Gallifrey Sunset Shawl

There was a Doctor Who themed Knit-a-Long a few months back, and I almost didn't know it was happening until it was over. But as soon as I knew it was happening, I immediately tried desperately to think of something I could do.

That's when I remembered my orange and burnt brown yarns. These are both subtly variegated, and they're beautiful together.

And they remind me of a Gallifrey Sunset.

It's so comfortable. I wear it all the time.

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Insulate!

My brother-in-law is a huge Doctor Who fan, and so when I found this pattern, there was no question that it would be his gift. I ended up adapting the pattern quite a bit to make it fit.

• I increased the amount of stitches in the top quite a bit
• I increased sooner on the thumb and made one extra row
• I went longer before switching to the brown/yellow lines

Overall, he loves them. When he opened the box, it was covered with an image of a Dalek yelling "INSULATE!" which, for you Doctor Who fans, was just the icing on the cake.

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Dragon Egg Dice Bag

The mister recently bought a role-playing Star Wars game with the express purpose of playing it during our many Christmas car trips. And so, when I was looking for a little something he could open (I had already bought him big Christmas gifts that he had picked out), I stumbled across this pattern for a dice bag.

I used some stash yarn from my Bay Area Block, and used exactly everything that was left of it, to create this shimmery Dragon Egg Dice Bag. The dive fit perfectly, and the mister loves it. And it was Cold Sheep! I'd say it's a win all around.

He's requested another (bigger) one for his other Star Wars game, and I'm hoping to find a more Star Wars themed pattern!

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Firefly Weave Socks

My brother also got socks for Christmas. Are you sensing a theme here?

The difference, of course, is that Ben specifically requested socks, and he specifically requested this yarn, Serenity Firefly Class in Bounce and Stomp from Nerd Girl Yarns. I held off on finishing the socks until I arrived for Christmas to make sure they fit. This was my first time using the fish lips heel, and although I ended up double-forking the heel to compensate for the pull across the patterned top, it actually worked out very well! I also decided to pattern the front only, instead of all the way around once I reached the cuff, and I made the cuff significantly shorter than the fish lips heel would have called for.

Pattern Notes:

Cast on 20 with Jenny's Magic Cast On.

Knit 1 row.

row 2: m1r, knit to end, m1l on each needle

row 3: knit

repeat 2&3 until 64 stitches total

11.5 pattern repeats (12 long rows)

fish lips heel, double forked (1/3 back = five dk stitches on each side)

continue up leg, pattern only on front, until 19.5 repeats (20 long rows)

15 rows of 2x2 ribs

bind off with yo bind off

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