Little Knits for Little Gifts

I love to knit gifts. Here are little mini-stockings that I made for our church's Baby Day celebration. There is a music button in each stocking that plays "Jesus Loves Me" when squeezed.

Baby Day Mini-Stockings

I made mittens for all of the kids in the family this Christmas. Here is my selection of mittens hanging on the back of the couch (I had to take the shot fast because Rudy and Tux thought this was just a mitten playground for them). If you look closely, you can see the twisted cords that can be threaded through the sleeves of a jacket. Penny and I made the twisted cords by tying yarn to one of the beaters in Penny's hand mixer and then using the mixer to twist the yarn. (see instructions below)



Along with the mittens, each gift included a copy of Jan Brett's The Mitten about a grandmother who knits a pair of mittens for her grandson.


My friend, Penny, introduced me to the book which is simply wonderful. It is a sweet story with beautifully detailed illustrations. Knitting all those mittens was a lot of fun, but I did get tired of making all those tiny thumbs!

How To make a Twisted Cord

1. Cut a length of yarn twice as long as you want the twisted cord to be. Tie one end to a single beater that is placed in a hand mixer. Note that one beater will spin clockwise and one counter-clockwise. Give it a short "test spin" to see if the spin direction is making the plies of the yarn tighter or looser -- if the yarn looks like it is getting looser and unraveling, you need to use the other beater.

2. Once you are sure you are going in the right direction, hold the yarn so that it is slightly taut and then turn the mixer on. Let the yarn twist for about 30 seconds or until it is trying to "kink" on itself. For a long cord, you really need a friend to help hold everything. Stop the mixer.

3. Keep hold of the free end of the yarn and keep the yarn stretched straight as you use your other hand to grasp it in the middle. Bring the free end up to the end tied to the (stopped) mixer, and hold those ends together so that the yarn is folded in half. Let go of the middle and the twist will form.

To make a two-color twist (like the red and white twist in the photo), tie a length of red yarn to a matching length of white yarn and treat like one long strand. Twisted cords make a nice finish to lots of different craft projects. You can twist them by hand but that is really only practical for small (12" or shorter) pieces. Besides, using the mixer is a lot of fun -- people watching you will think that you have lost your mind before you "magically" create the twist at the end :)