turtlepurl | First Light Handcrafts

Actually, no, it’s not. And it’s not feeling much like it either.

I was saying yesterday on one of the Ravelry boards I participate in that, in spite of the fact that I have everything to be happy about this year, I have no Christmas spirit at all. None. And it seems I have several friends in the same headspace, which is stranger still.

I am listening to Christmas music every day in my office. One of the benefits to working from home: you aren’t bothering anyone else with your musical choices.

I have done no baking. In fact, my mom showed up with a crate of it for me the other day, saying that because I am working full time and we are just finishing up the house, I probably don’t have time to do any baking. She is right…the fact that I have totally lacked the inclination is an altogether different matter.

There is no decorating done beyond the tree and some lights that my husband put up outside. He is pretty excited to have a house for Christmas.

Packages were sent this week to people in Ontario, and one of hubby’s gifts just got ordered on Monday. I know it will get here before next week, but still…

Maybe 11 degrees Celsius and rain just isn’t conducive to Christmas spirit for me? That was the weather here on Monday. Maybe, as someone so kindly pointed out on the aforementioned Ravelry board, I am just plain exhausted. It has not exactly been an uneventful year.

Last night I decided to cast on a new project. None of the dozen or so I had on needles were calling to me at all, and I wanted something bright and cheerful, darn it!! So I hauled out my bin of wound yarn and saw my skeins of Turtlepurl Striped Turtle Toes, in “Polly Wanna Cracker?”. Orange, yellow, green and blue. Perfect. Just the colours to lift my spirits.

While polishing off season 1 of The Blacklist (OMG, SO good!!) I got a big chunk of the leg done.

Plain Vanilla Sock in Polly Wanna Cracker?

In the mean time, I ask this question…what do you do to get into the holiday spirit?

Saturday was the Downtown Knit Collective’s Annual Knitter’s Frolic…my third in a row. This year, I went to hang out with friends in line at about 8:15 and pretty much stayed to the end.

I met up with Shireen over at The Blue Brick, her partner Tito and our friend/spinning instructor Leslie and we patiently waited until the doors opened at 9 AM. I bee-lined for the indigodragonfly booth, because I had a bag of single skeins I was looking to co-ordinate, for later use as a two-colour shawl, and I wanted to nab Kim before her booth was swamped by other shoppers.

One of the skeins I was looking to match was a special, limited edition one from Fibre Fling a few summers ago, called “How Many Minions Does It Take To Screw In A Lightbulb?” Kim placed a skein on either side; the blue, she said would be a good choice if I wanted a more muted effect and the purple would be better if I wanted something that would pop. I took one look…and I was a goner. Colour Affection, anyone?

indigodragonfly MCN Sock

I picked up a few more skeins from her, including one in Octobaa, a new DK weight yarn which is crying out to be yummy socks and proceeded merrily on.

I did manage to avoid buying fibre….even though TurtlePurl’s display nearly weakened my resolve some.

TurtlePurl’s fibre display

I met up with varying friends through the day, which was why I ended up being there pretty much until they closed the place down. Over the span of the day, I grabbed a couple of skeins of TurtlePurl yarn (she makes some nice self-striping stuff!), and some Cascades 200 Superwash for heavy socks for Chase, along with a bamboo sock-sized circular so that I can take sock knitting on the plane to New York next weekend.

Not including a destash and some KnitPicks items delivered to me from some lovely ladies up North, this was what my day looked like: