Thursday, October 04, 2018

Jolly Wee Elf

It's not early to start thinking about Christmas decorations. These little elves make great gifts. Cathy made me a few and they are sitting on my mantle.

The pattern is from Churchmouse Yarns and Teas. You can purchase printed patterns in the store or you can buy it on Ravelry.
These little handmade pals, created by Jennifer Evans, are perfect on the holiday mantelpiece, tree, or packages. But they’ll celebrate any season cheerfully! Originally designed for fingering-weight yarn, we love them just as much a bit bigger in DK-weight yarn (like Rowan Felted Tweed). Once we started knitting them, we just couldn’t stop! 
With elves, it's certainly true that the more you make, the merrier! They’ll naturally all turn out a little different, but you can make them even more various: Taller. Shorter. Plumper. Thinner. All green for St. Paddy’s day. All pink for your Valentine. All white for a snowman with a smart black hat and coal buttons. Once you’ve got the hang of it, the only limit is your imagination. Knit up a whole neighborhood of wee elves!
Now that I'm looking at the pictures I want to make some!!!
No one elf is like another! And each elf seems to reveal a unique personality once the top knot is tied. 
We made our wee elves in tweedy wool but you can use any yarn you like. Change colors at the ‘waist’ for mismatched ‘pants’ and ‘jacket’. Or use self-striping yarn for the element of surprise.
You can use any yarn that you like. The thicker the yarn the bigger the elves. Just make sure that you knit them to a tight tension. You don't want the stuffing to show through the stitches.
Cathy had fun making elves. They must be all over her house at Christmas.


Think of the amazing coloured elves you could make if you used the new colours of Rowan Felted Tweed.

The pattern asks for flat metal washers. These are put in the bottom to give the elves weight so that they sit properly. If it's Christmas Eve and you're knitting away and forgot to buy washers my suggestion is a loonie or toonie. It'll do the job.

Dad and Beth went to 541 for lunch today. They brought in two huge bags of hats, mitts, scarves and cowls. The ladies working were so excited. Thanks to everyone who donated. If you have some extra time and would like to make some hats we will make sure that they are delivered to 541. Or take them yourself and have a great lunch.

1 comment:

Sparkys Mummy said...

I love this post! It's so Christmas-y. ⛄