Xmas Knits, Finally

I finally mailed out my family's xmas presents last week, and everyone has now received and opened their gifts, so I can finally share my two xmas knits with you all! 

Up first are my mother's socks (Ravelry link), which I knit for the GAL on Ravelry. The pattern is Book Stash Socks, by Nailya Plaskey, which was a really enjoyable knit! The colors are brighter than what I tend to use for myself these days, but they sure were fun to knit up (Zwerger Garn Opal Sweet & Spicy in Fruchtgummi). I did modify the pattern so I could knit them top-down, as is my preference, and, as always, I swapped in my favorite heel and usual toe. I definitely plan to knit another pair of these for myself sometime, but I already have at least three socks on the needles for myself, and I am, admittedly, terrible at focusing on knitting socks except for my mother's xmas pair, so who knows when I'll actually get around to them.

Next is my brother's hat (Ravelry link)! I knit him a Musselburgh for xmas a couple years ago, and when I asked him this year what he wanted, he said, "I like that hat you made me," so it went right back into my queue. He gave me three color choices to choose from so I'd be confident he'd get something he liked and so there'd be some element of surprise for him, and I chose my favorite (honestly, I love this green so much that I was tempted to keep the hat for myself—Knit Picks Palette in Larch Heather). 

Since finishing my gift knitting, I've been back to work on my Dziadzi, which I'd started for NaKniSweMo. I only managed to get up to the front and back divide on the body before having to switch over to xmas knits, but since picking it back up I've finished the body and one sleeve, and I'm hoping that I can bang out the rest of the second sleeve this week.