Inspiration
Galentine’s Day: Gift Guide for Your Knitter Pals
Dear Kay,
I love that Galentine’s Day has turned into a thing. As Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler’s character on Parks and Rec) explains: “Oh it’s only the best day of the year. Every February 13th, my lady friends and I leave our husbands and our boyfriends at home, and we just come and kick it, breakfast-style. Ladies celebrating ladies. It’s like Lilith Fair, minus the angst. Plus frittatas.”
Yarns. Doodads & Such. Things That Smell Good.
Three juicy categories of potential gifties for your besties.
Yarns
When it comes to yarn, Galentine’s Day can run all year long. You lob a skein to a friend, and your friend at some point will lob another one back to you. It becomes a beautiful, endless game of Pay It Forward/Woolly Hot Potato. Thank you, Kay, for letting me come home from New York with five skeins of your cashmere. Oh wait—didn’t I tell you this?
A skein of artisanal yarn is a good thing to give. Feeling very sentimental about some recent skein purchases, having met these makers and loving them all.
From left: Prado de Lana, The “A” Team. (Hi Amanda and Alberto!)
Skeinny Dipping, Mericash Fingering, shade Cure It with Leeches. (Hi Christine!)
Narwhal Needlework, Ravenwood, shade The Sea Witch (Hi Emily!)
Unwind Yarn Company, Rendezvous Sport Sock, shade Earth (Hi Dana!)
In the back, Sophie’s Toes Magic Ball, shade who knows? (Hi Emily!)
Of course, we’d be idiots not to point out that some of our MDK kits are pretty much a bundle of luv for your beluved friends:
Top left: Squad Mitts Kit, with four skeins of Hazel Knits Artisan Sock in a colorway so beautiful that we gave up on anything cute and named it Colorway 4.
Top right: A fat guinea-pig-sized skein of our latest addition to the shop, Jill Draper’s Brunswick in Amethyst. Some might call it pink. Jill Draper will argue this all day long. There’s also the bulky lover’s dream: the Brunswick Bundle, with all five shades.
Bottom right: the Breton Cowl kit, in Velvet (aka purple) and Raspberry (aka raspberry).
Bottom left: Our kit of Blue Sky Fibers Hand dyes, three skeins of soft happy joy in light pink and chocolate, for the Après-Anything Socks.
And we would be remiss not to point you toward the sort of gift a knitting friend, or oneself, would be deliriously pleased to find in the mailbox: four skeins of cashmere, the kit for Bristol Ivy’s Nesting Wrap.
Doodads & Such
Bento Bags from Fringe Supply Co. The handiest, lightest containers for joy.
Knitmoji enamel pins from Fringe Supply Co. Heart eyes. #collectible
Clover Wonder Clips from Japan or something. Straight pins’ worst enemy. These clips are the snapping turtle of fasteners. Useful for all sorts of clamping and pinning.
Cocoknits Stitch Markers. Candylike, slippery, easy to see amid the chaos of your knitting. And the box!
Things That Smell Good
Not all of one’s friends knit. You can obviously give a handknit to these poor benighted folk. But maybe somebody just needs better smells nearby.
Sugar Lemon. I would never suggest that you give this off my recommendation—fragrance has to be the most subjective thing in the world. But I would say that Fresh Skin Care has all sorts of lovely scents, and Sugar Lemon is the one I like best. Sephora carries this line, as does Nordstrom (free gift with purchase alert!), so if by some nightmare you find yourself in a mall, go give yourself a headache by trying out some Fresh scents. Treat yo self.
Thistle Farms for bath, body, and home. Their liquid soap is the official soap of our house. Citrus Vanilla and Lemon Sage are my favorites. The scents are subtle, gentle and fresh, not cloying. The women who make these things are overcoming tremendous odds. “Love heals” is their motto, and I think that’s pretty much news we can use.
So to all you funny Galentines, ’tis the season to show the love to the gals in your life. By giving stuff to them. Ovaries before brovaries!
Love,
Ann
I’ve even used my Clover Wonder Clips to keep my hair off my face while I sew sweater pieces together. Try that with a straight pin! Thanks for these wonderful selections.
Good McGuyver move! On the flip side, I use little-girl size ponytail holders–the soft fuzzy ones–to hold sets of knitting needles together. I seem to have an endless supply, even though there hasn’t been a little girl around here for years.
So are you lobbing any of these skeins in the direction of your readers?? Like, perhaps this is MY lucky day??? I’d be thrilled to effing death to receive ANY of the above . . . just saying . . .and I know to whom I’d pay it forward.
How to choose, how to choose…..
There is a lot of good stuff in this post. I am happy to now know of Thistle Farms. What a great story from them. I might have to replace my old stand by–Dr. Bronners.
I love Thistle Farms and the work they do. Their candles are fabulous – lovely scents without the cloying, chemically smell in many scented candles!
Love that tag line! Ovaries before brovaries! Just snorted at that one. Coworkers find me a bit odd at times.
Sugar Lemon smells amazing! Thanks for the reminder to treat myself soon!
Great ideas for gifting anytime and especially on Galentine’s Day (which I hadn’t heard of until today)! I was at Arrowmont in Gatlinburg, having driven there in the Peppermint Princess — my hot pink Honda Civic — when another participant told me I had ovaries for having a car that fierce! Liked your use of ovaries over brovaries!!!
I love the Bento Bags – I bought a large one first, and it holds a sweater project. I then bought 3 small ones, which are great for little projects like handwarmers.
That’s my skein of Brunswick up there! Yesterday, I ordered one skein each of the colors “Amethyst” and “Charred Coal”. I plan to knit me up one fine Galentine’s Day gift of the Portillo Cowl. It will be my first project from the book “Drop~Dead Easy Knits” (but definite not my last); aaannd, there is so much yardage in each Brunswick skein, I will probably be able to make a second Portillo, thus getting a head start on my gifts for the MDK 2017 Gift-a-long.
Two cowls in a few hours! Life is good, Ann!
You are such a nut! Loved the list and ended laughing out loud. OVARIES before BROVARIES! I want everything on the list. (In case my kids are reading.)
Best closing line ever. Xox
I think I would have to argue with Jill about the color of that skein. If it’s called “Amethyst,” shouldn’t it be purple? And that skein is pink, most definitely.