Knitted Mug Cozies

When I’m not weaving, I work for Pfeiffer Nature Center. It’s really a fine place to work, with the most amazing group of volunteers I’ve ever known. The most active of those volunteers are the 13 members of the Board of Directors. As a small token of my appreciation for everything they do all year, I give them each a holiday gift.

Working part-time for a not-for-profit agency, as you might imagine, money is always tight. So even a few bucks each times 13 people adds up pretty quickly. As a result, my gifts to the Board are always handmade. In years past they’ve received raspberry vinegar, canned dilly beans, elderberry liqueur, blackberry jam, and holiday cookies, all coming out of my kitchen.

This year, they got a combination of kitchen work and living room work.

I knit 13 mug cozies from various colors of wool, closing them all with a vintage button from my extensive collection. I wrapped them around cheapie mugs. Much as I would have liked to buy hand thrown mugs from one of the many local potters, I had to buy from the dollar store.

Then I made a variety of dipped pretzels. They included pretty traditional options – chocolate rolled in crushed peppermints and chocolate rolled in red, white & green sprinkles. Then I got more creative. Chocolate drizzled with caramel & white chocolate, chipotle chocolate rolled in chopped dried apricots, and pretzels first dipped in caramel, then chipotle chocolate, and finally drizzled with white chocolate. And my personal favorite — chocolate rolled in a combination of finely minced crystallized ginger and toffee crunch bits.

I was happy with the results, although I do wish I’d realized that the cozies work better on mugs with straight sides instead of the shapes I got. With bottoms smaller than tops, the cozies drifted down toward the table pretty quickly. C’est la vie. I’m making more for my show this weekend, and for other small gifts.

Your turn: are you making any gifts you’re giving this year?