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If you’d like to contribute, check out the ‘bookstore’ tab above!

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I wish I could say the same about the north of the country The situation there is heartbreaking.

Crafters helping Japan

For the next month, I’ll be donating at least 80% of all pattern and ebook sales, both on here and on Ravelry, to the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief fund.

Madeline Joy is selling a special line of crochet headbands for Japan – 100% of the $5 purchase price goes to relief efforts in Japan.

On Artfire, the Jewellery Sheller is donating all proceeds from her braided hemp fundraiser bracelets to the Red Cross.

Darn Good Yarn is donating 5% of sales to the Red Cross.

Etsy has a list of shops donating some or all of their proceeds to the relief efforts. These include Warm Whimsy (100% of proceeds from paintings and illustrations) and ceddaridge’s flowers for Japan (100% of proceeds from beaded flower sales).

Donate directly

Several organisations are accepting direct donations. Additionally, the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief fund is working with several organisations to get funds to where they are most needed.

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New to loomed beadwork? Here’s how to build a dollar-store bead loom.

Related posts:

1. Loom beading basics – finding patterns (and making your own)
2. Free Ulysses Swallowtail Butterfly pattern chart
3. Dancing robot beadwork motif pattern

Here’s plenty of info about amigurumi, including how to read Japanese patterns. And if one of your New Year’s resolutions was to knit (or crochet) from stash, check out this collection of links to free patterns and ideas for using up yarn scraps and odd balls!

Related posts:

1. How to Read Japanese Amigurumi Patterns
2. Amigurumi design 3 – no-sew amigurumi – Ugly bunnies
3. Designing Amigurumi 2 – tall row shaping with half double crochet

You’ll need:

• 1 skein (approx 150m) each of 2 colours fingering weight yarn
• 3mm circular or double-pointed needles, or size to obtain gauge.
• Yarn needle for finishing

Gauge – 19 sts/24 rows to 10cm

Fits large woman’s head (can be resized by knitting at smaller or larger gauge)

Using background colour, cast on 112 stitches, join to knit in the round, and knit in stockinette for 8 rounds.

On round 9, (k2tog, yo) around.

Knit in stockinette a further 8 rounds.

Join background colour, and work the chart as shown, 8 times each round. White squares on the chart indicate no stitch.

v=knit front and back increase

/=right-leaning decrease e.g. k2tog

\=left leaning decrease such as sl1 k1 psso

When you have completed the chart, thread the yarn through the remaining stitches and draw closed, fastening securely on the inside of the hat.

Fold in the hem and stitch into place using a whipstitch or hemstitch.

If required, block over a 10″ dinner plate.

Related posts:

1. Berry Pie/Pi beret – free knit hat pattern
2. Free Ulysses Swallowtail Butterfly pattern chart
3. How to knit lace – Autumn leaves beret

The basic process of making a picot hem is to knit an eyelet row, which is then folded and sewn into place so that the eyelets make a pretty scalloped edging.

To make a picot hem, knit in stockinette stitch to the desired length of your hem. This should be at least four or five rows, as anything less will not stop the piece curling.

On the next right-side row, knit 2 together, then yarn over, repeating across the entire row.

Knit in stockinette stitch again to the desired depth of the hem.

When you have finished knitting, fold the hem over at the eyelet row, and sew the edge into place. You’ll need the sewn edge to have some stretch in it to match the knitted fabric – I suggest using a whipstitch as shown, or a zig-zag hem stitch.

Come back on Wednesday for a cute fairisle hat incorporating a picot hem!

Related posts:

1. Knitting basics 2 – learn to purl, illusion knit bag
2. Berry Pie/Pi beret – free knit hat pattern
3. How to knit socks part 2 – short row heels

To make diagonal stripes and chevrons, each strand in the design took a turn at being the ‘working’ strand, which the other strands were knotted around. This meant that all our strands could start out the same length. To make legthwise stripes and other patterns, only one strand is the ‘working’ strand, and weaves backwards and forwards across the width of the band, as we tie the other strands round it to form the pattern. This means that your working strand needs to be much longer than the other strands. I usually leave one strand attached to the skein, so I don’t risk running out of working thread toward the end of the design.

To make horizontal stripes, lay out your threads in the order you want your stripes, with the long working thread to the rightmost side.

Working from right to left, knot each pattern thread in turn, using a forward knot, around the working thread. You’ll notice that this is the opposite to making a diagonal stripe, where the working thread is tied round each other strand in turn.

Your working thread should be to the far left at this point. Now change direction, tying a backwards knot with each pattern thread in turn around the working thread, from left to right.

Your working thread has now gone across the band in both directions. You’ll notice that you don’t see your working thread at all.

Repeat the whole process as many times as you wish to make a striped band.

To make a checked pattern, every few rows you’ll reverse the process, so instead of tying the pattern threads around the working thread, you’ll tie the working thread round the pattern threads. Use the opposite knot for these rows as well – a backward knot for a right-to-left row and a forward knot for a left-to-right row.

A similar process is used to make other designs. This time, your working thread should be in your chosen pattern colour, and your other strands should be in the background colour(s).

Work plain background rows in the same way as for stripes. When you want to add a pattern knot, tie the working thread around the background thread, instead of the backround thread round the working thread. Use the opposite knot – if you’re working the background row in forward knots, use a backward knot, and vice versa. Basically, wherever you are in the pattern, the background thread you just used should be pointing in the opposite direction to the way you’re working. So if you’re going right to left, the background coloured strand you just knotted should always point to the right of the working thread.

You can make any number of different patterns this way, including lettering and other designs.

Related posts:

1. How to fingerweave friendship bracelets
2. How to make a 4-strand round leather braid
3. Beaded weaving – make a beaded textile necklace

You’ll need:

• A length of wood or bamboo, around 3-6mm thick, 8-12mm wide, and the length of your thumb or longer.
• Hacksaw, if your wood is longer than your thumb
• Drill and small-diameter bit – about 3-5mm, depending partly on the width of your wood.
• needle file, narrow enough to go through the hole you drill
• coarse-grit and fine-grit sandpaper
• oil (baby oil, vegetable oil, beeswax or other wood-polishing oil. NOT coloured) and a soft absorbent cloth

First, drill a hole in one end of the length of wood. The hole should be in the centre widthways, and about 8-12mm from the end.

Use the hacksaw to trim your wood to length, if required. About the length of your thumb, palm to tip, is a comfortable length to work with.

With the needle file, shape and smooth the drilled hole into an oval shape. This can be a fiddly process! You may want to use a length of scrap yarn to check that the hole can be threaded easily and does not catch on the yarn.

Shaping is done with the coarse sandpaper. You can use a file if you wish, but I don’t find it any quicker and it is easy to take too much off. Round off the eye end of your needle, and the corners along the length, then sand the other end to a point, rounded slightly. To do this, you may find it easier to lay the sandpaper flat and rub the needle over the paper, rather than rubbing the paper over the needle.

Once you have a shape you are happy with, sand all over with fine-grit paper to smooth any sharp edges or splinters that may catch on your work. Finish by coating with oil, allowing the oil to soak in for a few minutes, then polishing it off with a soft absorbent cloth.

Your needle may seem a little rough at first, but it will become smoother and more polished as you work, from both the friction of the yarn, and lanolin from the wool soaking into and polishing the wood.

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1. Nalbinding – Oslo stitch pouch
2. Make a DIY rigid heddle loom
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You’ll need:

• felted bag
• felted roses and leaves
• fiber to match your bag
• felting needle and mat

We’ll begin by adding some felt handles. If you prefer, you could sew on handles of fabric, webbing or leather, or add eyelets to thread through a cord or chain handle. I like the look of these chunky felt handles, though, so lets take a look at how to make them.

Take the fibre that matches your bag, and pull off a length of roving the same length you want your handle, plus 2-3 inches either end for fixing it to the bag. Speaed it out on the mat and needle-felt roughly until it just holds together in a rough rectangle. Work only the length of the handle – the ends should be left fluffy and loose to enable them to be felted onto the bag.

Next, roll the rectangle lengthwise, into as tight a cylinder as you can manage, and work along the join to stop it coming unrolled. Now work all over the cylinder with your felting needle, making the cylinder as tight and compact as possible, rolling as you go so as to work evenly all over. The more you felt the handle at this point, the stronger it will be.

Finally, bend the handle so it forms the same shape as it will do when attached, and work the inside of the curve to hold it in this bent position. This makes attaching the handle easier, and works out any folds and crumples that may appear when you bend the cylinder.

Now we have all our pieces ready to be fixed together. This is done by holding the pieces in position, and then working over them with the felting needle, through the handle (or flower) into the fabric of the bag, until it is firmly attached. For an extra-firm join, work from the back as well, through the bag and into the handle join.

Felt the flowers into place in the same way, tidy up any loose ends by felting them in, and admire your handiwork

Related posts:

1. Make a felt flower purse – part one, the bag
2. Make a felted flower bag 2 – needle-felt roses and leaves
3. How to make a felt beret