Clear and PRESENT Danger

Bwa-ha-ha! I must be very cagey, because I'm still working on Christmas gifts.

Here's the story: I'm working on something for someone who likes those and requested that thing and I don't want that person to know I'm actually making it, especially because it might not get finished in time for this particular holiday. Because that person may or may not be a blog reader, I'll have to be cagey. So, I have some photos.




I may be using this.





Or this.



Or even this.








On the successful news front, I went to a ca-razy gift exchange last night. If you've never been to one, let me tell you the rules.

1. Bring something within the price limit. Wrap it so no one can tell what it is and put it in the pile.
2. Eat and laugh a lot.
3. Everyone is assigned a number. Duplicate numbers are then place in a bowl and drawn out randomly.
4. When your number is called, you have (usually) two choices: you may unwrap a gift or you may choose to take a gift someone else already chose. This is called "stealing." There are other names for it, but I'd prefer not to use them here.
5. A gift may be stolen twice, but the third owner gets to keep her gift. Dirty looks and tears make no difference.
6. If your gift is stolen, you have the same two choices again: unwrap a new gift or take someone else's.
7. You may not steal back something you already had.

Tips to Have More Fun

• Bring something you wouldn't mind taking home with you.
• Do not, by all means, fall in love with the item you have. Nothing is permanent in this game and if you play with me, no quarter will be given. Bwa-ha-ha.
• When it's your turn, skulk around the room. With menacing laughter, handle each item, lingering especially long if the player seems attached to it. Then snatch the thing you want and leave early.

This is what I brought. (Minus the fingers.) It got stolen. Yay!

Yes! I've finished two more sets of Charmed Fingerless Mitts. I used this fun Zap eyelash yarn and it looks like fur! Yay. So, I know where they're going, but I can't tell you...

Also, this is a teapot cozy I'm making for relaxation. I found the pattern in the holiday issue of Interweave Knits. I thought it might make a nice gift, but I don't know if time will permit me. Meh... It's another fun project. (Good for watching "Heroes"--can you believe what happened to Sylar?) The yarn has a nice "hand." That means it feels good in your hand. Yarnies talk funny, you ever notice that? It's like an astronomer saying, "It's good seeing tonight." Huh?

Bees and Herring!

The Red Herring Purse has been embellished! I used a green/pink ribbon (Colinette Giotto pictured at right) to embroider and just kind of meandered. If you look closely, you'll see bees flying around. (They're just pinned in place, but they'll be sewn down soon.) These are buttons from Susan Clark Originals. I was digging around, looking for the pearls in the little bag, when I ran across the buttons. I must have bought them five years ago but I think they're just right!

Warm Fuzzies!

And while this may look like a dress for Barbie's merengue dance, it's really another fingerless mitt. This time I changed the pattern a little. When I finish the pair, I'll show you a better picture.