Gift knitting and giving underway

Okay, there are 2 days left til Christmas. Am I done with my shopping? No. Did I participate in decorating our tree? No. Have I wrapped any presents? No. But I have been doing some great gift knitting!

I got to present my SO with his gift this morning after our trail run:

Pattern: Log Cabin Socks from Handknit Holidays
Yarn: Cascade Pastaza, 2.5 skeins
Needles: bamboo size 6 dpns
Discussion: I loved every minute of making these socks (except for when I messed up the start of the second sock and didn't notice it until 25 rows into it - yes, I ripped it out and corrected my mistake). I think I need a pair of them myself. The pattern was so fun, the yarn was awesome, and making socks on size 6 needles is so speedy! (Bonus: Somehow, I did not end up with a hole when doing the gusset! Woot! First time for that!) These were great. I was so excited to give them to him this morning. To find out what size to make them, I ended up calling Road Runner Sports. I knew that he had ordered shoes from them recently, so I just told the customer service rep that I was knitting him a pair of socks and needed to know his shoe size. How often do they get a phone call like that? Anyway, they fit great and I really hope that he'll enjoy wearing them while lounging around at home, watching "Don't Forget the Lyrics" or reading a book.

For those of you who have not knit these socks yet, get crackin!

Next up is a gift I haven't delivered yet but the recipient doesn't read my blog so I can write about it:

Pattern: Candy Stripes Kerchief from Interweave Knits Holiday Gifts 2007 issue
Yarn: Cascade Baby Alpaca Chunky
Needles: Clover size 9 circulars
Discussion: I wasn't impressed by this when I saw it in the mag, but then I saw one at a yarn shop nearby and liked it a whole lot more. They made mods for the bulkier yarn, so I got a copy of those when I bought the yarn. The increases were done at a different frequency and the stitch count was lower. This yarn is to die for - so soft. And I like the color combination. I tried to put 2 other colors together so I wouldn't be copying the shop model completely, but I just like the pink and red the best. What the hell - imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, right?

I'm going to call my friend and see if she'd like to get together for dinner with Hayden and me tonight (Mike is going to a football game), and I can give it to her then. I wanted to give it to her earlier because she's been a little sad lately (boy issues), but I didn't get it done in time.

I've got 1 gift left on the needles and one I'm thinking about doing for my grandmother. She's been having some health problems lately and the Walgreens gift card I bought her last night (inspired by the suggestion from my mother) doesn't feel like enough. I'm thinking I have yarn in my stash that'll make a good Huckleberry Ascot, again from the IK Holiday Gifts issue. We'll see. I still have 2 days and some car time on Christmas day left, right?