins of yarn were sitting together on a shelf.

It's "Merry Pop'n Christmas Yarn." The picture is horrible, but it's bright red yarn with a green strand. The other ball is bright green with a red strand. It's really eye catching. Because the picture is bad you can't tell that it's ribbing with a cable in the middle. That will be joined then the leg will be picked up and worked down.

I'm doing the cuff, heel, and toe in the red and the leg and foot in green.

Let's see if I can get it done by Dec. 24!