Holiday Preparation Under Way

Decades ago, my mother crocheted granny square Christmas stockings.  I still have those cherished acrylic wonders and they hang on the mantle every year.  As happens so often in many families, some of the stockings are now in the memorial category (the ones belonging to Jackie & Snowball who were Mama's grandpets).  And, as happens so often in many families, we find ourselves needing a new stocking for a new family member.

 Thus, I spent all weekend making little granny squares.  I even had one of Mama's stockings hanging up in the studio as inspiration.   Well, that and I needed to count the number of squares required and match the size and all that jazz.

This stocking will be quite wintery and has the potential to look like winter snow what with the blue center that looks kinda sorta like a star in a fluffy white square.

 Granny squares that have color change create lots of little ends.  After the second square, I remembered to stitch over the ends as I worked so that the ends could be snipped off without any additional weaving.

Everything - all sixteen squares and the ends are now complete and tidy and ready for the final sewing.

There is gonna be a lot of sewing to make those squares into a stocking.  And then the trim work - which will be blue.

Here is the thing about holidays that I sometimes forget.  It takes a lot of time to make a loving hands/loving hearts family celebration.

And that, my friends, is a joyous and marvelous thing.

Praise for Acrylic

Sing a song of thanks for acrylic! Join in the chorus - - hit the harmony. Acrylic is totally awesome. Now I know that some of you don't like the feel of the stuff. Go ahead and look it up here. It doesn't even sound like something you want in your hands for hours and hours and hours.

But the same can be said of wool. Every knitter and crocheter knows someone who is allergic and just can't stand to have wool in the hands let alone on the actual body. Can you imagine getting the hives when you come within a whiff of merino? How sad would that be? And then I know a few who eschew cotton. Too harsh; sucks the moisture from the skin; wears out the hand - - no stretch you know. Well, I ask you now, where would a good Granny's dishcloth be if we didn't use cotton? No where! That's where!

Ahh, but acrylic. Baby spittle doesn't harm it, picnics can't mess it up, and childhood memories would be eaten away if acrylic yarn had not entered the local dime store.

Behold:

Twenty-five years old and still a beautiful skirt of poinsettia for the tree. (and no holes or fading!)

Twenty-five years old and still ready for the Man in Red

Be thankful for acrylic. Join in the song. If you can't take the lead with a solo, sing harmony and blend in the background. Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la