Free Pattern Friday – Little Hoodie

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Gray knitted child-sized hoodie on black background

Today, the Little Hoodie in Bella Cash (pattern link).

We love a classic with a twist.  This hoodie is constructed traditionally, in pieces and seamed, but two things make it special: one, the balanced panels on front and back – the ssk and k2tog on right and left panels add a nice symmetry – and two, the yarn.

Back side of knit gray child hoodie

We’re big fans of Bella Cash (230yds/50g).  Its softness and machine washability make it perfect not just for baby garments, but also for adult projects and accessories.  (In fact, in a bit of a coincidence, we released our newest pattern collection today – Small Pleasures, featuring 7 knit accessories in Bella Cash.)

e-book cover titled Small Pleasures showing hands wearing blue knitted fingerless mitts

We’ll be talking more about these beauties in the days to come.  For now, back to today’s free pattern!

Gray children's hoodie knitted in Bella Cash yarn

We’ve sized this from 0-10 years, so you might choose to go with the classic pastels…

or something a little bolder.

Whatever you choose to do, we hope you have a great time knitting this fun hoodie.

Happy crafting!

Free Pattern Friday – Double Square Pillow

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Tan, light blue, white, and light green mitered square pillow

Today, the Double Square Pillow in Uptown DK Magix (pattern link here).

Many of our LYSes feature an extended family of crafts.  We love seeing the embroidery, weaving, and quilting that’s going on out there.  And it was with quilting in mind that we created the mitered square Double Square Pillow.

Mitered square pillow knit in Uptown DK Magix yarn

Self-patterning Uptown DK Magix adds a modern look with the splash of color changes, while the strong diagonal line of the centered double decreases look like crosshatch quilted lines. You can try planning the color changes specifically to correspond with each mitered square, but we think it’s more fun to just let the colors land where they will. In the sample shown, no care was given to color placement of the Magix color changes.

Tan knitted pillow showing button closure

Solid Uptown DK in stockinette backs the pillow, fastened with buttons for easy removal.  A lovely, easy-care home decor project.

Detail of knit mitered square knitting pattern on pillow

We hope you have an excellent and relaxing weekend.

Happy crafting!

Free Pattern Friday – Oasis Blanket

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Gray blanket crocheted in Adore yarn with colored granny squares

Today, the Oasis Blanket crocheted in Adore (pattern link here).

The Oasis Blanket gets its name from the bursts of color set into the gray background.

Detail of colored squares in gray crochet background of baby blanket

Each one is an oasis.

Blue, green, and pink granny squares in crochet Oasis Blanket

Worked in Adore (273yds/100g), a soft blend of superwash merino and anti-pilling acrylic, it’s a great piece that’s soft enough for babies but sturdy enough to stand up to the washing machine.

Oasis Blanket draped over chair

Each motif is worked separately, making this a very portable project.  It also makes it easy to adjust the size on this 31″ x 31″ blanket as you wish – add another row of squares or take one away as needed.

Gray crochet blanket draped over chair back

We hope you have a pleasant weekend.

Happy crafting!

Folded gray, pink, green, and blue blanket crocheted in Oasis with lace border

Independence Day Giveaway!

Happy Independence Day, y’all!

We came in to the office today feeling patriotic and decided to share the love! From now until the end of July 5th, get a free Little Patriot top from Ravelry with code HAPPY4TH with no spaces. (Pattern link here)

Enter the code where you see the  “use a coupon code” links that appear during purchase.

This is such a cute Bamboo Pop pattern, isn’t it?  Sized 1-12 years, it works for both the little and not-so-little patriot in your life.

You know what makes it even cuter? It’s from an e-book of Bamboo Pop Kid designs… with a matching FREE e-book of doll designs!

Sized to fit 18″ dolls, these are quick tops in Bamboo Pop to use up your odds and ends after knitting the kid projects.

Matching kid and doll?  Too cute!

We’ll be closed for the 4th of July on Wednesday.  Have a safe and happy Independence Day.

Happy crafting!

Free Pattern – Independence Tank

What are you wearing for Independence Day?

Yorkshire Terrier dog in red white and blue costume
“Woof!”
Baby goat kid in American patriotic ribbon
“Naaaah!”
cat in American patriotic costume and goggle
“When I get out of this I will kill you.”

How about a brand new free pattern?

woman in red white and blue striped tank top knit in Flax

The Independence Tank in Flax (pattern link here).

Cool and light, 100% linen Flax is a great choice for summer projects.

Red, White, and Blue for Independence Day.

Knit front and back pieces from side to side, then join.

Independence Day tank made in Flax, worn by young woman

Add a few stockinette rows for a rolled edge.  Presto, a lightweight top perfect for a day out, or a night watching fireworks.  This would look awfully cute any other day of the year, too, in whatever colors you like.

Detail of linen tank top knitted in Fibra Natura Flax

We hope you have a fantastic Independence Day.  And if you’re going to spend it outdoors, don’t forget your sunscreen – and a hat!

Alpaca draped in American flag
“Why yes, I do look fabulous.”

Free Pattern Friday – Tidal Shawl

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Variegated blue shawl knit in Little Bird and Little Bird Colors yarn

Today, the Tidal Shawl in Little Bird and Little Bird Colors (pattern link).

Shawl knitting in the summertime? Yes, please.

rear view of triangular knitted blue striped shawl

We hate to give up an entire category of projects, just because the temperature’s risen a little.  That’s what makes Little Bird and Little Bird Colors great for this project.  They’re 100% microfiber acrylic, so you won’t overheat with the project in your lap while knitting.

Close up of eyelet stitch pattern in knitted Little Bird shawl

The Tidal Shawl uses one solid color and one self-striping, for a nicely coordinated feel.  A textured stitch is combined with little eyelets for a texture that lets individual stitches of the solids and stripes show through each other – a nice blending of colors.

Woman's hands holding edge of shawl knitted with i-cord bind-off

Work it top-down, and finish with a neat i-cord bind-off.  Presto.  A gorgeous shawl you can wear year-round.

I love the blues that give the Tidal Shawl its name, but you might like something different.  Maybe a Sunshine Shawl?

103 Angel Peach
208 Twirl

Or a Blues and Berries Shawl?

109 Peacock
202 Harmonize

There are boundless possibilities.

Happy crafting!

woman laughing wearing knitted blue shawl

Free Pattern Friday – Mars Tee

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Smiling woman in jeans and crochet red Cotton Supreme DK Seaspray shirt

Today, the Mars Top crocheted in Cotton Supreme DK Seaspray (pattern link).

How’s your summer going?  Are you still looking for that perfect project that will be satisfying to make but not stifle you in the heat?

Side view of woman wearing red crochet top standing outdoors

Voila!  Amy Gunderson’s Mars Tee!  Crocheted in the round from the bottom up, this beauty is sized from XS to 4X, with shaping that starts out a little bigger at the base, for those of us with a bigger… um… base.  The point is, this is comfortable and cool.

Detail of red crochet stitchwork on woman's shoulder

Double-crocheting three together makes cute little eyelets without making the fabric too lacey-loose.

Red top crocheted in Cotton Supreme DK Seaspray

From personal experience, I can tell you that the Cotton Supreme family is easy on the hands to use. Go with either the called-for Cotton Supreme DK Seaspray, or try solid Cotton Supreme DK.  How cute would this look striped?

Cotton Supreme DK Seaspray

We hope you have a great weekend, with lots of time for you to take care of yourself.

Happy crafting!

Woman walking away wearing red crochet cotton top

Free Pattern Friday – Malawi Earrings

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today, Malawi Earrings in Yashi and Yashi Iro (pattern link here).

Hot enough for ya? It is here, so we’re looking with delight at some of the great designs in Yashi and Yashi Iro 100% raffia that are out there.  We saw Gwen Buttke McGannon’s First Light Rug in the Summer 18 issue of Interweave Crochet and thought, “yes.  that’s what we need.”

Something cool and light.  And as always, designer Rachel Brockman does not disappoint.

These fun summer accessories don’t take much work, but they look great.

All the notions  you need are some jewelry findings, and a crochet hook to pull your favorite colors of Yashi into a loop.

If you can make fringe, you can make this jewelry.

A few beads to finish them off, and you’re set.

We hope you have a fantastic weekend, and that you stay cool.

Happy crafting!

TNNA Sneak Peek!

It’s that time of year again!

The team is in Cleveland at the National Needlearts Summer Show, setting up booth 1032!  We’ve got a lot of brand new things to share with our LYS friends, so we thought we’d tease folks a little with a glimpse of what we’re bringing.

Of course, we don’t want to give too much away. If you’re at the show, swing by booth 1032. We’d love to see you.  Everybody else… stay tuned – there’s lots of good stuff on the way!

Free Pattern Friday – TNNA Vest

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

man wearing light blue vest knit in Bamboo Pop yarn

Today, the TNNA Vest knit in Bamboo Pop (pattern link here).

This vest was inspired by an idea we had a couple of years ago.  In 2016, we designed the TNNA Cardi and all wore it to the National Needlearts Association’s tradeshow, the event where we get to meet with our LYS owner friends and show them what’s new for the sesaon.

Katie, Yonca, and Amy are ready to show off some yarn!

The cardi looked and fit great, but wasn’t really tailored to the guys attending.  This year, we’re fixing that!

The TNNA Vest is also knitted in Bamboo Pop color 107 Ocean (gotta match!), but it replaces lace with different stitch patterns.    The V panel in the center recalls the diagonal lace of the original cardi.  The largest size (4X) only takes 5 balls – Bamboo Pop goes a long way!

We’re heading to the show next week.  If you’ll be there, swing by booth 1032 and say hi.  We’d love to see you!

Have a great weekend.  Happy crafting!

brown haired man wearing light blue knitted vest smiling