handmade by stefanie

It's not often when you find a pattern you don't mind knitting again and again (or maybe that's just me?!). But when you do, it's nice to have that old favorite ready to go whenever you need a quick gift or a soothing knit. When I originally designed A Most Addictive Slipped Stitch Hat , it used one of my favorite yarns from Bijou Basin Ranch, Himalayan Trail. I knit both of the samples pictured in the original version of the pattern (which then went on to become display pieces in the Bijou Basin Ranch booth), plus another one I got to keep for myself . Recently, the yarn base originally used in the pattern was discontinued, and they have sold out of nearly all remaining stock - but the good news is that project kits for this pattern are still available, because I worked with the folks at Bijou to rework the pattern to use their newest yarn, Himalayan Summit ! This crisp fingering weight yarn is really delightful to work with, and the 50/50 yak and merino b...

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,...

Today is kindasortnotreally Festivus *, and to celebrate, I can finally share a project I've been working on for Tyler in secret, which is currently at HO status: Last night, we did our gift exchange and he was the proud recipient of one Christmas Barf-colored sock . WOO HOO! Now I am furiously knitting its mate in hopes that he can wear these socks on Christmas day. The pattern is one of my favorites for gift knitting, Lateral by Cookie A. I'm planning to start several new projects over the break, but for now the only other one I am working on the  Xanadu Snowflake Cowl , though I am not very far along and as you can see above, it really just looks like a mess of tiny, tiny stitches and yarn ends. Here's hoping a 14 hour train ride round trip will yield a more interesting WIP photo between now and next week! *if you are a nerd like me, you've watched the Seinfeld extras and know that the real holiday has no set date, which makes it all the more ominous!

The next round of gifts I made this year was sent to my family in Kansas City, and it comprised most of my knitting and crocheting efforts. Clockwise from top left: I made sport weight socks for both of my grandparents using Louet GEMS yarn and two of my own designs, Chittery Chattery and Alameda  (more on this later). Next is a crocheted placemat which was requested by my grandfather to commemorate the Royals' American League Championship Title - you can't tell in the photo, unfortunately, but it's the perfect shade of Royal blue (I used Baah Shasta in London Blue for the main color). Speaking of colors which really don't show up in the low light of mid-winter, we have my dad's navy blue hat knit in Zealana Air Chunky . I just did a simple rib and winged it - you can find more details here on my Ravelry project page if you're so inclined. It's incredibly soft and warm, and I'm pleased to report that Dad really loved it! Last but not least...

I'll be taking it easy this week as I recover from the holiday madness and prepare for a fiber-filled 2015, so this week I'll be sharing the handmade items I gifted this year! I'll be starting out with the items I sent out to my sister's family in the Rose City: Pattern: Howie the Holiday Penguin by FreshStitches Monster Pencil Cups (to match each of my nephews' rooms) and Crocheted Bath Mat for my sister and sister-in-law; both of these patterns were improvised.  For more pattern and yarn information, click the links below. On Wednesday, I'll share more DIY holiday gifts, see you then!

After a chilly week here in Chicago, today's FO project seems more than appropriate: a polar bear! I was hoping to be able to photograph him in some actual snow, but it seems like other parts of the country are getting ALL OF THE SNOW while Chicago is merely being teased with flurries. Therefore, I took matters into my own hands and used some natural-colored spinning fiber (Louet's Jacob sliver, to be exact) to manufacture a wintry scene of my own! I used the Hot Chocolate Run Polar Bear pattern from WEBS; all proceeds from the sale of this pattern benefit Safe Passage , and last month they hosted a KAL  which shares some handy tips for knitting and assembling your bear. The pattern calls for bulky weight yarn, but I opted to make a smaller version with Valley Yarns Stockbridge yarn as the MC and some leftover stash yarn for the contrasting colors. Isn't he adorable? In other news: it's last call for 25% off   my eligible patterns  for  this ...

On the Amtrak train back to Chicago, I was able to finish my project for this month's KAL in the Knitter's Pride group ! I'm also double-dipping, so these socks are my project for the Seasonal Sock Syndrome KAL in the Delusional Knitter group as well. Best of all....they are DONE! I used my own Chittery Chattery sock pattern from Conversation Socks and knit this version in two different colors of GEMS Sport , Teal and Willow. As you can see, Tyler is the model for the socks. After the photo shoot was done, he actually asked me if they were sport weight socks - yes, he knew there was something different from the fingering-weight socks that I usually knit. Turns out, he likes the sport weight socks better because he felt like they were softer and breathed easier. He actually refused to take them off post-photo shoot. I guess they're his now! If you want to see more projects from the Conversation Socks ebook, click here . This is the last day to get $2 ...

I'm pleased to start the week off with a brand-new sock pattern, the Air Quotes Socks ! They are the second-to-last design from Conversation Socks , and I am beyond thrilled to have this ebook so close to completion. In fact, my goal is release the final pattern two weeks from now, and you know what that means - the ebook price will increase once more! The  cable panels on the front of the Air Quotes Socks remind me of the old-timey quotation marks (in journalism class, we called them 66 and 99); the cuff is ribbed on the back to ensure excellent fit. The stitches are very easy to read so that you can fly through the pattern without needing to constantly consult the chart, and they are the perfect way to show off the beautiful hand-dyed colors from Baah Yarn . Bonus: the superwash merino of Sonoma is soft and easy-care! If you're just joining me, here's the deal: all 5 designs are written for sport weight yarn on US #3 needles; each pattern was created with the ...

Chittery Chattery Socks in Louet GEMS Sport! Since I don't have any FO's to share today (gasp!), I thought this would be a good day to introduce my next sock design from Conversation Socks ! The Chittery Chattery Socks are knit with Louet GEMS Sport , and while they look like they’d involve a lot of fancy footwork (or rather, colorwork), but they are actually quite simple! Single-round stripes and an easy-to-memorize stitch pattern are all you need to put your best foot forward. Be prepared to get a lot of questions about these socks, because they were very popular at my knitting group! While the stitch pattern is simple (all you need to know is how to knit and purl), what makes these socks special is the exquisite and hard-wearing yarn I chose especially for this design, Louet GEMS Sport yarn. The tight spin of the yarn not only prevents pills, but it provides for crisp color definition within the design. Plus, it comes in a variety of wearable colors so that you c...

While most of the socks I knit for gifts this year I could sneakily share on my blog by pretending they were for myself, there was one pair of socks that I didn't dare risk sharing: the ones for my mother. I know that she occasionally reads my blog, and this year she had made a special request for a pair of chocolate brown socks. It would have been a dead giveaway! Mom's socks were knit with Cascade Heritage using a pattern from Around the World in Knitted Socks  by Stephanie Van Der Linder,  It's Tea Time . The only modification I made was to make a slip-stitch heel flap rather than continuing the pattern on said flap; I've found that whenever I do that, the socks tend to spring a hole rather quickly, so I'd rather sacrifice a little style for a heel that is extra sturdy. The other pair of socks which haven't been shared on this blog were knit for my grandfather. He has really large feet and prefers basic stuff, so I freestyled a pattern that was in...

Here was my biggest gift knitting conundrum this year: I wanted to knit Tyler a new hat for work, but he gets too hot if I use wool yarn. Cotton and bamboo blends seem to work well, but I am never very happy with the results (even if he is and dutifully wears the finished hat non-stop). Furthermore, he pretty much only wears black and grey, so I'm very limited with my yarn and color choices. Luckily, I remembered my favorite pair of socks to wear back when I worked at the salon. They were knit out of Lorna's Laces Solemate yarn, which contains Outlast, a fiber technology that interacts with the body to moderate temperature. Problem solved! I bought a skein of Solemate in Patina (well, it was labeled as Grand Street Ink, but this skein is definitely not an inky purple-black, it is more of a dark tobacco brown, so I'm guessing it was mis-labeled...or perhaps I need to get my eyes checked!) and cast on for Arkanoid by Wooly Wormhead , which was a great pattern that was ...

My first holiday knitting FO to share while I'm on vacation is these these two Pokeball Hats  that I knit for my nephews in Portland, who are both Pokemon fans, needless to say. It's a free pattern I found on Ravelry and I was able to hone my duplicate-stitch skills in the process. I'm pretty pleased with how they turned out! They are knit with one of my favorite superwash yarns, Berrocco Vintage.

I finished my second May KAL project this week, the Fir Trees Cowl by Marly Bird.  It's blocked and ready for seaming this weekend - all in all, it turned out pretty well!  I had a few false starts and some bumps along the way, yet somehow my mistakes are not as visible as I feared they'd be.  Not that I'm complaining!  This was my first time knitting with angora yarn ( Seraphim from Bijou Basin Ranch) - it was incredibly soft and held up quite well to multiple froggings.  The Fir Trees Cowl is classic example of a deceptively simple pattern that I just can't seem to stop messing up - I think my final count for re-starts was 4. Even though it's going to be quite hot this weekend, I'm looking forward to wearing my pretty new cowl since I worked so hard on it.  And it was worth it! I also whipped up a trio of Tiny Gnomes from Teeny-Tiny Mochi Mochi  this week.  A simple, fast knit - the perfect project to start after finishing a lace pr...

Not that my cousin would ever react in this manner (she and her husband are both super-cool, laid-back people), this is what I immediately think of whenever the subject of wedding gift-giving etiquette comes up: Knowing that there "you just can't" give a wedding gift after the one-year anniversary, I wanted to be sure to hit that mark for my cousin Alex & her new husband Derek, who got married last May.  I actually began knitting their gift long before their wedding, but I didn't finish it til late last fall.  My intention was to present it when we went home for the holidays, but we ended up staying in Chicago instead.  When we went back for what was dubbed "fake christmas" in January, Alex & Derek were on a well-deserved mini vacation....and also it didn't fit in our luggage with all of the other holiday gifts. Thankfully, I headed down to KC earlier this month and had PLENTY of room for some ginormous pillows.  I'm pleased to report th...

Who? I think January will be a quiet month for me, blog-wise, because it's certainly a crazy month in terms of everything else!  We just got back from a short trip down to Kansas City to celebrate Fake Christmas with our families - we always take Amtrak down there and I used my 7 hours both ways effectively - I finished my last xmas gift (an owl), started and finished a scarf for Tyler's grandma, and re-started the Botanical Cowl , this time with much more success (bonus: I'm halfway done!).  My dad and mother-in-law both liked their monsters, and even though my grandmother's socks turned out larger than expected and proved difficult to photograph because of their so-dark-they-look-black green color, I think they worked out just fine.  The bath scrubbies were an unexpected hit, and the finger puppets turned out well, too!  Somehow, it all came together - but don't ask me how, because I really don't know. Monster the First (pattern by Rebecca Danger) B...

Mr. Nubbins by Mercourier I don't want to stress you out by saying how many sleeps we have til xmas or anything, but it's go time!  I'm all about fast gifts I can make in a day (or two), and in the spirit of panicked last-minute knitting projects, I'm offering 20% off ALL of my patterns - just enter "GiftCute" at checkout! Then get ready to Gift Cute for real - because it's Mr. Nubbins to the rescue!  He and his counterpart, Lady Nubbins , are knit out of big 'ol bulky wool and fly off those US#13 needles. Button Bunnies I made all three Button Bunnies in a weekend's time, and you can make the whole trio or just knit one up for gifting purposes.  They're sure to delight no matter what!  Alien Hand Puppets are an adorable quick gift for young nieces and nephews.  If you make some out of cotton or bamboo and embroider eyes instead of using safety eyes, they'll double as fun washcloths for bathtime! Alien Hand Puppet Then ...

I know, I know...every post in the last month has mentioned [event name redacted] in some way.   It was like Christmas for us Chicago yarnies - eager anticipation, counting down the days, and then it's over way too fast and you have to wait til next year.  Life after [oops, almost said it]:  we must move forward, not back. I suppose I should fill you in on all the other stuff I've been doing besides the three new designs that debuted this weekend. To be honest, I'm not sure where I've found the time to do all this - releasing three patterns in the same month is a doozy! - but I've managed to cram in lots of other fibery activities that haven't found their way onto this blog.  Here's a summary of things I may have forgotten to mention:  Dead Fish Hat!  My nephew turned 7 this month, and what better gift for the silliest second-grader I know than Thelma Egberts' Fish Hat: Dead or Alive? .  Clearly, it was the right choice...and because it's so ...