Christmas(-ish) Shawl!

Every year, I get myself an Advent calendar.  It's a tradition I've hung onto since I was a kid.  I don't always eat the chocolate each day -- sometimes I'll leave it for a few days, then eat five or six or twelve at a time to catch up.  One year, I got the calendar on Christmas Eve, so I just ate the whole thing at once...but I digress.

Anyways, I decided to get myself a different kind of Advent calendar this year (in addition to the chocolate Avengers one I already got).  It's a knit-along Advent KALendar.  Basically, each day leading up to Christmas, they release another little chunk of the pattern, so that by Christmas, you have a finished project.  I thought this was a super cute idea.

Day 1

You don't get to see the finished design until the end, so there's a bit of trust involved when getting into one of these.  Anna Dalvi, who designed the shawl, has some very lovely designs, so it was a leap of faith I was more than willing willing to take.  Plus, the inspiration for the designs comes from two of the Slavic goddesses, and I'm a sucker for mythology.

With all of the other projects I've had on the go, plus all the regular Christmas preparations like shopping and wrapping, plus the baby...well, I knew that I wouldn't be able to keep up with the pattern releases and be finished by Christmas, and it takes considerably longer to knit up even a few rows than to eat a dozen or so little chocolates.  Still, starting late is better than not starting at all.

Day 2

I've managed to avoid the Ravelry forums for the KALendar so far, since I don't want to ruin the surprise for myself as everyone shows off their work, but from what I've managed to get finished, it's going to look fantastic.  There's little picots along the edge, which is a new skill for me, and I'm working it in red and black, to go with most of my fancier outfits.  I'm also thinking of adding some beadwork to it when I'm done, but I'll figure that part out later.

Day 3

Wishing you all the best for whatever holidays you're celebrating this time of year, and I hope you have had a chance to relax and enjoy yourselves!