Ball Patterns Used (in the order I made them in)
#0 Basic Pattern (x2)
#33 Meeting Hearts
#47 Reindeer Heart
#40 Greek Cross
#9 Tricolor (x2)
#42 Bird on a Branch

August 9, 2015 I should be working on Giraffe, but I still need a little distraction it. Not to mention it’s too hot to be working on a blanket anyway, so I thought I’d get an early start on the ones for this year. No stranded/fairisle patterns yet, just the basic ball pattern with variegated threads.

For the first couple of these, rather than simply gathering up the last 12 stitches to pull the tops together and adding a separate loop, I’ve been decreasing down to 4 stitches and working an i-cord, then sewing the end of the i-cord up to the base of the i-cord (i.e., where the ball pattern ends) to create a little i-cord loop. The first one was pretty messy, but the second is much smoother. It’s definitely a little more work and I’m not sure if I like the look of it better or not, but I’m happy that I’m getting better at sewing up the stitches.

September 22, 2015 Picked up a new set of 5” US size 2 (2.75 mm) Square Double Pointed Needles Invented by kolláge last week. They were quite expensive - $16 for one set of dpns! - but I’ve been wanting to try a square set for a long time and I figured they’d be good for making Christmas Balls. I absolutely love these things! My hands don’t cramp as much working with them as they did with the regular cylindrical ones; they move really quickly but the stitches don’t slide off as much and; even though it’s slightly smaller size needle than what I was previously using with the heavier weight cotton, my stitches are still beautiful! I’m definitely putting more of these things on my Christmas list this year!

♥