Not to be adding on to your generalized anxiety but there aren't that many knitting days before you need to present gifts. Let us put aside the dream of fine gauge socks* or mitts unless they are something like Trip Mitts which I, ahem, heartily recommend as a last minute gift.
Let us cast on something bulky and stylish. Like the Wilderness scarf. Super fast.
When I shot this for Tahki I totally fell for it. You know I am a sucker for fringe, but it is more than that--it has a modern western/bohemian vibe to love. The yarn is a wool tape, like soft thin strips of wool felt. It makes me wonder if I could knit this by cutting very thin strips of wool yard goods or recycled coats....(warning, warning, do not go there, will not be a simple fast project.....buy the yarn....)
Karin Strom, creative director and stylist for the shoot (on the right--and that is the wonderful Stacy Charles himself in the center. Yes! He's a real person --- I love working with him), paired it with a vintage coat and multiples of the scarf.
One scarf makes a fabulous gift--and the yarn, Tahki Spencer, comes in some bright colors in case your giftees aren't into earth tones.
A little BTS; the Fashion Director for the collection, Conley Averett, wondered if we could spread the scarf out and shoot it as a shallow shawl. There's always a bunch of scootching and sshhjushjing of the knits on the model, to try different looks at a shoot. Sometimes one of us interprets the piece totally differently (as in--ohhhh I though those were shorts--not an oversized slouch hat with ears...ohhhh) and eventually we settle on the look that works best.
So Wilderness is knit on size 15 needles The yarn isn't super hefty, yet it holds up perfectly to the open design. And the fringe lays flat so nicely. You could substitute other yarns, it'd look great but differnt vibe in something with a teeny bit of a halo, or in a nice rustic yarn, or a yarn with long color changes, too.
* as for me? I'm speeding through that bulky fuschia Azel (scroll to end) when Zoe isn't looking, and just cast on for another gift hat...on size us3 needles. Living dangerously on that one.
How's your gift knitting going? Have you checked into the MDK Lounge for moral support? When are Kay and Ann going to crack out the eggnog and high quality chocolates for us, is my question?????
Knit big or stay home. No, wait---knit big AND stay home! Nominating these for Craft Friday single day projects, and fab gifts, all from photo shoots for my clients earlier this year.
Coast Redwood Hat . I love everything about this photo--the Tilda Swinton-ish model, the natural undyed bulky yarns from the Tahki Terra collection, the styling by Karin Strom (I mean, that acorn necklace? Nailed it) and the colorless dewy light that we had, thanks to drizzly rain as we were shooting. Of course, the hat, itself. One of my favorite photos from the year.
Silver Fir Hat from the same shoot, also a contender. It has a matching capelet. (I am not sure I'd call it a capelet but you can see, it is one of those big shoulder covering not-quite-a-poncho-but-way-bigger-than-a-cowl things) This is the most amazing mash-up of natural wool yarn and high fashion that I've ever shot. My forever gratitude to Stacy Charles for just letting me do my thing with these.
You can see the rest of the collection here, in the Oh, Natural flipbook. (I also love that cover piece.)
Annnnd....two fabulous super bulky hats from Lar Rains' new book Presto. Excellent gift knitting ahead from Mr. Modern Lopi himself.
Threesome So cushy and lovable that the model requested to pleeeeeeeeeease keep it, and got her wish. (Thanks Lars!). For me, I'll just make that pompom a little chubbier, and then: perfection.
Polar Coordinates , a rare slouchy super bulky hat. As usual, Josephine rocked it. It's got volume, and a lot of warmth.
The whole Presto book is fun, upbeat projects in MadTosh ASAP. You can see the cover cowl knit by Kay of MDK here, along with a great review. You could sub in the super bulky yarn of your choosing, no prob. Fun fact: super bulky doesn't always mean the warmest-- because you knit in a fairly loose gauge to keep things drapey, the air gets in between the stitches. So don't rule out the supersized just because you are in an non- arctic zone. There's something about a big hat that's...cheerful.
If you're prepping for Thanksgiving today in the US (or elsewhere), have a blast! And take a break to knit a little. It can't hurt, right?
