Winter knit patterns to help keep you warm outside.

This year, winter has really hung around.  With the cold hanging around the country we have burned more wood this year than in previous years.  I love to knit and crochet by the fire.  Lately, I am working on a new pattern for a shrug.  Here is a picture of the completed project.

 

It fits women's XS to Medium.  I made it with Merino wool and silk and it is the perfect accessory for adding warmth and flair to an outfit.  This link takes you to the completed shrug.  long shrug.  I am currently working on another for larger sized women in teal and grey.  The results are stunning and I am excited to get this listed in my shop.

 

Hopefully, I will have the pattern ready to be tested soon and it will be available in several sizes.  All my patterns are tested by at least two others and the knit patterns include charts.

 

A scarf is also needed in this weather.  Here is a design for anyone who is dreaming of flowers.

Iris scarf pattern

You can find it already made for you in my Etsy shop and I made it again with a wonderfully soft and  silky Moreno and silk wool.  long lacy iris scarf.

 

Here is another scarf that I designed using Suri baby alpaca and silk yarn.  I love how nice and warm this design keeps the wearer.



 

pine-trees-and-cones-scarf-or-scoodie pattern

 

Of course I had to design some fingerless gloves to complete the set using the same yarn.

 



pine-tree--cone-fingerless-gloves pattern

 

When I was designing the women's gloves my husband asked for something that he could wear so I had to design some fingerless gloves for him and other men.  I made a cable stitch that looks like a winter tree.

 

winter-tree-cable-mens-fingerless-gloves pattern

mens-winter-tree-cable-knit-fingerless for sale



 

Stay warm and be sure to bundle up when venturing into the frozen out doors.

 

victorian-carolers-wall-hanging pattern

crochet-victorian-carolers-wall-hanging already made

 

What do you like to do when it is too cold to go outside?















Christmas knit and crochet patterns.

Time has zipped by here in Kansas and it is now my favorite time of year.  The weather is very nice and cold and I get to sit by my fireplace and knit and design another scarf, fingerless gloves and other warm accessories. Here is the set I designed last year.



Right now I have these two patterns at a special price for those who would like to buy them both at my Etsy shop bundle price sale.  I have several patterns at special bundled prices in this section including the wizard of oz series of bookmarks.sale patterns

 I love the lights on houses and Christmas trees.  I love getting the nativity sets out and using them all over the house.  I have so many that I had to design a new one that can work as either ornaments or as a wall hanging.

 

 

I  love the old Christmas carols that are playing everywhere. Naturally, I had to make a wall hanging to commemorate that love.

 

 

What makes Christmas so special to me?  I think it is the wonderful and very powerful message sent to us via angles to the shepherds on a hill many, many years ago.

 

 



 

The gift that our family celebrates at this time of year is God's gift of His Son to us.  What a miracle He gave us. When the world looks like it is spiralling out of control, I have learned to lay it at God's feet and sit back to wait and see how he weaves it into a beautiful solution.

 

 

What is your favorite part of this very special season?





Crochet art

Have you ever thought of creating a picture using crochet?  I have.  I created a couple of wall hanging patterns and a sun catcher that hangs in windows.  Crochet is such a fantastic medium to make three dimensional shapes. 

I do not have a green thumb but with crochet thread I can have roses blooming all year long.  I added a prism at the bottom which gives me rainbows on my walls all winter long. 

A couple of years ago I made a fantastic wall hanging that would add a Victorian flair to any decor.

Here I mixed yarn and thread.  The background snow and edging done around the inside of an embroidery hoop was done in Caron Simply soft yarn.  (I really like how this yarn feels when I am working with it.)  I wanted the snow and edging to look soft and not take away from the Victorian Carolers in the wall hanging.  I think the mixing of the two worked really well.

This past year I have been working on Nativity ornaments that are unbreakable for young hands (i.e grandchildren) to hold safely.  I decided to make a Nativity wall hanging. 

I used Caron Simply Soft again for the background which allows figures to stand out against the yarn background.  This nativity wall hanging pattern shows how to make each individual figure as an ornament for a tree, wreath or wall display.  It also includes a free star pattern that works up quickly and could be added to gift wrapping or as an ornament. The pattern gives options on either sewing the figures to the background, which makes them permanent to the background, or how to use the figures as tree ornaments and add them to the background on Christmas morning.

What do you think about crochet being made into wall art?  What would you like to see hanging on your wall?

 

A Fabulous Fiber Artist on Etsy

Etsy has so many wonderful fiber artist on it is hard to pick one to showcase.  I just came across Karine Aber's http://www.karart2010.etsy.com/.  It is a fantastic gallery of artwork.  In her Crochet Lace section she has these wall hangings.

She says, "A Crochet Lace Tapestry for a wall decoration, that I am making out of sewing threads #50 with 13/14-0.7mm steel hook. This kind of crocheted lace is very delicate, and is more akin to laces like bobbin lace, since the thread used is so tiny. I hope you like the tapestry with this type of fragile crochet work."

She also has a needle lace section with needle lace tapestries.  I have only seen this type of work in Antique stores and this is the first time I have come across a modern artist continueing this fine work on.

She says, "Needle lace also known as needlelace or needle-made lace is a type of lace.

In its purest form the only equipment and materials used are a needle, thread and scissors, to stitch up hundreds of small stitches to form the lace itself.This form of lace making originated in Armenia where there is evidence of a lace making tradition dating back to the pre-Christian era."

She has a section of wall tapesties called Drawn Thread work (or Hardanger Embroidery).

She says, "Drawn Thread Work is a form of counted-thread embroidery based on removing threads from the warp and the weft of a piece of weaved fabric. The remaining threads are grouped and bundled together into a variety of patterns."

Her shop has tapestries also in hand embroidery, macrame, tapestry and mixed media. Karine's work and attention to detail is truely amazing and each item is a one of a kind work of art.

Karine has a shop for gift items all made by her, if you are interested in buying a one of a kind gift.  That shop's name is http://www.createandenjoy.etsy.com/  It is full of her amazing fiber art work.

She says she was, "Born and grown up in Armenia. Moved to the United States in 2006.


Obtained a Bachelors Degree of the Miniature Painter in Art Education from Arts College of Erevan, Armenia, and a Master’s Degree of the Teacher of Arts and Crafts from The Department of Arts of State Pedagogical University of Erevan, Armenia. Has 25 years teaching experience in Arts and Crafts at the Secondary School and at the Department of Arts and Crafts in the State University of Armenia.

The arts works has been exhibited in Galleries.

Has created works of art for restaurants, hotels, professional offices and residences. The works are also in private collections throughout: Armenia, Ukraine, Russia, Germany, France, Austria, Belgium, United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, Canada and in many states of United States of America.

In 2009, has opened own Arts and Crafts Studio "KARART" in Holiday, Florida, USA."

Check out her wonderful gallery of fiber art work http://www.etsy.com/shop/KarArt2010 or buy a gift from her gift shop at http://www.createandenjoy.etsy.com/.  Fiber Art will never die as long as we have artist's like Karine producing such amazing work.