The 12 Knits of Christmas:
Week Seven
How do, friends? 
 
Is it Thursday already?  Zoinks!  The weeks are really whizzing by now--and at the same time, the holidays seem a luxurious distance away.  (My procrastinating heart says, "Five weeks? Fahgettaboudit!")  This week's gift makes even the wrapping and packaging part of Christmas fun.  It's knit with sparkly yarn--who doesn't need a little bling once in awhile?  Tiny and quick, this little pretty could house a pair of earrings, Petoskey stone stitch markers or the gift they really want.....a gift card from Best Buy.  I know.  It's sacriligious to even mention Commercialized Christmas, but even after all these years, I can't seem to get everyone in my extended family excited about handspun socks.  Go figure.  At least my mom loves them.  (Love you, Mom!) 
 
Many, MANY of you have mentioned that you (or your husband--whoops!) have accidentally deleted the previous emails.  Some of you have only just signed up for the newsletter (welcome, friends!)  As of this writing, there are over 600 people that are on this email list, making it rather difficult to resend individual email newsletters.  To make things easier, I've uploaded photos AND patterns to a photo album on my personal knitblog, The Land of Wool and Honey.  You can always view the album and its contents by going here.  (You may want to bookmark this site so you'll always have the address handy.)  
 
Another tip for those of you who've got archaic printers like mine, or eyes that have a hard time seeing small print: instead of printing this email as you see it, try copying and pasting the text into a Microsoft Word document.  That way, you can enlarge the font and change the color as you see fit.  Life made easier. 
 
If you've done this before, scroll down to reveal the pattern and yarn of the week.  If you're new to the program, here's the deal:  Every Thursday afternoon (or into the evening!), you'll receive a FREE pattern--either an Inish Knits original creation or from another clever online crafter--that we've deemed "do-able" within the course of a week.  These patterns are super simple, and there's a reason.  You've got kids.  Sports.  Dogs.  You're working 40-plus hours a week.  We want you to feel like you can actually get something done during these crazy weeks leading up to the holidays.  (Sorry--there's nothing we can do about the 17 holiday concerts you've got on the list!)      
 
And that's not all.  The yarn that's featured in each week's project is available at 20% OFF for the entire week*, so the projects are as easy on your wallet as they are on your brain.  With 12 full weeks ahead of us, if you try your best to keep up, you'll have a nice collection of gifts come December 25th. 
 
Feel free, too, to pick and choose patterns that you like--you may find you like some more than others.  Or, stick with one pattern and knit 12 of those.  No rules here--just fun.  It's yarn, remember?
 
 
*Can't stop in to see us?  Call (231) 228-2800--we ship near and far!
 
 Itty Bitty Bag & Gift Idea
 
Itty Bitty Gift Bag
 
Yarn:  Louisa Harding Jasmine.  One ball. 
 (48% Cotton, 39% Bamboo, 10% Silk, 3% Polyester) 
 
Gauge:
5 1/2 sts per inch on US 6 double pointed needles. Adjust needle if necessary to achieve gauge.
 

  Pattern:
 
Cast on 60 sts.  Join into a round, being careful not to twist sts.  Knit 3 rows. 
 
Next Row (picot edge row): *YO, K2tog; repeat from * across row.
 
Knit 3 rows.
 
Next Row: Fold up the edging along the picot row, and knit each live stitch together with one from the cast on row.  Or, if you prefer, skip this step and sew the picot edging down after you've finished knitting the entire bag.
 
Continue to work in st st in the round (knitting every row) until piece measures 1 �" from cast on edge.
 
Next Row (eyelet row): *YO, sl 1, K2tog, psso; repeat from * across row.  You will now have 40 sts on the needle.
 
Continue to work in st st in the round on these 40 sts until piece measures 4 1/2" from eyelet row.
 
Bind off all sts.  Sew seam along bottom edge.  Thread eyelet row with ribbon and enjoy!
  
Abbreviations:
 
K: knit
K2tog: knit two stitches together
psso: pass the slipped stitch over
sl: slip
st st: stockinette stitch
sts: stitches
YO: yarnover
 
  
*Just like all Inish Knits patterns, please feel free to pass this pattern along to as many friends as you'd like.  Knit one for each of your 15 grandchildren.  Please remember, though, that this pattern belongs to the shop and is protected by copyright--it is not to be knit for profit.  But you knew that, right?
 
 
 
We've been having some of the sunniest days lately.  The sun really lifts my spirits, making me happy and thankful for all the beautiful things in Life.  Hope you're well and enjoying it, too. 
 
Best,
 
Melissa
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