Update

 

This Stripy Poncho has been my favorite top layer during the autumn days. A free pattern is available here: Stripy Poncho

The past two months have been a blur. My life outside of the knitting world took over and I didn't have time to knit or think about knitting for some time. The few brief moments I had over the past two months I spent working on the new upcoming design. The work is almost finished, and the new pattern will be available next month. 

Few of my knitting patterns were published in the past few months: 

In October issue of I Like Knitting magazine you can find the Gulia Knit Pants: a cozy comfortable pants knit from top down in the round using the long changing colors of Cascade 220 Superwash Wave using two skeins of yarn and changing them every few rounds to create the stripes within the changing color wave. See photos bellow by I Like Knitting 

As a part of Twelve weeks of giving by Knitpicks my Parliament of Owls Hat is available for free: See the screenshot of an email I have received about the pattern:

I hope to able to pick up my knitting needles more and enjoy the creativity that comes with making something one stitch at time.

Thank you for reading and visiting.

For snapshots from my life, you can follow me on Instagram: Stanascrittersetc

Around the World Stitch -a-long and some other Work in progress.

 

I took this picture the last time I was traveling by airplane. It has been in the summer of 2019 and I was returning home from visiting my family in Europe. It seems like a lifetime ago. I do not know if and when I will be able to visit my mom again. I hope that it will be this year, but who knows what is still ahead of us. I have realized that these days I travel a lot in my dreams. I am visiting places that are close to my heart.

 

Somehow I have stumbled upon an event named Around the world stitch-a-long. It is an independent knitwear designers knit a long and it is happening all around the world. I am a bit late talking about it here as the fun already started on February 15th. But the whole thing is running through March 28th so there is still plenty of time to participate and win some prizes.

The event is filled with knitting, crocheting, games, and variety of prizes. In the group on Ravelry the chat is filled with traditions, recipes and chat with people from all around the world. 

Here is the link to the group on Ravelry: Around the World Stitch-a-long   

and here is the link to the big bundle of participating designers also from all around the world: Participating designers 

also the event is hosted on Instagram Around the World SAL

One of the participating designers and organizers is Ranee Mueller from Arabian Knits. I had a pleasure get to know her a bit through this Interview with a designer  I did two years ago. 

Join us for this fun event and learn about the other participating designers. In a way it's like traveling to far away places and learn something about people from those different places. 

 In December 2020, after I published Paw Print Heart knitting pattern I announced that for every purchased pattern in the month of December I will donate $1 to our local animal shelter. In December I have sold  9 patterns for the Paw Print Heart. I decided to donate $1 for all of my patterns sold in December. That was 35 patterns and therefore $35. I have rounded that up to $50 and made a check and dropped it at the local animal shelter. 

In December I was approached by a Canadian yarn website and asked if they can sell my knitting pattern for Rockefeller, the owl on their website. 

Here is the link to the pattern on the Canadian Yarn website: Link here

 

Thank you for reading and visiting. 

Keep on knitting, one stitch at time.....

 

Rockefeller the Owl Ornament

 "He was so tremendously frightened by the sight of the owl sitting in a corner..."

                                                    Brother Grimms' Fairytales (The Owl)

Rockefeller is seventh knitting pattern in the fairy tale inspired series.  The sample pictured bellow was made last year, and the sample pictured above was made last month. A friend of mine named the owl Rockefeller after the tiny owl that was discovered on a Christmas tree at Rockefeller center in New York City. 

You can purchase the pattern on Ravelry, Payhip, or Lovecraft or by clicking on this button, which takes you to Ravelry website:

 

There are three more patterns to add to the collection and then the entire e-book will be available. 

You can have a sneak preview here on Ravelry:

Baba Yaga's House e-book

Thank you for visiting.

September 2020 - Knitting Patterns

 Somehow this month has been an amazing time for me as a knitwear designer. I am feeling like a real knitwear designer with work published by several third parties. See the list and pictures at the end of this blog post.

First let's start with a little bit of history.

This is my first finished knitting project that I remember. I recall that I did a lot of crochet projects prior to this sweater, but this is my first for so many things. I remember the trip to formal East Germany, a town now called Chemnitz. At that time it was named Karl-Marx-Stadt. We went to a Department Store and I picked up the yarn for this sweater and another sweater. I created the pattern, though I didn't know that it was a pattern that I created. I just draw a picture and calculated the number of stitches and rows based on a small swatch that I knitted. I also remember that I did not know how to cast on. My mom helped me by casting on the stitches. I knitted the sweater in four pieces, in three colors using an intarsia technique. At that time I did not know that you need to wrap the yarn around each other. This actually created a small holes around the V shape where the yarn was changing. These small holes were not on the sleeves. By then I learned that the yarn has to be wrapped around each other. When I was wearing the sweater people were asking me how did I created the pattern of holes perfectly placed along the color change on front and back of the sweater. My grandmother helped me to sew the finished pieces and knitted the crew neck edge around the neck opening. I loved that sweater and was wearing it a lot. I do not have it anymore. I do not know what have happened to the sweater. We might have unravel it to use the yarn again. This is how my love for knitting started. 

After years of knitting, in 2011 I tiptoed into a knitting pattern writing.

My first published knitting pattern was for the Apples in May 2011. The link to this free pattern is here:

Apples

My first knitting pattern published by a third party was for Snowballs, in January 2012. The pattern was originally published by Petite Purls, In Issue 11, Winter. It is available as a free pattern. Link here:

Snowballs

And so it continued for the past nine years. Creating, sketching, knitting samples, making notes, writing patterns, editing, sending out my ideas to submission calls and more of knitting, creating, editing, and writing. As of today I have either independently or through a third parties published 279 patterns.

The list of my Knitting Patterns on my blog or on Ravelry with pictures My Knitting Patterns.

This month eight of my knitting patterns were published.

Independent work is Meg and School of Fish

In October Issue of I Like Knitting Magazine are: 

Pawsome-Hat  to complete the Paw-some Dog Cowl and Human Scarf 

A set of Spotted Around Hat and Spotted Around Scarf

and Harvest Poncho

All the photos of these four patterns are by I Like Knitting

Brunelli Wrap was published in October Issue of Knotions Magazine.

photo by Kelli Nuss for Knotions Magazine. 

Misty Cowl was published by Knitpicks in the new textured collection titled Pathways. 

photo by Knitpicks.

Cuddly Cat Pillow is the last pattern that was published by Interweave Knits in their Gifts 2020 Issue magazine.

photo by Interweave Knits 

I hope to continue with creating more knitting patterns in the future for some time.

As for the rest of this year, I have an e-book project, that I started to work on last winter and slowly it started to take shape over the months of pandemic and staying home. This collection of small knitting projects will be released over the next three months. These small projects are all using small amount of yarn that I had home from a various previous knitting projects. They are all a fantastic, funky, fast and instant gratification giftable items for almost everyone. 

More on this project is coming up over the next three months. Just to give you a little sneak preview... if you look closely into my knitting bag in this picture, few of those critters are peaking out.

Thank you for reading and for visiting.

Woodland KAL

During the month of June, into the first week of July I have a woodland animals and objects themed KAL hosted in my group on Ravelry.
It is a fun event with people knitting various knitting projects of animals, and things that can be found on your walk through the woodlands. The participants will have a chance to win one of my knitting pattern and the grand prize winner will select my next toy animal design pattern.

To start off this fun event I offer 25% off all of my woodland animals knitting pattern. More details are available in the thread in my Ravelry group Stana's critters etc.
Here is the link to the group:
Stana's Critters Etc
and here is my designer page:
Designer page

Here are pictures of some not all of the patterns that are eligible.

Mushrooms

Oriana

Ralph

Fredrick

Have fun knitting, and thank you for visiting.

Knitting Pattern for Oriana

Oriana

It looks like I have a soft spot for owls. So far I have created four different patterns for owls. I also like cables. Therefore I have combined the two together and created pattern for Oriana. The first sample is done in Knitpicks  Color Mist yarn. The second sample is done in sport weight yarn held double.

The other owls

Oriana is worked from the bottom, in the round from center out. The body has a Saxon braided cable in the front and in the back. The head has simple stockinette stitch. The top is closed with Kitchener stitch. Two wings are knit separately and sewn on, or simply pick up the CO sts on the sides of the body at the beginning of stockinette stitch section. The ears are created by sewing through the top to the bottom a few times. Optional is to use knitted eyes instead of the two buttons. The beak is knit in the round and sewn on.

You can purchase the pattern in my Ravelry store (link on the side of the blog) or by clicking on this button:

Oriana and Oriana II

Thank you for visiting.

Work in progress III

Oriana

After finishing The owl gang I kept thinking about owls, and I just kept on thinking about owls and cables. Oriana is the result.
The pattern is at test knitting stage and will be available at the and of August.  I made her a friend, second Oriana using fingering weight yarn and sport weight yarn held double.
The two toys will be donated to our library for some fun gift away after the summer reading contest is over and kids are back to school.
I usually take a group photo of my toys that I donated for the summer reading program, but I didn't do it this year, so instead you have a picture of the two owls named Oriana, that will be donated at the end of summer.

Oriana I & II

My plan for the next few weeks is to work on the Voyager sweater pattern and finish the grading and writing of the pattern. The sample I was working on is finished and has received compliments from fellow knitters. I also managed to take some wonderful photographs of the sweater. The pattern should be available for test knit later in August, and published sometime in the early fall.

Voyager Sweater 

I also plan to work on our next toy mystery KAL, I have few ideas as to what mystery toy he/she should be....

Thank you for visiting.

The Owl Gang

The owl gang

It was summer of 2012 when I bought one skein of yarn. I truly didn't know what I wanted to make from it, I just loved the colors. At one point I made an owl from it, based on Miranda my first owl pattern. When I created my second owl pattern, Ollie, the owlet I knitted one owlet from the same skein of yarn. Then Helga and Otto joined the knitted owl family.

Helga, Ollie, Miranda, and Otto

 I took a picture of them and posted it on my FB page. Two of my friends asked if I could knit them an owl, and they picked Miranda. So I knitted them and took another picture. And there was still yarn left from that one skein of yarn.

Owls 

 It was at this point that I have decided to continue knitting another owl just to see if I can finish another one.

WIP Ollie, seventh owl

While on vacation I finished her and gave her away to another friend. I still had leftover yarn, so I started eight owlet.

Ollie, the owlet and another WIP Ollie

I finished the eight owlet, and there is still small amount of yarn left. I will somehow incorporate the remnants with another yarn together to make another owl. I have also combined all of the four knitted patterns that I have published previously and created a knitting pattern for The owl gang.

It's available in my Ravelry store or you may purchase it by clicking on this button:

The owl gang

Thank you for visiting.

Work in progress II

Owls

Somehow it seems to me that the past few months just run by without me noticing. One morning I woke up and it was winter, the next day the calendar said it's May 1st. I guess the only way I can see the time slipping by is in the things that I have managed to knit.
A few years ago I picked this one skein of yarn, from our local yarn shop. It's Cascade Yarn Heritage Paints, a fingering weight yarn with 473 yards (400 meters) on a single skein. I didn't know what I wanted to knit from the yarn, I bought it because I liked the color. At some point, I knitted an owl from the yarn.
It was Miranda. When I created another owl pattern, I knit Ollie, the owlet from the same skein of yarn as well. Then in January I had the toy mystery KAL for Otto, and I knitted him in the same yarn as well. In the previous year I had another toy mystery KAL for Helga, and I just had to knit here in the same yarn as well. After I posted a picture of the four owls on my FB page, two of my friends asked if I can knit them two Miranda owls. So I did, and there is still some leftover yarn on this one skein of yarn. Therefore I will try to knit another owl from it. All of the owls posed for a picture with the remnants of the yarn. I am curious if there is enough yarn left to finish another owl.


After receiving a box with this beautiful yarn from Cascade Yarn Company I started to swatch for the new and upcoming pattern for my Voyager sweater. I finished my yarn swatch and started to work on the sample.  I hope to have the sample done for a photoshoot in June. Then it's all about writing the pattern, editing, and test knitting. I hope that the whole process will be finished sometime in late August or early September, so the pattern is available for early fall release.

Yarn

Voyager Sweater WIP I.

Voyager Sweater WIP II.

Thank you for visiting.

Work in progress I.

WIP 

Since my last blog post I have been busy.

I was overwhelmed by the amount of visitors and kindness of people who left comments, or send me messages. For three days, when the coupon code was active I felt like my blog went viral, in comparison with the normal activity I can see.
Thank you everyone for your kind words, for your visits, and I hope that there will be plenty of knitted projects created from my patterns.

In the real life we had few snowstorms over here and a lot of snow. On our way to skiing resort this past weekend we saw this sign along the road. It was funny. Although I enjoy skiing and winter, the constant snow shoveling wreck havoc on my lower back. I kind of hope for spring to come soon.

Winter fun?

Otto, the owl was my first toy mystery KAL for this year. The two finished samples I have donated to our local library for fun gift away for the children. Here is the picture from the coloring contest gift away.

Otto, the owl coloring contest

 At the moment we have another fun gift away at the children library. This time they can win Celeste the cat.

Celeste, Cat-trick day gift away

Here are the two Celeste, made out of scrap cotton yarn:

Celeste

I had been asked for a rabbit for the next fun contest. Here is my WIP.

Rabbit

And here is a picture of my future big knitting project. I just received the yarn, and will start working on it as soon as my rabbit is finished. In a way I am returning to the beginning of my knitting life. One of my first knitting projects was a sweater for myself, when I was I think 13 or 14 years old. I made it up completely, without using a pattern. I had that sweater for years, and loved it. After I have knitted many more sweaters, mostly created from my sketches and drawn ideas. I think it's about time to create a sweater pattern, something I have not done yet.

Yarn for Voyager Sweater

Thank you for visiting.