handmade by stefanie

I finished this hat just under the wire, the Muratura KAL ends on New Year's Eve! I found this lovely skein of Harrisville Highland in my stash and thought it would make a lovely hat. The slight tweediness was perfect for the textured stitches! This is my first time knitting a hat sideways, and I have to say that I was a bit skeptical - but it turned out rather nicely and it even fits my head! I'll try to get a modeled shot to share on Instagram, but for now, here is a flat lay FO photo to tide you over: Wishing everyone a safe, happy & healthy New Year!

Of the two mitten projects I've finished most recently, I've already lost mates for both somehow. I know, I know - it's quite the talent. The first pair of mittens were knit back in October for the Great Northern KAL - click here for a refresher if you missed this one .  The second pair I finished earlier this month and didn't get a chance to share a proper photograph here on the blog... in fact, they didn't even get blocked before I started using them and promptly lost one of the pair. All I have to prove that the knitting is done is this photo from Instagram : If those mittens look a little strange, it's because I used this pattern to keep the index finger free from the rest of the fingers, switching to Silverspun yarn for the tips of the thumbs and index fingers. The idea was that I could wear them when playing Pokemon Go in colder temperatures, an idea that wold have been AMAZING if I hadn't already lost its mate! So, now I hav...

A while back, I spotted these adorable sweater ornaments on Instagram and couldn't resist buying a bunch to stitch for holiday gifts. I'm not much of an embroiderer, but I managed to work through the stack, slowly but surely. And from the front, they look pretty lovely, right? Well, looks can be deceiving - the back of each ornament is total spaghetti! I have a lot to learn about managing multiple colors of floss, apparently. Luckily, a little bit of hot glue and some felt was all I needed to fix things up: These were pretty much the only handmade holiday gifts I gave this year, if you can believe it. I think I'm going to make some more for next year! Wishing you a safe & happy holiday this weekend, whatever you celebrate. Thanks for stopping by!

Over the weekend, I finished my Pokemon hunting gloves and I was so excited to finished a project that I started a new hat project ....as one does, right? I'd had this skein of yarn from Harrisville Designs in my stash for a really long time; it's long since lost the label but I believe it's Highland ? Anyway, it seemed like the perfect choice for the Woolly Wormhead KAL that's happening right now (there are prizes!!). Since the hat is knit sideways, I actually broke out a pair of straight needles  (if you're wondering, they are Zing from KnitPro) for the occasion instead of my usual interchangeables. While I'm not normally a fan of straight needles, sometimes it is  nice to mix things up a bit, and I am enjoying the change of pace. So far, so good anyway!

I love making projects to add to our holiday decorations each year, but lately I've found myself short on crafting time. Luckily, this project can be completed in under an hour, making it a great last-minute addition to your festive decor! You can make it in virtually any size you like and customize the look by varying the felt shapes you choose. Supplies:  1 skein Kartopu Alpaca Polo in Claret Several die-cut felt pieces in holiday shapes - I used pre-cut holly leaves/berries and a felt snowflake ornament** Fabric Glue or Hot Glue Scissors Marker Tapestry needle Small sandwich plate (the one I used was 8.5 inches in diameter) Small bowl (the one I used was 4.5 inches in diameter - make sure that you can pass your yarn through an opening of this size) Cardboard (to fit largest size of plate/bowl) **A note about the felt pieces: Between now and the time I was planning this project a few months ago, the place where I sourced these felt elements has discontinued making...

My main project continues to be the Pokemon Hunting mittens , because I really don't want to lose my fingers to frostbite, but obviously I am not going to stop playing Pokemon Go just because it's cold out. I mean, this week's update includes Pikachu in Santa Hats! Come on! Anyway, I realized on Saturday morning that I had mis-read the pattern and didn't work P2 before and after the gusset stitch markers. OOPS! It was an easy (if not time consuming) fix to drop all of the stitches down and use a crochet hook to pick them back up the other way. But then I knit all of the thumb increases and realized that my tiny thumb did not need quite so many stitches....and I ripped back a bit to modify the pattern to use less thumb stitches than written. On the plus side, they are coming along - yesterday I finished the index finger and started the mitten part for the rest of the fingers! Honestly, if I weren't so sick of ripping back, I would probably go all the ...

Still working on the usual suspects, although I did start some mittens for myself last night. I know, I know - I said I was going to finish a bunch of projects before starting more. But then these beautiful wooden mitten blockers arrived: I bought them here on etsy - be warned, there is a longer-than-usual lead time since Susan B. Anderson shared her blockers on her podcast, but it's worth the patience! It was only a matter of time before I started some mittens, and ever since I started playing Pokemon Go I've been wanting to knit this pattern , using some Silverspun  for the index and thumb tips and the super-warm 100% yak sport from Bijou Basin Ranch for the rest of the mittens. Very late last night, I gave in to temptation and cast on: Check out that awesome project bag that my friend Lauren had custom made from Hopkins Studio ! Also seeing some action this week is my Matchmaker shawl: It's highly unlikely that I will have a finished project to s...

Just in time for last-minute gift knitting, I have a new hat pattern coming out this month, and it's available exclusively at Knit 1 Chicago! The  Zopfmuster Hat  is designed especially for multicolored hand-dyed yarns and is knit with 1 skein of  Mountain Colors River Twist,  shown here in the Spring Creek colorway. For more pattern info, check out the Ravelry pattern page  here . The large cable motif won’t get lost even in the craziest of colorways, and it’ll keep you interested as you knit. You can make the beanie style hat as shown here, but you could also add some pattern repeats to make a slouchier version thanks to the generous yardage in River Twist. Fun fact: Zopfmuster is the German word for cable stitch! The launch party for this kit is Wednesday, December 14th 6:30 - 8:30PM at Knit 1 (3856 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago, IL 60613) - please drop by to say hello! You can preorder your kit here online ; Knit 1 offers in-store pick up,...

Last weekend, I finished the Adiantum hat by Woolly Wormhead: I used a skein of yarn that had been lurking in my stash for a while; I think I won it in a Holla Knits giveaway, it's a lovely blend of alpaca and silk from Hampden Hills: I'm a big fan of using stitch markers to keep track of a repeating pattern so that I don't get lost as I knit across the round - it always speeds things up and decreases the chances of getting way off pattern but not noticing it til I've knit all the way across the round. And you can't argue with the results - perfection! Also, congratulations to  Laurpud , who won a copy of Curls 2 in my recent giveaway - I'll be in touch to arrange delivery of your prize. Be sure to check out my full review of the book if you missed it!

I can't believe that December 1 is tomorrow - where did this month go (or this year, for that matter)?! It's a good thing I am not relying heavily on myself to make gifts for everyone on my list this year - if that were the case, I would be panicking right about now. Instead, I am relying heavily on my Amazon Prime membership to get the job done, and there are only a few handmade gifts on my to-do list for this year. All in all, I am not feeling terribly stressed, at least not for this reason! Over the weekend, I finished the first Berlin sock and started #2: I also have been working on the Matchmaker shawl once more, now that the Curls 2 project is off the needles: That reminds me - time is running out to enter my Curls 2 giveaway (details here if you missed how to enter) . I'll be announcing the winner this Friday, Dec. 2!

I have another free pattern out this month on the Knitter's Pride blog! You can whip up these Quick Crochet Mitts in just a few hours using the easy-to-follow instructions on this blog post . I used a 20.00mm crochet hook and a skein of Briggs & Little Super to make this project, and you can probably get two more pairs of mitts out of the same skein - so it's not only fast, but also affordable!  Click here to favorite or add to your queue on Ravelry. Happy hooking!

Fresh off the needles is my first project from Hunter Hammersen's newest book, Curls 2, which I reviewed at the start of this week ( click here if you missed it ). My giveaway to win a print copy of the book is still open, so be sure to check out this post to find out how you can enter! I was really pleased with how this shawl turned out, and it was my first time knitting with Sweet Georgia's Bulletproof sock yarn. It's a very soft and luxurious yarn that also stands up well to a lot of frogging - which is good, because I ended up ripping out quite a bit of work along the way due to operator error (counting is hard, ok?!?). The drape is really lovely, and the stitch definition is nice and crisp...but my favorite part is that I only have this much of the skein left over: Being able to knit until you run out of yarn might be the true genius of the Curls patterns, other than the fact that they're generally easier to style than other shawl shapes. Now I j...

The startitis mania has died down a bit (I hope) - over the weekend, I was able to focus on finishing my first project from Curls 2, which I reviewed earlier this week - click here if you missed it, there is also a giveaway ! Now I've set my sights on the Woolly Wormhead hat  since it will probably the next project come off the needles. Tyler's socks are coming along, too! I haven't picked up most of my other projects in a while -  the bulky weight cardi (which would probably be done by now if I had been working on it regularly), stripey angora wrap , the matchmaker shawl , etc. etc....but perhaps I can give some of those projects my attention over the holiday weekend (if I can resist starting new projects, that is).  Thanks for stopping by - wishing my US friends a safe & happy Thanksgiving weekend!

Earlier this year, I was sent two copies of Curls 2 , the newest book of shawl knitting patterns by Hunter Hammersen. One copy has already found a treasured place in my knitting library, but the second one will be given away to one lucky blog reader (keep reading to find out how you can enter). If you're already familiar with the first Curls book ( see my review here ), then you already know the deal: each pattern is customizable for any yarn gauge or yardage, and they produce a shawl shape that is gentle curved on each end - it's probably best described as an asymmetrical shawl, because you begin with the smallest number of stitches and increase regularly clear up until you bind off. Since each shawl is knit with the same formula, it's best to check out the Anatomy of a Curl section at the start of the book to help you understand the patterns themselves, which are mainly driven by the cleverly color coded charts and their accompanying color-coded schematics (all ...