Labor Day weekend, besides being the beginning of the school year and the end of summer, is the time when planning for Christmas gift giving begins in earnest. I like to give handmade gifts, and I make gifts for a large number of people, so I have to start early if I want to sleep at all in November and December. If I have big projects in mind I will start as early as June, but September is when I finalize lists, inventory what's been done, and figure out what I need to complete the rest. 

This year I revised my plan when I realized I had no hope of completing some of the larger projects I had earlier envisioned. I'm focusing on small things that can be made in a few hours and which use materials I already have on hand. 

Ornaments are a great way to use up small bits of yarn and fabric left over from other projects, or to use materials which would be too expensive for larger projects. This weekend I started knitting Christmas balls, using patterns from a book I've had on my shelf for several years. 55 Christmas Balls to Knit: Colorful Festive Ornaments by Arne and Carlos ( click here for a link to Amazon) is a collection of patterns for creating knitted balls incorporating traditional and festive motifs. This is the one I knitted this weekend:

It's not stuffed yet, but the knitting is finished. The book recommends stuffing with wool, and I have some wool batting left over from a quilting project, so I will try that and see how it compares to the usual polyester fiberfill. I will make more of these in the days ahead. I may incorporate beads into some, or glue on crystals, as suggested in the book. Yes, you need to be a fairly competent knitter to make these, but because they're small, they're also a good way to try out a technique you may be less familiar with. 

Arne and Carlos's book is not the only source of patterns. Of course both Pinterest and Ravelry are full of suggestions. I have made the kind that cover a glass ornament or a styrofoam ball. Those do have the disadvantage of having to fit a certain size, and of course glass is breakable, but they do give a nice round shape and there are no worries about the stuffing showing through. 

I hope you're starting to think about the coming holidays, whether you celebrate Christmas or something else, and think about the ways in which a small handmade something can be added to a purchased gift or be the gift in itself.