Happy Crafting.....

 

Happy Crafting to all. After a what felt like a rather short summer we are back to school and also, we are getting back to the cold days when a knitted piece is a must to wear. For the first few weeks I love to wear a simple poncho, as a layer for the colder mornings while the afternoons are still warm. I usually wear the Stripy poncho, but my favorite is probably the Harvest Poncho, I created few years back for I Like Knitting website. The pattern is also in their top 50 patterns collection of all time, along with the Helena sweater. Bellow you can see the photos of both patterns. Both photos are by I Like Knitting. Both patterns are available anywhere my patterns are for sale, see the links on the side, or visit my website: Stana's Critters Etc

What are you going to make this fall? 

Thank you for visiting and happy crafting!

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

New Patterns and more

 

In my blog post from September 2020 (read here) I talked about how my love for knitting and creating started. You can see a photo of my first finished sweater, and in some way my first design of a sweater, even though it was created only to fit me, and I never dreamed of becoming a knitwear designer at that time. 

photo by I Like Knitting

This is my 304th knitting pattern, Helena Cable Cardigan published in February issue of I Like Knitting magazine. The pattern is free for the subscribers. 

link here to the I Like Knitting website

Helena Cable Cardigan on Ravelry

Update on Helena Cable Cardigan

photo by I Like Knitting

For the pictured sample I have use the Cascade Yarns Aereo Tweed in Marine colorwork. It's a snuggly mix of Merino and Baby Alpaca yarn that was a pleasure to work with. 

Two of my previously published patterns are now available as Ravelry downloads and will be shortly also on Lovecraft website and in my Payhip store.  See pictures bellow of the Cuddly Cat Pillow a whimsical pillow and Brie's Cowl an introductory brioche technique in the rounds.

photo by Interweave Knits

photo by Knitpicks

Also, during the last year, I had few more patterns published by I Like Knitting: 

First in August 2021 Issue two patterns for pillows:

Zion Canyon Pillows on Ravelry

Zion Grotto Pillows on Ravelry

photo by I Like Knitting

In September 2021 Issue it was a Raven Plaid Poncho.

 Raven Plaid Poncho on Ravelry.

photo by I Like Knitting

Once the rights to these patterns are reverted back to me, I will add them as PDF files to Ravelry, also to Lovecraft, and Payhip.

My 305th published knitting pattern is a whimsical instant gratification project named Monogram Gift Heart.

At the moment the pattern is available as Ravelry download, and will be added to Lovecraft, Payhip and Knitpicks website. The pattern is written for variety of yarn weights, from fingering all the way to bulky, and has charts for all the letters of the alphabet, a paw print and a written-out direction on how to knit the hearts. It is a perfect project for those long gloomy and cold days as it will brighten up your day as you work on the monogram heart, and it will definitively bring a smile to anyone who will receive this little gift heart. You can play with different letters, creating words and messages.

Happy Knitting.

Thank you for visiting.

Sewing Tutorial for Harvest Poncho

 

Photo by I Like Knitting

Sometimes I receive emails with questions about my knitting patterns and request for further explanation on how to make certain aspect of different knitting patterns. I try to response within a reasonable amount of time and provide the information to help those who ask better understand how things were done and created. 

Recently I received a question about the Harvest Poncho how the two rectangles are sewn together. The pattern itself provides schematic with drawing. However the schematic is a two dimensional and as another visual help I have decided to create this photo tutorial to make it more clear.

  

I have knitted two mini rectangles of what the two actual rectangles will look like when finished. For a better  understanding I made the two rectangles in two different colors.

Position the two rectangles as in this picture, making sure that the right sides are facing the same direction.

Sew the two rectangles together. along the edge using a mattress stitch. After this you have a "L" shape. In the picture bellow you can see the first seam in the left corner where the red arrows points.

The second seam will take place between the points A and B along the edge. In the picture above you can see the orange rectangle with WS facing up and the grey rectangle RS facing up. The orange rectangle RS is on the bottom at the moment. In the picture bellow you can see that the edge is sewn and the right sides are on the outside and the wrong sides are inside of the poncho.

After this seam you are almost finished.  

One side will look like this :

The other side will look like this:

Weave in  the ends and enjoy your Harvest  Poncho. 

Bellow is the link to the pattern itself:

 

Harvest Poncho

Thank you for visiting.

Paw-some Set and Harvest Poncho

 Harvest Poncho, seen in the picture bellow is now available as a pattern download on Ravelry, or you can purchase the pattern by clicking on the button bellow:

The pattern will be soon available on Lovecraft as well. 

photo by I Like Knitting

Harvest Poncho sewing tutorial

Paw-some dog's cowl, human infinity scarf and a hat are all available to purchase on Ravelry, and Payhip and soon will be also on Lovecraft website. You can buy the pattern for the dog's cowl and scarf and separately the hat, or you can purchase the entire set. The button bellow the pictures is for the complete set.

Photo by I Like Knitting

Porta Wrap

 

I took this photograph exactly one year ago. I have finished the wrap few days earlier and it was washed, blocked and measured and the pattern was written up.  The following week I gave the wrap to the receptionist at the doctor's office where I was going for my physical therapy with my elbow. I used to take that knitting project with me and I would work on it while waiting for my appointment. The receptionist always complimented on how much she liked the color, and how nice it looked. After I gave the wrap away, I started another sample, this time instead of using Lion Brand Amazing, Olympia colorway yarn as in the pictured sample I used Caron Cakes in Red Velvet colorway. It has been my "on the go" knitting  project, and someone else was complimenting the wrap as well. I have the finished sample ready to give it away to this person. I will most likely start another sample of this wrap, most likely in different yarn than the previous two samples. 

This easily memorizable pattern is completely reversible and the pattern from this wrap has been redone and later published as Harvest Poncho last fall  by I Like Knitting magazine. 

Photo by I Like Knitting magazine

The exclusive period for the knitting pattern for the Harvest Poncho is over and I will be republishing the pattern later this month. But first I am publishing the knitting pattern for the Porta Wrap.

You can purchase the pattern on Lovecraft (link will be added soon), Payhip: Porta Wrap on Payhip  or Ravelry: Porta Wrap on Ravelry or by clicking on this button:

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.

New Knitting Patterns

Somehow this month I will have several knitting patterns published by a variety of third parties.

First I would like to mention that my  Bark Scarf, previously published by Knitpicks in their book collection titled Flaunt is now available as Ravelry download pattern, and will soon be available to purchase on Lovecraft website as well. I love the simplicity of the mistake rib pattern in one color and two colors and the possibility of colors that can be created. The pattern is written for bulky weight yarn and is fabulous for beginners. 

Four of my knitting patterns were published in the October Issue of I Like Knitting magazine. In this blog post from July I wrote about working on these four pattern and knitting the samples in two weeks.

Deadline Work

First of the patterns that are part of the October Issue 2020 is the Paw-some Hat. It is a matching hat to the Paw-some Dog Cowl and Paw-some Human Infinity Scarf. First two images were taken by I Like Knitting. The last image is my favorite model T-Bone waiting for his daily walk in the fancy Paw-some Dog Cowl. 

Second and third pattern included in the October Issue are Spotted Around Scarf and Spotted Around Hat.  The Spotted Around Scarf is actually on the cover picture of the magazine issue. Both photos by I Like Knitting.

Fourth Pattern in the issue is Harvest Poncho.  A snuggly soft and reversible poncho  knit in wonderful Cascade Yarns Aereo. Photo by I Like Knitting.

 Thank you for visiting.