Handcrafted

I have some handcrafted gifts (knitted and otherwise) that I can't show you, but here are a few items I can!

 

After discovering that sock blockers are not always easy to find in local shops, I talked my dad into making some for a yarn shop near me.  Aren't these neat?  They are made from a Colorado pine that was destroyed by beetle kill.  Interestingly, the disease  gives the wood this lovely silvery-blue quality.  Normally pine is more yellowish like the stripe in the toe, here.  Beetle kill has claimed over two million trees in Colorado.  We heard a lot about it on the news a few years ago, and one could drive down the highway and see waves of brown in our normally green hillsides.  It is no longer a hot topic and we don't hear it on the news much anymore.  My dad is also making some sock blockers from (non-beetle kill) dead pine which was cleared out to reduce the fire danger to the live trees nearby.  (I don't have pictures of those.)  I told my dad I would gladly take a pair of these for Christmas, if he has some left.  Maybe I'll find some in my stocking - ha!  

And I have been making more baskets; Matt and Jen asked BFJ if I was, so here's a picture.  I am hoping to fill these with baked goodies for special neighbors and teachers this holiday season.  

Are you watching Project Runway?  I am sometimes surprised at the beautiful craftsmanship of people who make things "by hand," one piece at a time.  Although sometimes the lack of craftsmanship makes me feel like I am not so far behind.  I am looking forward to seeing the final collections!

I hope you're having fun making something for someone you love, even a simple handwritten card.  Christmas is right around the corner!  (There's just no stopping it, Anna.)