Falala Free Pattern #19: Lobster Buoys

You don't have to be from Maine to know what a wonderful place it is. Why not add a few lobster buoy ornaments to your tree or someone else's to keep Maine fresh in your mind? These little buoys from Molly Lincoln, who also designed the awesome knit lobster, are a great stash buster and a quickie project. Knit them up in Christmas colors or come up with your own lobsterman color scheme. [Ravelry link / Pattern link]

Falala Free Pattern #18: Goldfish Mittens

Still looking for something special for the little one in your life? These mittens are adorable, a good chance to practice your stranded knitting technique, and have a clever cuff design that looks like a fish tail. I worked up a pair for Isobel in Malabrigo Merino Worsted on US4s, and just in time as it's finally cold here in New York. And there just might be a pair on the needles in blue and gold for a certain nephew of mine for Christmas. They go quickly, so you should have time to work up a pair before the big day. [Ravelry link]

Falala Free Pattern #17: Little Red

Do you have a little fairy-tale lover on your list? How about the new Little Red Riding Hood set from Petite Purls? Little Red, her Grandmother, and the Wolf work up quickly, being small, in DK yarn -- perfect little handfuls. And if you hadn't visited Petite Purls yet, what are you waiting for? Lots of darling things for your little darlings on this new online publication. [Ravelry link / Pattern link]

Falala Free Pattern #16: Francis Revisited

Today's delay brought to you by ... changing email addresses. Yes, after 15 years I've decided to chuck the mac.com addy and go gmail (kathleendames at, for those who are interested in such things). Which means I've spent the day unsubscribing and resubscribing to a kajillion mailing lists. Wow, some online entities are waaaay better than others when it comes to managing your personal data/preferences/subscription. Yahoo!, you stink. Sorry, but I had to change every Groups subscription I had individually, and I still have to see the stupid "kathleen_fivel" identity, even though I am no longer Kathleen Fivel and have, in fact, changed everything to "kathleen_dames". Grumble grumble. Gah! Enough of that, on to the fun stuff!

It's cold (finally) in New York, so I'm in the mood for a sweater, something cosy, perhaps with a cowl neck? How about Francis Revisited? Beth Silverstein has kindly written up her pattern for all of us (XS to 3XL) and offers it free on Ravelry. The pattern is worked on slightly larger needles (US10) for the worsted/aran yarn, so it should fly. I have a pile of 100purewool worsted merino in the Frog Pond that may be just right. New Christmas sweater, anyone? This one doesn't have any intarsia reindeer! [Ravelry link]

Falala Free Pattern #15: Knitted Fisherman Stocking

Until I work up my own knitted fisherman Christmas stocking pattern, you will have to make do with Mary Thomas's lovely one. A row of these hung by the chimney with care would be so pretty. This pattern has been in my queue for a long time, so I should get cracking on at least one. If only we had a fireplace in our apartment! A word of warning on this pattern: there are no charts. However, the written instructions seem fairly clear. [Ravelry link / Pattern link]

Wish List, Winter 2009

What's on your wish list this year? Oh, in addition to the little list below, I'd like peace, universal health care worth having, meaningful work for those who don't have it, and a new season of Project Runway or The Rachel Zoe Project. What? A girl can dream.

• Backup for my digital life (all of it - 1 TB!)
• Perhaps a new interchangeable needle set -- there are lots to choose from these days. This one from WEBS comes in such a pretty case, and, of course, there are the Knitpicks Options sets (metal/the original Options , wood/Harmony, or acrylic/Zephyr). I like that the set from WEBS will have a US3 needle, since I tend to knit yarns on the finer side these days. There is also the HiyaHiya Interchangeable set, though it's not available for purchase at this time -- perhaps they underestimated the demand for a high-quality set. Usually I'm not that keen on metal needles, but I liked the brushed finish on the lightweight steel tips from HiyaHiya.
• Oh, anything and everything from my Etsy Wish List. I just love Etsy, despite Germaine Greer's tirade against handmade gifts in the Guardian a couple of days ago.
• A silicone basting brush -- my current "dishwasher safe" one keeps losing bristles, making it clear that it is not, in fact, dishwasher safe.
• A job, ideally the one I interviewed for last week. It's a design position with the university. The people seemed nice and cool and have a similar design and work philosophy. Plus the office is about halfway between home and the kids' school. Good work, good people, good location, good benefits: All around a really good fit, if they like me.
• A case for my camera (Nikon D80) -- it's pretty heavy to lug in my purse, and it deserves a little more protection.
• Lovelies from past wish lists, like Scilla, a C pin from Leslie Wind, a Mermaid blanket, or some ORK posters

Falala Free Pattern #14: Impatience

Here is another pattern for knitting up some of that beautiful sock yarn you're hoarding. Impatience is a large cowl/scarf worked in Dream in Color's Starry (all of DIC's lovely, superwash color with added sparkle -- what's not to love). [Ravelry link / Blog link / PDF link]