I realized after rejoicing in my accomplishment of spinning my first skein of yarn that I had actually only spun up 83 yards, which while it sounds like a lot in fact is not a lot. So I put it into a bag and waited for the opportunity to present itself.

And lo, a friend went through some life stuff, and then she had a birthday, and that opportunity was there.

Behold. Yarn before knitting:

And then yarn after knitting, on a happy new yarn owner:

See, I had enough for about 1/3 scarf, so I made that, created a little pin out of a scrap of leather, and voila! Neck warmer.

Here’s how it’s done:

Take ~90 yards of a bulky weight yarn (handspun is great, but not necessary).

Cast on 25 stitches. I used size 10 needles. Use whichever needle size fits your yarn. You want a scarf about 8 inches wide.

Knit 5 rows in garter stitch.

Knit ~28 inches (or as much yarn as you have so that you’ve got enough to get a final 5 rows of garter stitch plus a bind off) in 1×1 rib.

Knit 5 rows garter stitch.

Cast off, weave in ends.

Now, take a 4-5″ square of heavyish leather (5-6 oz is good, try not to go smaller than a 4 or larger than a 9), and cut it into a circle. Punch two oblong holes in the leather, each about 1/4″ from the edge.

For the stick I used a large-size barbecue skewer, cut down to size and sanded. You could probably use any solid stick-like object (even a stick) as long as the ends are pointed and smooth.

To use with the scarf, you wrap the scarf around your neck, crossing the ends over, and then you thread the stick through the holes in the leather, pinning the scarf under the stick. Nifty! The lady in the photo wore the scarf all day and tells me it is quite warm. I kept a little of the yarn for memory’s sake.

And then today was the big gluttony-fest at work, and in keeping with last year, I wore a sari to work (one I bought at Mirage the day before, no less!):

The girl at the shop was very helpful (if somewhat baffled), and helped me choose some matching bangles. I’m running out of room for bangles. I also have gotten to the point where I’ve worn them so much that I don’t even notice I have them on anymore. I was doing some sewing earlier and only realize they were there when I became aware of an odd jingling noise. Oh, right! Bangles! Silly me.

This weekend is Castle Wars, so for the next couple of days I will be madly sewing. I have no SCA-appropriate coat, and Castle Wars is usually quite chilly. The coat is in pieces in the living room. With any luck, I’ll get it assembled tomorrow and can do finishing Wednesday and Thursday (well, that and if I don’t distract myself in the meantime).

I am so full of food.