handmade by stefanie

There aren't many FO's I can share with you these days, so I'd like to share something cool from my crafty friend Lauren, who recently used my Whale Chart for an unexpected endeavor...I would like to present to my dear readers the first-ever "put a whale on it" fuse bead ornament! It probably won't surprise you to learn that I succumbed to a few Black Friday/Cyber Monday yarn sales. Even if you only read this blog occasionally, I'm sure you've figured out by now that I am incredibly weak-willed when it comes to all things yarn and fiber. At any rate, my first order showed up earlier this week - another skein of Tundra in Scotia Sea (I want to make the Arctic Circle cowl to coordinate with my mittens !) and the last skein of Swan's Island Organic worsted in the limited-edition colorway, Sugar Maple. I can't wait to knit with it - the color is even prettier in person and it's very soft! I was also thrilled to finally get my hot little ...

I  know it's not knitting-related, but I'd like to update everyone on my band's Kickstarter project which is coming down to the wire - as I write this, we have 51 hours to reach our funding goal (we're just $243 away). You can get the details on my initial blog post or even on our Kickstarter project page , but the long and short of it is that we wanted to do a series of 7" vinyl singles with really cool hand-drawn art. Each single will feature cover art by a different artist (my husband Tyler, a few of our friends, and me) and, let's face it, vinyl is just awesome. We'll also be offering MP3 versions of the songs for our fans that don't own record players (or just want to listen to them on their iPod). The songs are already recorded, mixed and mastered - we just need to raise the funds to press them to vinyl and release them!  Click here to make your pledge if you need some new music to knit to, especially if you need to find that transcendent...

I was excited to sign up for Crochet: Beyond Rectangles with Linda Permann so that I could build upon my crochet skills gleaned from Vicki Howell's Crochet Lab and Stacey Trock's Woodland Animals . Now that I've become comfortable with the basics, I'm ready to take things to the next level. Crochet: Beyond Rectangles uses an easy-to-make baby sweater to help students learn how to shape, sew, and read patterns and crochet charts. All of these skills apply to any garment, but the smaller scale of a baby sweater is the perfect way to move beyond scarves and other beginner-type projects without becoming overwhelmed. This project-based class features 12 video lessons in all. I found the pattern reading section to be quite helpful, as it covered written instructions, abbreviations, stitch diagrams and how to use schematics. For those that are new to the world of yarn, the lesson on choosing yarn and gauge swatching will help you on your way - not only will Linda gi...

Christmas is my husband's favorite time of year. Though I've always enjoyed the holidays, too, I find that I look forward to the festivities even more now that I'm with someone who is so enthusiastic about the holiday season. In recent years, we've cultivated a few traditions as the nature of our holiday celebration has evolved: first, we started to have an actual* christmas tree ever since we moved into an apartment that's big enough to accommodate such a thing. We also like to get an advent calendar of some sort - the cheapie 99-cent calendars from Trader Joe's have fit the bill in years past, but this year, we have a really cool advent candle  that I got on clearance last year. Finally, I knit all of us stockings last year since it was the first time we'd be spending the holiday proper in Chicago, and we upheld the Ritter tradition of shopping for stocking stuffers on Christmas Eve. The most important tradition, however, is heading downtown for the...

Today's FO Friday will be a little different, since I technically don't have any FO's to show off! I do, however, have a newly-restored Featherweight Cardigan . I knit this sweater all the way back in 2009 (it doesn't seem like it was that long ago!) and in the last year or so, noticed a few small holes in the sweater sleeves. I set it aside for repairs, and, well.... you know what happened ! Meanwhile, I plan on avoiding the insanity of Black Friday like the plague today. I'm sure I'm not the only on who rather be knitting! I'm more of a Cyber Monday person myself, as I prefer to do nearly all of my shopping (no matter what day it is) from the comfort of my own home while wearing pajamas. Fellow pajama shoppers, you are in luck! From 11/23-11/26, Craftsy is running its Black Friday/Cyber Monday Sale and all classes are being offered at $19.99 or less! I have to say, I'm a serial class-taker at Craftsy . Just this year alone, I have expanded my...

I can only share a few of my WIPs today, as we're rolling into that time of year when secrecy is of the utmost importance. As far as projects I am  at liberty to talk about goes....I haven't gotten much work done on my Shangri-La top , so I'm not sure it's worth a photo update. However, I have become addicted to making Grandma Trees for my holiday decor this year - they are so quick to crochet! I made five on my birthday and have been whipping up more whenever I have a few free moments. I am also making progress on the Fresh Stitches Archer Mystery CAL , but I don't want to spoil the surprise for anyone who is just now joining the party - so click here to view my progress shots on Ravelry! I have come across some fairly hilarious turkey-themed patterns of late - so I thought I'd do something a little different today and share some of my favorites: Turkey Coasters by Joanne Loh  (free!) Thanksgiving Softies by Gari Lynn Turkey Hat by Kristin Han...

I guess I forgot to mention, but last Friday was my birthday. I wasn't really planning much, except to take the day off of work and hang out with my husband. It's not that I hate my birthday (though the last two have been pretty crappy - in 2011, I was super sick and in 2010, I was sick and had to learn how to sub-q my newly-diagnosed kidney cat at the vet. Very fun!), but I just don't get excited for each one the way I used to. I've been working a lot of extra hours this month, so I mainly just wanted to knit a bunch, drink a few beers, and get a mani/pedi. On Friday morning, we honored a newly-minted birthday tradition by heading to Hot Doug 's. Our strategy is to arrive at Hot Doug's shortly after they open so we don't have to wait in line too long (my fellow Chicagoans know what I'm talking about - by midday the line is around the building and the wait time can be 45 minutes to an hour. AND IT'S WORTH IT!). I'm sure you're wondering w...

Today's FO Friday is a continuation of my first review for the Woodland Animals class on Craftsy, but it's also an FO Friday post! Two, two mints in one! The next project from Stacey Trock's Woodland Animals class, the Amigurumi Teddy Bear uses the same techniques we learned in the first lessons, but includes a larger emphasis on seaming due to its many pieces. This lesson probably could have been shorter (its just under an hour), but it's worth watching all the way through as Stacey reviews the skills learned from making the bird. Stacey's running commentary also makes it worthwhile - it's sort of like sitting down to a stitch n' bitch session with her! However, if you are feeling confident in your crochet skills (or just pressed for time because you have a BEAR EMERGENCY), you can probably go it alone and make all of your pieces, skipping the first 30 or so minutes of this lesson and getting right to the good stuff: bear assembly. Again, I'v...

I have five - FIVE! - babies to knit for in 2013, so I wanted a blanket that was pretty but not too difficult to make. I've been working extra-long hours at my day job, so by the time I settle down to knit for a few hours at night, most of my brainwaves are spent. Using knits and purls to create a textured lattice-like pattern, the Lettuce Lattice Baby Blanket was born. Sorry for the terrible pun - it's been a long week (and it's only Wednesday)! At any rate, my new baby blanket pattern is perfect for swaddling newborns, makes a fantastic receiving blanket, and is sure to be a great companion blankie during the toddler years. Knit with superwash yarn, parents will appreciate this thoughtful and easy-care gift. The PDF pattern includes stitch chart and instructions on working with hand-dyed yarns.  You'll also get a chance to master the crochet cast-on method (one of my favorites!) - click here  to view a video tutorial on YouTube to see just how easy this technique...

Here's a new Craftsy class that has piqued my curiousity: Beyond Basic Broomstick Lace with Jennifer Hansen . The broomstick lace technique uses a knitting needle and a crochet hook to create lacy, airy stitches, creating beautiful fabrics and edgings quickly. This makes it an easy-to-learn technique for knitters and crocheters alike, though knitters will benefit from knowing the basics of crochet to make a smooth transition. You may recognize Jennifer from  Stitch Diva Studios ; in this new class, she covers the history of broomstick lace (also called 'jiffy lace'), which dates back to the 1800s. Beginning with the fundamentals, Jennifer allows students to get comfortable using the needle and crochet hook together before kicking it up a notch with more advanced instruction. In this class, you'll begin with a broomstick lace eyeglasses case and graduate to a broomstick lace cardigan. Jennifer will show you how to work broomstick lace short rows and in the round, h...

I have a few projects that I've been meaning to share, but just haven't gotten around to posting due to all the fun and excitement of VK Live. First, I finished my Gradient Serendipity Scarf in Himalayan Trail , a heavenly blend of merino and yak: I also crocheted some slippers that actually fit me! Holy crapazoids! I used the skein of Manos Wool Clasica in Forest Floor that I snagged via Craftsy deals a while back and paired it with some Berocco Peruvia that was lurking in my stash (sale alert! Craftsy is having a pre-Black Friday sale this week which includes some amazing deals on Manos yarn !). The pattern is available for free here on Craftsy and is super easy to whip up quick. Tilly approves of these slippers immensely - she kept rubbing her face on them like a weirdo. This was the best photo I could get of both her and  the slippers! I finally finished re-knitting the toes on Tyler's Cure nerd socks. Now that they're washed and blocked, they'...

There's not very many WIPs I can share on this blog as we come down to the wire for holiday gift knitting. Perhaps that was the reasoning behind starting this mesh top for myself using the Shangri-La I scored at VK Live? That, and I have no self-control. How many times have I sworn off laceweight at this point in my knitting life? Too many to count, I'm sure. Yet I'm still optimistic that this laceweight top will succeed. Stranger things have happened, I guess! Yarn: Shangri-La (50% yak, 50% silk) Pattern: Filtes Shetland Openwork Dolman by Michelle Porter And now for something a little different, though it is a project that is very near and dear to my heart! A few readers may already know that I'm in a band with my husband called shalloboi . Just last week, our Kickstarter project was approved, so I thought I'd share our musical work in progress on this blog, as it's something we've been working on for quite some time now. I know there are lots of ...

Craftsy Class Review A while back, I signed up for Stacey Trock's Amigurumi: Woodland Animals class on Craftsy . After having so much fun crocheting Jack the Tiny Pumpkin last month, I decided it was finally time to get started on this class! This past Saturday, I watched lessons 1-4; since each subsequent lesson focuses on a specific project to built crochet and amigurumi skills, I'll be posting mini-reviews of each one as I complete them. After watching the intro, I was totally psyched to get going on my amigurumi adventure. Stacey is so enthusiastic and really makes you feel like you can accomplish anything. Each project is designed to help build the skills needed to create whatever amigurumi your heart desires. I'm so excited to fine-tune my crochet skills and learn nifty tips and tricks along the way. While it probably would help to have a solid basic crochet foundation to work from (see: Crochet Lab with Vicki Howell ), Stacey does give you a primer in les...

Marketplace Entrance I had a blast last weekend at VK Live! Chicago . I spent most of my time as a helper bee in the Bijou Basin Ranch Booth , though I also had plenty of time to chat with many of my other yarny friends. I loved the venue - the Palmer House Hilton is a really stunning location. The marketplace vendors were divided between two ballrooms on two different levels; I really liked the intimacy the smaller spaces provided. It was so much more manageable than walking into a giant convention center and being overwhelmed by row after row of vendors! For a first-time event, I think it went pretty well. I heard rumblings of various issues that displeased both vendors and attendees, but I also heard just as many (if not more) positive remarks. Throughout the weekend, I saw Vogue staffers running around like crazy - they were getting things done! Palmer House Hilton There were some really gorgeous booths - for the most part, the marketplace floor had the feel of a bouti...