My Fashionable Life

Because I am always so pleased when you post, I'm sending you the IK chart and instructions as a thank you gift. Give me 5 minutes to get the scanner out!

My husband is a cyclist and he really loves the skull cap type hat I made him- it's wool to keep him warm but not real thick or big, so it fits just right under his helmet.

so many lovely things to see. thank you for sharing ! Isn't it amazing that no matter how organised one is, Christmas always seems to arrive before all the presents are knitted...and patterns/mags always seem to go missing when you need them the most.

You have a handsome family. :) Very nice knits, too. Your le Slouch photo is priceless.

So many lovely knitted gifts. Whenever I'm on my bike I wish I had a pair of those knitted ear warmers that were in either Knitty or Magknits sometime ago. Not stylish at all, but very practical.

My, Anna, you have a big family to knit for! Kuddos to you for making the effort to get all done by the Holidays! I just finished a le Slouch beret for myself out of some DB Alpaca Silk. I love the look of the seed stitch and it keeps the ears fashionably warm (and yes, I noticed the similarity with the headwear of the older generation as well;). And don't worry about the frequency of your posts - they are always a delight!

What a lot of knitting you've been doing! I'm glad you found a copy of the shawl pattern for your mother.

I've been cycling more and I keep having the urge to knit things for it: armwarmers, legwarmers, earband, fingerless gloves. But so far, though I hate to admit it, I think those fancy microfibers do a better job of keeping me warm. I suppose I could always put knitted items over the microfiber?

Jenny at Loves to Bike and Knit has a free pattern posted for cycling socks -- maybe your brother would wear those in a really plain color?

great gifts!

would you believe i have just recalculated the debbie bliss pattern you made in order to use some lovely black cashmerino aran staring longingly at me from my stash.

i am so impressed with your christmas knitting productivity. i struggle to finish anything for anyone!

If you ever run into a problem like the lost IK issue, please email me. I have almost a full collection of IK, Knitters (only missing one issue), and Rowan Magazine. Your patterns and your blog have provided me with so much knitting pleasure that I am more than happy to help out in a crisis.

Warm regards,

Courtney

I worked in a record store once and a co-worker once said to me, "Uh-oh. A beret. You know that can only mean trouble." The customer was a bit difficult, and I have to say that whenever I see one, I think of that incident. So your story of the lady in the convenience store made me laugh. Thanks! By the way, you do look great in it, so keep on causing trouble!

Love your Christmas knits, the hats are great!

i love all the berets! they're so in my must-knit list. esp. the one from kate gilbert!

Just so long as you don't ride the bus in that hat, you might avoid being confused with a crazy old lady. It's an awfully cute hat. And, the glasses! Have we ever seen you in glasses before? I like this look. It's got the stereotypical sexy librarian about to let her hair down thing going on (a totally false stereotype, I'll have you know; librarians always let it all hang out).

What about some other item with the question mark fair isle, such as a hat or gloves?

You know, you could have made today's post into several separate ones and kept the beast quiet for awhile...but I'm not complaining; if readers know they'll get an action-packed post eventually, they'll wait (speaking for myself, anyway). Love the question mark fair isle idea, although I wonder if the some of the floats wouldn't be rather long, the way you've drawn it.

I now feel inspired to knit a slouch.... ~x~

Love the post and it's worth waiting for. I'm very impressed at all the family knitting you managed. I knitted one gift hat for christmas! I'm knitting Le Slouch at the moment 'cos I think sexy librarian is a cool look(and I used to be a librarian).

BTW I also used to cycle a lot in the winter and I couldn't have done it without my Buff cowl to keep my ears warm. Couldn't you knit something like that in a washable yarn? Or fingerless gloves for wearing inside bike gauntlets?

I paid no attention to that beret until I saw you wearing it... now I am smitten! I am impressed with your convenience store lady, as 'round here the mentally interesting are not nearly so stylish.

Very nice presents! And you put your Christmas Stress in such beautiful words, I could really feel the panic and pleasure! (I had two sisters to knit for, and I have to make sure to match their presents quite equally to avoid bloodshed...)

It's all beautiful and looks worth the work! Happy new year - doesn't it seem like Christmas was ages ago? But it was ONLY 17 DAYS AGO.

love the berets you've been knitting. I am going to give le slouch a second look!

They all look lovely, and really, aren't brothers a big pain? Would he use mittens with extra padding over the palms?

What wonderful thoughtful presents you made for everyone. I love your berets--the ones I made had patterns in them. I'll try some wihtout color patterns, much more versatile.

Delightful pictures and such wonderful links. Thank you for sharing...

Like one of your previous commenters, I immediately thought of the bicycle helmet ear warmers for your brother. My brother is a cyclist also, and I have been meaning to make them for him for ages. They are from Men Knit, and here's the link (it's a pdf): http://www.menknit.net/mag/MK1.pdf

Love the pics of your family, they seem like a fun group!

oh I'd been waiting to see what you'd knit for christmas. so lovely and always inspired.

Lovely gifts you made.....and what sweet siblings you have! I think you just gave me the nudge I needed to get back at knitting now the holidays are over. I'll check back often because I so enjoy your site.

fantastic photo of the siblings! i love it! i hope all the super secret-ry (see, that's a word i just made up!) has something to do with a book in the works. that would be fantastic!

Beautiful gifts - I especially like the Cashmerino cardigan!

love your berets! i made the one from ik 2006 winter too and wear it all the time!

Hats are a necessity when it gets cold and windy, like today, and a nuisance the rest of the time... you could consider something for lounging around the house for that cyclist-brother...

"...but enough to buy another bundle, in yellow, for a short swingy jacket with big black buttons."

Oh, please, please, please give us a taste of this one! I am salivating at the thought: yellow, swingy, big black buttons...

Nice gifts and siblings. AND the selfportrait is awesome!

I am working on that very shawl myself right now - (and have posted a bit on it) please feel free to email me if you still need a copy of the pattern (very obviously you owned it at one time, and thus no copyright are being broken)
Love the hats.

I would email you but I can't seem to find the link. I'd like to buy the Sgt. Pepper's/Rebel pattern but can't seem to find it anywhere. I'm in Chicago, and the retailer list from Alchemy's website has no stores near me. I checked most of the urls listed and had no luck. I would appreciate it very much if you could give me a hint on this. Thanks!

Of course I'll stick around and will check in on your blog. I'll be here when you return to regular posting. Anyone who makes a Pink Floyd reference in the title of their blog posting is okay in my books!! Shine On.

That's the only problem with berets - the old lady associations! They are the greatest hats ever though...I feel inspired to knit one now! Love your blog, always nice to have a few Cold Comfort Farm references :)

I've been searching high and low for a pattern for a hat like the one in your last photo...I've been trying to find the perfect hat to fit my dreadlocks. Would you mind sharing it or where you got it?

Sorry, I seriously need to pay more attention! Lovely FOs, as usual!

I love that fairisle pattern. May I steal it?

Such delightful gifts! I'm very excited to see you knit up a Swallowtail in the Sangria colored Seasilk. I've been dithering over whether to do the same with my skein since I bought it months ago and could find no one who has done one in that colorway. I think your photo just about made the decision for me...it looks so cheery and the patternbreak up the various colors wonderfully. :) Do show it off to us once you finish. Happy knitting to you too!

Wow- what a swag of gift knitting- quite a contrast to me this Christmas!
Love your hat photo :) very fun

As a cycle commuter, I used to get a lot of use out of an ear warmer. Looks like a headband, but is 2 - 3" wide from just in front of one ear around the back to the other, and probably half that at the front.

Doesn't get in your eyes, doesn't stop you wearing a helmet, and allows the rest of your head to cool down the way a woolly hat doesn't. If you really warm up, it can be pulled down to sit loosely around the neck.

See what your brother thinks - you might even be able to use that chart!

For some reason, Wendy's beret did not intrigue me when she first posted it. I suspect that I thought it was something only Wendy could pull off. But I liked yours so much that I made one of my own, and though it is not as slouchy as it might have been -- due to my fear of running out of the single ball of stash yarn I was using -- it did turn out very well, and now I, too, am thinking of making another. And walking around the house in my beret.

You all are so impossibly cute. Probably the fight giving that top picture such good energy.

I've finished knitting Arggyle, and it's done blocking, and now is the time to seam. ~x~

My husband is an avid cyclist also - and he specifically requested wool socks. Wool keeps him warm and dry but not stinky. Pretty amazing. I made him two pair, and both per his liking are short ankle length. He wears them nonstop and they haven't fallen apart at all. One was Trekking XXL, the other Jawoll Superwash. Just a thought!

Your family is adorable.

Your designs are beautiful. I am coming back to knitting after a few years of not knitting much (in the hope it will stop me eating!) and have a Debbie Bliss bag on the go, one you wash on HOT to felt it (very scary), and a Noni bag as well.

You look real cute on the last pic! I wanted to knit myself a le Slouch too, but have tons of doubts about pulling the look.

Would that make Le Slouch " tres chic folie" rather than "tres chic jolie"? ;)

What a lovely, striking family you have!

I'm seriously impressed by your gift knitting. I utterly failed last year. I have *two* blankets near(ish) completion though!

I love your question mark fair-isle chart. Would you mind if I used it on a hat for my Dad (No, I didn't finish my Christmas knitting either)? I am on attempt number three for the knitted Dad Christmas present, so a little levity is in order. Let me know if it's a problem.

Your site is wonderful...I had the pleasure of stumbling across it for the first time today. I was searching for tips on making a fabulous pair of socks for my husband for Valentine's Day, however, have fallen in love with your Flummery socks and am now selfishly dreaming of knitting a pair for myself! Will you be offering this pattern for sale?

Beautiful job on the sweater!

Your brother is THE cutest thing ever! He's going to be such a lady killer! :) Great job on the sweater. It looks great!!

wonderful hat!!!