I started a new editorial section at the magazine I work at as an art director! It’s a craft page featuring a simple tutorial of a kid’s project but there’s also a blog component and a video component. It’s sort of a side project that merges my day to day and my crafty obsessions which is pretty awesome. If you would like to watch me be awkward on video, check out our first two videos— Simple Springtime Pinwheel & Cardboard Space Rockets.

Hee— this probably looks kind of familiar, huh? I was just playing around with some felt and embroidery— I should probably youtube some tutorials and learn how to do this properly but for now, this was a fun experiment.

Doodling with craft supplies? Anyone else been doodling lately?

& now for the most impractical children’s hat ever!
I had this color combo stuck in my head for awhile and felt the need to knit it out. It does actually fit on my head but it’s a tish snug for my liking so I’ll just call it a children’s hat. Made out of Merino wool, alpaca & silk. Totally suitable for children, right? Handwash, lay flat to dry. Completely practical. Ha! Not at all. ANYWAY. I started with a simple skull cap, chocolate, brown & cream (like coffee!). When I was finished with the cap, it didn’t look quite done to me so I decided to pick up a few stitches and sort of knit-sculpt to make tiny animal ears. This is the result….

I think the next iteration will be in a far more practical yarn option.

Have you done any crafty experimenting of your own lately? Got pictures to share?

Clearly, I like making things. And learning new skills. So it’s inevitable that my craft-blitzing is going to wander around all kinds of different techniques, mediums and materials. Lately: needle felting has been turning my head so I decided to try it out. This little robot is my first attempt (the cube he’s sitting on is 1inch).

Have you ever needle-felted anything?

Well hello there, soft and adorable coffee cuff. You look vaguely like the Chicago flag—your awkwardness is endearing. & your stripey friend is sort of Slytherin? Let’s see how to make you!

Materials:

• Size 7 & 9 US DPNs
• Leftover yarn!
• Some felt & thread if you’re feeling fancy!

Chicago Cuff Instructions
I used 2 different blues because neither were correct and being just a little ‘off’ is part of the charm. The colors you see here are all the same yarn but this would work with any type of yarn as long as they are all the same weight. This is Andean Silk from Knitpicks in Merryweather, Cream & Hyacinth.

Using the size 7US DPNs, cast on 36 sts. Join carefully & place stitch marker at the beginning of the round.

Garter Rib
*Knit one round.
K1, p1* one round.

Repeat these two rounds until desired length is reached with the first accent color (Hyacinth). Make note of the number of rounds if you would like both accent color stripes to be the same size. These are 5 rounds.

Switch to main color (Cream). Continue in garter rib until desired length (the cream is approximately 3 inches).

Switch to second accent color (Merryweather). Continue in garter rib for the same number of rounds as your first accent color. Bind off.

Stars
I just cut these out without drawing a guide so they would be a bit askew & odd. If you would like a more uniform appearance, draw or trace some stars onto your felt with a fine tip sharpie & cut along that line. I found some thread and quickly (and not very tidily I admit!) attached them to the knitted cuff. Slip onto your favorite beverage and enjoy. Next step: getting one of those neat porcelain versions of the cardboard cup!

Stripey Goodness Instructions
Using size 9US DPNs, cast on 30 sts. Join carefully & place stitch marker at the beginning of the round.

Knit 6 rounds in a 1×1 rib (k1, p1)  in your first color (Knitpicks Wool of the Andes in Lumberjack).
Switch to second color (also Wool of the Andes but in Silver), knit 6 rounds in 1×1 rib.
Continue in this alternating manner until you have completed three sets of the first color. Bind off!

Coffee cuffs are a awesome stash buster & instant gratification vehicle (& good last minute presents too!). I made both of these cuffs using yarn remnants from other projects. I’ll be posting a free printer-friendly PDF download of this pattern this weekend.
What’s your favorite stash buster OR instant gratification project?

My little sister, Emmie, goes to school in Iowa & it’s still chilly there (just starting to warm up!). When she visited for Thanksgiving, I knit her this lovely cashmere cowl which she worn incessantly & washed it, unknowingly felting the crap out of it! In case you were wondering, Capra from Knitpicks felts AWESOMELY. Needless to say: she needed a new one. & this is how the 7 Seester Double Mobius scarf was born.

I based the pattern off the number 7, which is how many years my sister and I are apart in age. This is an easily changeable pattern, you can modify it to use a number significant to you!

Want to knit one yourself?
Materials: • 3 skeins Andean Silk in Merryweather (or any worsted weight yarn that’s soft enough for your skin)
• 29″ circular needles, size US 9

Pattern:
CO 158 sts using your preferred cast on method. My favorite is the cable cast on.
Normally when joining a piece knitting to continue in the round, you want to be very careful to make sure that the whole piece is straight and not twisted. But for the 7 Seester Double Mobius scarf, you will intentionally twist your knitting so the stitches make a corkscrew (2 twists) around your needles before you join your work.

After joining, knit alternating stripes as below:
Knit Stripe: knit 7 rounds
Purl Stripe: purl 7 rounds

Repeat the set of stripes 7 times. Bind off & weave in your ends. Easy-peasy, lemony-squeezy. The scarf is a twisty toasty confection for yourself or a lucky recipient.

Tiny peek of a recent FO. Pink and fuzzy & so soft! It’s Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk Dk. Knits up deliciously and the color range is pretty fantastic & well saturated. Normally, I fight with fuzzy yarn—it always seems to sort of mat to itself?—but this traveled through smoothly without any tugging or snagging.
Full reveal follow up after I give it to the recipient.

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays.
Happy Halloween from me, to you!