Getting Crafty!

This is the sweater I finished for Hubby. Merry Belated Christmas Sweety!  It is knit in PeaceFleece ( local fiber) and looks very nice on him. Although I think it will be a while before I knit a whole garment in Double Moss stitch.  Hubby has never received a handmade sweater from me. Usually he gets machine knit.  So for Christmas he received a bag of wool and a promise.  
This is the beginning of a sweater for myself.  But given that it is partly cabled it may take a while.  I find that I can only do this during nap time or I mess up the cable.  Distraction is the bane of this pattern. The cable will go along the bottom and then it is knit straight up. So as soon as I reach  21 inches of cable it should work up quickly.
This is the beginning of a penny rug. I took the class this past weekend at my favorite Local yarn Store. I still need to finish it but it is fun and works up quickly.  Just what I need...another hobby.  But there are several things I would like to make up for the kids for Christmas so I needed to learn some new skills.
Speaking of new skills.  I have conquered, mastered, accomplished my first sewing project.  This is the teen with his new pair of PJ bottoms that I made ALL BY MYSELF.  The fabric was 1.99 at Goodwill and the pattern was 1.99 at Joann's .  I made them on my treadle sewing machine.  Low Carbon Foot Print PJ's! There is always the question whether there is any savings by making your own clothes. Fabric ( or yarn) can be expensive.   Sometimes it is worth spending a little something to provide a garment that one could not otherwise afford and will have lasting quality. A hand knitted sweater would be much more expensive if I had bought it from someone.  And a new pair of Pj bottoms would not have cost 4.00.
This is a little something I made for the wee one for next Christmas.  Winters are long here. There will not be much time after the snow melts off the garden, the canners get dusted off and fair season takes over to think about handmade for Christmas.  I usually find I am knitting day and night during the month of December for other people (hired knitter) and that my near and dears end up with bags of wool and a promise.  So I am trying to do a little every month.

All this creative activity seems to help keep the winter blues and mud season ick away. 

With all the doom and gloom that is out there, I think and hope that a return to hand made is seen as an affordable alternative for folks.  Building up skills  ( even it is just how to patch a pair of pants or sew on a button) has to be a better alternative than throwing something in the landfill or replacing something that might  still have some life in it.  When belts are tightening, it is easy to think that we have to deprive ourselves. But  knowing how to create something does not have to mean taking on expensive equipment or expensive materials.   I bought the yarn for my hubby's and my sweater through a yarn buying co-op.  It saved me 50% over retail.

4$ pjamas and the pride of doing it myself...

Need I say more?