Knitting Pattern: Pocket Scarf

I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack!!!!! Did you miss me?

Sorry I was away for so long, but summer is here and in Wisconsin that means you take FULL advantage of the warm temperatures & sunshine since in the winter all you can do is hibernate. Which is how this blog got started. I know it's not quite hibernating time yet, but I wrote a new pattern and just had to share it with all of you!

This pattern is 100% easy peasy. And it's for a scarf... with pockets!

So to get started you'll need:
2 colors of contrasting yarn Worsted/10ply (the amount of yarn depend on how long you want the scarf. One skein of one color will be enough for the pockets, you'll want at least 2 skeins for the body of the scarf)
1 set of knitting needles 8 or 9 gauge will be fine
A needle to weave in ends & sew up pockets

What you need to know: (click on the stich you need to know to be taken to the video)
Long Tail Cast On
How to Knit & Purl Continental Style or How to Knit & Purl English Style
The Basic Bind Off
How to add another ball of yarn
Blanket Stitch (to sew the pocket)
Knit 2 Together (K2Tog)
Yarn Over (YO)

Now you've got your supplies and you've got your how to videos in case you get stuck. Now you need the pattern!

Kniting Pattern: Gap-tastic Cowl

Hello everybody!  I must apologize on the delay on posts lately. I've been busy knitting and getting over a cold. But now I'm healthy again and to celebrate I thought I'd post up another knitting project.

This is a fun and simple pattern to knit. I knitted this cowl for my boyfriends mom for Christmas this past year. This pattern is written by http://www.heyjenrenee.com/. And is available on ravelry as a free pdf download here!

All you need is:
2 balls of heavy weight yarn (approx 153 yds each)
US 13 24 inch circular needle

All you need to know:
Long tail cast on
Join in circle
Knit & Purl (throwing) or Knit & Purl (continental)
How to add another ball of yarn
Bind off
How to weave in the ends

Knitting Pattern: Transverse Cowl

Guess what everybody... I wrote another knitting pattern!!! This one is also for a cowl, but it has a really nice diagonal pattern to it. It's a simple pattern that again is just interesting enough to make sure you don't get bored. The diagonal pattern is created by doing an oblique rib stitch.

What you'll need:
Size 10 - 29" inch long circular needle
Stitch Marker
3 Balls of Bernat Alpaca Natural Blends yarn. (or roughly 260 - 360 yards of some bulky 12ply yarn) Mine is the color called Fern.

What you need to know: (click on the links if you need a video to show you how)
Long tail cast on
Join in circle
Knit
Purl (continental) Purl (throwing)
How to add another ball of yarn
Bind off
How to weave in the ends
You don't have to know this, because the pattern walks you through how to do this, but if it helps, this is a link to the stitch we are doing.

Knitting Pattern: Chunky Ribbed Hat

This yet again another present I had made for somebody for Christmas (see, I told you I was busy!). This was a really easy knit and also really fast. And again, I'm including videos for the different stitches you need to know (I might as well make this as easy for you as I can). I originally found the pattern on Ravelry by Groovy Mom. If you click on the link it will take you to the original pattern. I pretty much followed the pattern exactly, except instead of knit I did a twisted knit. The reason I did this is because of the type of yarn I used. I use a brand called Homespun and it tends to be really fluffy. The twisted knit tends to give the hat more structure which was needed with this type of yarn. I also decreased differently so the decrease wasn't so extreme.

So to get started you are going to need:
16 inch circular needle size 10
Size 10 DPNS (for the end of the hat)
A Ball of Bulky/12ply yarn (I used Homespun)
A stitch marker

What you need to know: (click on the stich you need to know to be taken to the video)
Long tail cast on
Join in circle 
Twisted Knit Stitch
Purl (continental) Purl (throwing)
K2TOG (Knit 2 Together)
P2TOG (Purl 2 Together)
Bind off
How to weave in the ends

Knitting Pattern: Basketweave Cowl

This is the first knitting pattern I have created! And it's an easy one. Even if you are just learning to knit you can knit this. Why? Because it's fast so you don't get bored. It uses big needles which makes it easy to learn to knit. Kind of how when you were learning to write you used a big pencil. It uses 2 balls of thick yarn. And it teaches you the 2 basic stitches and how to knit in the round. The other bonus? I'm including videos of how to do each stitch in case you need it. These aren't my videos, but they are good videos!

What You'll Need:
Size 13 circular needles in a length of 29"
2 balls (or 218 yds) of a bulky 12 ply yarn. I used Loops & Thread Charisma in a charcoal. You can even use an extra bulky yarn if you want it to be really thick.
A stitch marker

What you need to know: (click on the links if you need a video to show you how)
Long tail cast on
Join in circle
Knit
Purl (continental) Purl (throwing)
How to add another ball of yarn
Bind off
How to weave in the ends

Knitting Pattern: Cabled Fingerless Mitts

I made these a while ago. I love them! I do wish I would of done the wrist cuff a tad longer, but they suit their purpose. I knitted them with a rather cheap wool, so i would recommend using a higher quality yarn so they don't pill as bad as mine do. Now, I don't make my own patterns. I'm not that skilled yet. So I bring you this pattern from Carissa Knits!

Knitting Pattern: Chunky Slouchy Cap

Now that I gave this hat to it's intended owner, I can post it up on here and share the pattern to a super quick knit for a nice fall/winter hat. This pattern was designed by Melissa "Missa" Hills of kpixie.com. It is a free pattern so again, I can share it with you!

Finally the Weekend!!!

I know we all love the weekends, but for me... OMG I freaking LOVE the weekend. It means I can spend endless hours gaming or crafting or cooking or whatever! No time limits, no stopping to talk to a client or boss, just what I want to do when I want to do it and for however long I feel like doing it.

On the agenda for this weekend is some hard core knitting, some movie watching, and some Halloween decorating (hopefully pictures will come of that)! I totally scored at the craft store and got really pretty yarn that I plan on making some shawls out of.

Knitting Pattern: Slouchy Mama Hat

As of recently, I've been knitting up a storm! I thought it'd be nice to share a few projects I'm working on every now and then. So I give you the pattern (from Brookiellen Designs) for my new favorite hat.

I know the picture is a tad blurry, but I hope to get a better one soon when I can convince my other half to pick up the camera. :) This was a really quick knit and I used Wool Ease Thick & Quick in Sequoia.