Getting festive

I spent last weekend in Edinburgh catching up with my nieces and very nice it was too. It was a little on the chilly side, thanks to a stiff breeze off the North Sea and beautiful clear skies, but with enough warm clothes on it was a great way to see the city at its best. My visit also happened to coincide with the start of the Edinburgh seasonal festivities, with the Christmas lights being switched on (thanks to Shrek and Princess Fiona) and the opening of the Christmas market.

I hadn't gone intending to do any present shopping as such, mainly because I was at a bit of a loss what to buy anyone this year. However, I had written a list of people that needed as yet unknown gifts and I had this in my pocket. I struck gold in one shop, managing to tick off four names, and the Christmas market solved another two. I returned home feeling very pleased with myself and most definitely in the Christmas spirit.

As a result, I resolved to continue with the festive preparations this weekend, starting with making up a batch of Mulled Cranberry and Red Onion Chutney. It ended up taking much longer than I thought to reduce down to a thick enough consistency so I busied myself making this year's Christmas crackers whilst it bubbled away on the stove.

Having faffed around trying to make crackers a few years ago by sticking wrapping paper onto the inner tubes of kitchen roll and getting in a real mess, I now 'cheat' slightly by buying Christmas cracker kits. The first set I found were in Wilkinsons but I've since found them in my local Oxfam shop, which at least makes me feel slightly better as the money goes to a good cause. I also tend to bulk buy in case the kits aren't available the following year or if next Christmas ends up being a bumper family occasion.

The kits contain pre-cut cardboard crackers with a snap already fixed to the inside and a stack of paper hats and jokes/mottoes. This just leaves you with the task of finding a suitably small gift to go inside, rolling them up and tying something pretty around each end. In the past I have tailored gifts to the recipients and used the crackers as place names. Gifts have included a bicycle bell, USB stick, torch keyring, mini multi tool, a set of measuring spoons, and whisky miniatures,  However, this year the contents are identical and designed to go with a specific course of our Christmas lunch. Not that I can tell you what that is, because the recipients of the crackers will be reading this and there have to be some surprises reserved for the big day!

A new baby blanket

Just a quickie to share a new baby blanket that I finished yesterday. The baby is due in a few weeks' time so I'm relieved to have it ready with time to spare. I don't know if the baby is a boy or girl but I do know that bright colours are the order of the day.

Knitting for more than pleasure

A friend and fellow crafter is accomplished at many things from sewing to paper craft to crochet but, it turns out, has never knitted. It was, therefore, quite surprising that she decided to embark on a simple yet large knitted project.

Actually, she saw was out at a craft outlet casually browsing when some large balls of multicoloured yarn with a name not too dissimilar to her own and in her favourite hues caught her eye. The label gave a pattern for a triangular shawl which required just two balls so they were purchased. At September craft club I got her started with a quick knitting lesson and she was away. Admittedly, in October she asked for a little help as something didn't seem quite right and it was whilst rectifying this glitch that I realised how much I love knitting and how much I miss it. 

Unlike crochet, which I need to be looking at and counting every stitch, knitting is something that I can generally do whilst my attention is elsewhere - chatting, watching television etc. I ended up getting rather carried away knitting my friend's shawl as I sat chatting and decided that I should probably find myself a new knitting project. But the big question is what that project should be?

I have more hot water bottle covers than I know what to do with and I opted to make my friend's new baby an appliqué blanket rather than knit anything as I know another friend has been busy knitting since the summer. As for knitting garments for myself, I tend to either not like the fit or overall look after I've invested a not inconsequential sum of money and time into producing it. I therefore either need a soft furnishing project, but with a cat in the house anything is likely to be short-lived, or to find something like the hot water bottle covers but different.

This is when I learnt that my Mum is making Twiddlemuffs for dementia patients in local hospitals and residential homes. Bear with me on this - you need to think quite traditionally here. These are open ended hand warmers (or muffs) with lots of textures on them. Apparently, dementia sufferers often have restless hands and so like to have something to keep their hands occupied. A Twiddlemuff is therefore a tactile and sensory stimulation to keep hands warm and occupied. You can read more and find a pattern here. I'm sure your local hospital or residential home will welcome any donations if you fancy making one, or many. 

If this wasn't a good enough excuse to get knitting, my friend sent me a link to this fabulous news article about a group of knitters in Kenya knitting 'knockers' for women who have had mastectomies following a breast cancer diagnosis. This is pure genius and it's great to see such a cross-section of the population getting involved and what a positive impact it's having. Long live the creativity and generosity that hobbies such as knitting can provide.