I have made rather a Big Deal about all the Christmas knitting I have to do.  So, it will (or won’t, depending how well you know us) come as a surprise that on Thursday afternoon Sarah and I found ourselves at a yarn shop –looking for yarn for more projects.

Sarah had succumbed to the outrageously adorable-ness of the “Pointy Elf Hat” in Joelle Hoverson’s new More Last-Minute Knitted Gifts (if you are a knitter, put it on your Christmas “wish list” but do not purchase it for yourself if you are already up to your eyebrows in gift knitting! way too much inspiration in this book!).  She was positively bewitched and so after we had our “last day of class celebration luncheon” with our sock workshop class (and, no, we did not have cocktails at lunch), we shot off to the yarn shop – where we had about 15 minutes to spend before we had to dash off to Max’s school conference (it was that kind of day!).

The hats call for a thick-and-thin type wool yarn (we found Manos del Uruguay’s Wool Clasica is perfect when held with 2 strands together) and Sarah was envisioning Christmas colors.  So, we snatched up forest green, olive green, bold red, perky rose, creamy white, mint green, and snazzy brassy gold.  Enough for a whole batch of elf hats in Dr. Seuss-ish stripes. 

And as we were petting yarn on the way to the cash register, Sarah pointed out (yes, you did, Sarah) Crystal Palace’s Kid Merino (Roses colorway) and said. “Doesn’t that look like Christmas candy?!”

And, yes, it did.  Hoo boy!  Fuzzy, shiny little strands of old-fashioned red and pink and a cheeky little green.  And I had a vision of the whispy-whimsy of a Christmas Tam this sweet yarn could become!  And Sarah – with her arms full of pointy elf hat yarn, I might mention – told me not to be ridiculous, good heavens, Mom! and didn’t we already have tons and tons of knitting to do!  So, I meekly put the yarn down and we made our purchase and were out the door.

Now, certainly, a mohair tam is not the height of practicality in the Pacific Northwest where it rains 26-hours-a-day all winter.  But, oh, I had visions of sugar plums dancing in my head…could not let it go (even when I talked sternly to myself and even when I agreed with myself…well…).

So on Friday, when George and I were out running errands and I realized that we would be rather near the yarn shop, I texted Sarah to ask if perhaps she felt she needed more pointy elf hat yarn.  Why, yes, she texted back.  Another skein each of the forest, red, and white.  Excellent.

Which is why I was there at the yarn shop counter with 3 skeins of pointy elf hat yarn, 4 skeins of Christmas candy mohair, and 2 skeins of louet’s KidLin (mohair and linen) in a fabulous gold with underlying black…well, okay, it does not explain the KidLin, but it is gorgeous yarn with a wild stiffness like wolf hair…

Now that Sarah and I have a little fun Christmassy knitting, as well as a month-long supply of gift knitting projects, I think we should probably stay out of yarn shops for a while.  Til after the Holidays.  Yeah, probably.