10 Hand knit Gift Ideas for the Holidays
We’re under the gun people! And it’s time to get moving on your Christmas knitting. We’ve got 10 ideas to help you bang out some quick hand knit gifts for the holidays. We’re all about sensible crafting here at Wool & Waves. So we aren’t going to suggest anything crazy like a sweater (even a lovely cardigan) or a pair of socks. There’s not much time left to get those done. But, we’ve pulled together 10 nice and quick holiday knits that there’s still time to get made!
Please note: The pattern links in this post will take you to Ravelry. If you are not able to use Ravelry, please let us know and we can present them to you in a different way.
Blanket
A hand knit blanket is not going to be our first recommendation for a gift. BUT we know that people love them. So we found the Simply Stripes Baby/Lap Blanket by Elizabeth Smith is a really lovely way to combine more than one colour. We really like the way the colours transition into each other. Blankets are also really flexible. If you’re feeling like this one is a bit too narrow, cast on a few extra stitches! Our yarn recommendation for this is Estelle Chunky. A nice thick yarn and machine washable too!
Handwarmers
Erin’s knit the Masonry Mitts by Vera Brosgol for a friend who is walking each day. These are perfect for the not-quite-winter-mornings we can get. Erin used Lily & Pine’s Aspen Worsted and is very pleased with the result!
Mittens
Do we ever have a hand knit mitten pattern for you? We love this pattern and share it with everyone interested in keeping hands cosy. We’ve used this pattern to make some lovely mittens for teacher gifts. And they are always warmly accepted. This pattern is perfect for showing off some lovely hand dyed yarn or with your favourite workhorse yarn. The World’s Simplest Mittens is by Tin Can Knits and works with fingering to chunky weight yarn!
Scarves
We all love a cozy scarf. They are great for the in between seasons when you’re not ready to commit to a parka but need more than a cute jean jacket. We went looking for you and found the Merci Scarf by Susan Rainey. This is a simple skinny scarf. It’s reversible and we think that the pattern will be easily memorized. There’s a lovely squish factor. Anyone would be happy to get this as a gift!
Hats!!
We’ve left hats for the end because they are our favourite thing to make and give. Everyone needs a toque and they are an easy project to get finished to give!
First up is The Faux Shizzle Beanie by Mandi Coffeen. We test knit this hat and fell in love. Knitting this hat was SO satisfying! We highly recommend the pattern!
Next, we’ve got the Sockhead Slouch Hat by Kelly McClure. We’ve both knit this hat and enjoyed it! It is knit with fingering/sock weight yarn so it is a longer hat to work away on. This is not a project for last minute holiday knitting. But the effort is worth it—we’re both delighted with the results.
Water is Life Hat by Lavanya Patricella is a quick knit with nice 5mm needles. We used Oak Bulky from Lily & Pine and it was a wonderful pairing!
Christine test knit our next hat idea. Wabakimi by The Knitty Pine is a fun project to knit and of course Hello Stella Rustic DK non-superwash Merino was a dream to knit with. When folded, the brim is squishy and the hat becomes a bit more fitted, when left unfolded the hat has a seriously awesome slouch.
If you’re a colourwork fan, consider Flicker & Flame by Andrea Mowry. We can’t lie though. We made a mistake when knitting this pattern. Christine cast on for the adult large in worsted weight but then started using the chart for the sport weight version. She decided to just keep knitting and we’re pleased with the result.
Last but not least, is the Pussy Willow Cap by Marji LaFreniere. We loved this knit so much, we’ve made kits for it. We find mixing textures in projects so satisfying. We love the excitement of seeing how the different yarns play with each other.
You can see all of our projects via our Ravelry Page here. We include notes and yarns used in what we make to help you if you’re making something similar.