I don’t know why a vintage red truck with a Christmas tree in the back became an iconic Christmas cross stitch pattern, but you might be surprised by how many of them I found. Let’s take a look at a … Read More...
Stitch a Simple Sack Hat that Looks Like a Turkey
If your family is the sort to do a turkey trot for Thanksgiving, or even just to take family pictures, you’ll want to get started knitting up some Turkey Sack Hats with this pattern from Underground Crafter.
The pattern uses … Read More...
Poppy Crafts for Remembrance Day
Remembrance Day (marked as Veterans Day in the United States) is Nov. 11, and it marks the end of hostilities in World War I. Poppies are a traditional symbol of the day because it is said they were the first … Read More...
The Bunny Sweater Knitting Pattern that’s Actually for Cats
I don’t often share knitting patterns for pets, mostly because I don’t think of it. I don’t have a dog, and I’ve never knit for my cats except a knit couch and a little cat bed I made on a … Read More...
Designer Spotlight: Living on the Rainbow
Sometimes it can be hard to distinguish yourself as a cross stitch designer. Most designers do holiday designs, they often do florals, have text designs that are a little snarky. But if you can find a niche you love and … Read More...
Learn About Greenland for Kids
Greenland is technically an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark rather than its own country, but it’s also the world’s largest island, so that seems worth celebrating. Let’s take a closer look at Greenland!
Greenland Basics
Greenland sits between … Read More...
Book Review: Patty Lyons’ Knitting ER
Patty Lyons is known for teaching knitters the how and the why of knitting skills. Her Knitting Bag of Tricks helped knitters learn how stitches work, why we do things the way we do and what might be better alternatives. … Read More...
Hanukkah Cross Stitch Projects
Hanukkah is a great reason to pull out your cross stitch fabric and thread and stitch up some fun seasonal cross stitch patterns.
If you have trouble spelling Hanukkah (I know I do!) you’ll want to stitch up the How … Read More...
Knitting Machine Scarves with a Fun Twist
One of my favorite things to make on a circular knitting machine is scarves, because they’re a great way to use leftover yarn and certainly faster than knitting by hand.
But if you pay attention to the colors you’re using … Read More...
Gross Motor Math Ideas
With little kids especially, linking learning to physical activity really does help them learn. Movement can help kids focus, and it just keeps them from sitting still all day, which isn’t good for anyone.
The good news is lots of … Read More...
Celebrate Inventor’s Day by Learning about Inventors
Several countries have a day set aside to honor and recognize their inventors, but Nov. 9 is a special one that’s known as Tag der Erfinder in German. It’s celebrated in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and it falls on Nov. … Read More...
Tiny Knits in Team Colors
For years now Berroco has been releasing a tiny set of Christmas ornament knitting patterns, often modeled on human-sized clothes, called Minutia. The ones for this year haven’t come out yet, but somehow I missed last year’s so I wanted … Read More...
Book Review: The Ultimate Cross Stitch Christmas Collection
If you’re looking for a ton of easy cross stitch designs to use for Christmas projects, look no further than Claire Crompton’s The Ultimate Cross Stitch Christmas Collection, which includes more than 500 charts for tiny stockings, angels, ornaments … Read More...
Book Review: The Festival of Lights
As if Diwali weren’t colorful and fun enough, The Festival of Lights: A Lift-the-flap Diwali Celebration by Namita Moolani Mehra, illustrated by Darshika Varm, makes it even more fun to read about with flaps and things to lift and … Read More...
Designer Spotlight: Stitching Housewives
Stitching Housewives offers a ton of cute, sort of country feeling cross stitch patterns with different themes I don’t quite understand but they’re super cute so let’s get into it.
One section is called Dapper Doodads, which it looks like … Read More...
Easy Projects to Knit with a Square (or Two)
I often get asked, or see the question online, as to what is a good project to start with when you are learning to knit.
I usually start adult knitters on a garter stitch scarf worked with bulky yarn (like … Read More...
Celebrating Guy Fawkes Night with Kids
Guy Fawkes Night, otherwise known as Bonfire Night or Fireworks Night, is celebrated on Nov. 5 in the UK to mark the occasion in 1605 when Fawkes and other Catholic dissenters attempted to blow up Parliament and kill Protestant King … Read More...
Book Review: Sock Knitting Success
If you’re new to knitting and you know other knitters, you’ll probably hear about the magical nature of sock knitting. It’s a genre of knitting that intimidates a lot of beginners, but more seasoned sock knitters will tell you there’s … Read More...
Cross Stitch Ideas for Your Holiday Table
We love to make crafts to decorate our homes for different holidays, and it’s always fun to add a handmade touch to the table if you can. I specifically went looking for Thanksgiving themed cross stitch napkins and other tableware, … Read More...
Loom Knitting Patterns for Beginners
I’ve kind of fallen into a loom knitting rabbit hole lately. Long story short, I got burned out a needle knitting, so I figured loom knitting would be similar but not the same, and I am enjoying it, although it … Read More...