Plush heart free pattern

I made this little Plush Heart from the Knitnoodler's Blog for my sweetie for Valentine's Day. The instructions were very clear, and the project knit up quickly.

Ponytail hat free pattern

If you frequently wear your hair in a ponytail or bun, you know how difficult it is to wear a warm winter hat with those hairstyles.

This free pattern, Hannah, designed by Blake Ehrlich, is just the thing to keep all of your head warm while also nicely accommodating your hairstyle.

Since I have a daughter who's living in a cold climate and studying in a vocational program that requires her to keep her long hair tied up in a bun, we thought this hat would be the perfect solution to keep her head warm and her hair tidy.

I made it in Lily Sugar-n-Cream cotton yarn in Sage 02084.

I kept messing up the knitted ribbing that begins this pattern, so I finally went with a side-to-side hdc rib in crochet for the bottom of the hat, then picked up stitches along the upper edge on the knitting needle and finished the rest of the pattern as written.

I think the pattern is well written; I was apparently just too distracted at the time to get the ribbing right, but I’m positive that I will be making this hat again and will try to do it all in knitting next time!

:-)

Shells and Trellis Hat chemo free pattern

This year, I feel moved to crochet and/or knit caps to donate to patients undergoing treatment at a local cancer center. And although I have purchased many patterns over the years (and will certainly be purchasing many more in the future), sometimes it's nice just to be able to use a free pattern.

The expression goes that you get what you pay for, but I've found that there are LOTS and LOTS of high quality free patterns to be found online if you just take the time to look for them. I will try to share links on my blog to some of the patterns I've found and have particularly enjoyed making because I think you will enjoy making them, too. Be sure to give your love to the original designers who have so generously shared their work!

I found this Shells and Trellis Hat pattern at the Halos of Hope website. Their very worthwhile mission is to provide handmade hats to cancer patients in need. Go support them or donate a handmade hat to your local cancer center today because it's a great thing to do.

Update: Halos of Hope has had to suspend its operations, although its website is still online. So anywhere I've suggested that you, my fellow yarncrafters, should donate your wares to Halos of Hope, please amend that to say "your local cancer center" or any other suitable charity program in your area. The pattern for the Shells and Trellis Hat is also available on Ravelry here.

Snow Bear scoodie free pattern

After making my daughter a Just Enough Cape in two of her favorite shades of pink, I needed another project to use up the leftover yarn.

The Snow Bear Scoodie by Debi Dearest was a good option to use up the yarn I had left because it didn't require a whole lot of yarn to make.

 

 

Dark Mark armwarmers free pattern

These arm warmers, inspired by the Harry Potter books, are wicked cool. I made them for Rose Love's latest Christmas present, using the same Caron Simply Soft yarn in Dark Sage green to coordinate with her previous Slytherin gear xmas gifts.

This excellent free pattern, Dark Mark Arm Warmers Pattern and Chart, is designed Christa Casebeer of Nerd Girl Yarns.

I opted to knit this all in green and then add the black accents afterward, including a crocheted black picot trim to the top edge and application of the dark mark itself in duplicate stitch (on the left sleeve only!). For such a small applique, I think the mischief of duplicate stitch is a whole lot easier to manage than intarsia or other techniques.