Here’s a neat idea from blogger the Good Weekly. DIY felt DPN (double-pointed needle) cases. How cute are they? If I had a million hours to do all the cute stuff I found online, I would be a happy camper. But this project… I might just do, even though I don’t have a million hours.
![holder_group-810x537[1]](https://ontheneedles.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/holder_group-810x5371.jpg)
Go visit the Good Weekly to see their super simple tutorial.
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I love knitting gifts for other people, but there are only so many hours in the day, and so many yards of yarn in my stash. So what’s a girl to do? How about making Turkish Bed Socks for all your friends. These ankle socks are a great compromise between being a quick little project, and producing something beautiful and useful.
They make great gifts, since they’re one-size-fits-most (even I, with my big man feet, can fit into them if I add a few extra rows in the foot part, but that’s easy to do). They’re nice for bumming around the house and keeping your tootsies warm, and they look really cute peeking out of clogs or Converse sneakers.
And, a pair of these socks takes only a fraction of the amount of yarn that regular socks take to work up. I managed three pairs of these from one 100g skein of sock yarn. A bargain, if you have to manufacture a bazillion of these.
Also, while the pattern is written as a simple stockinet stitch sock, they suggest that you work your favorite cable, rib, textured, or lace pattern on the top of the foot, which can make each pair unique, and will keep you interested while you knit them up.
So, if you’re looking for a stocking stuffer, try making up some Turkish Bed Socks.
I don’t usually do this, but I just saw this little project on the Mr. Handsomeface Blog, and I just had to show it to you guys. It’s a quick little project to make mini-yarn ball pushpins for your bulletin board. Unfortunately, I don’t have a bulletin board, so I won’t be making them. But you should!
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And what if you stuck in little toothpicks with beads glued on the ends as “knitting needles?” Cuteness Overload!
![all-four-pins[1]](https://ontheneedles.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/all-four-pins1.png)
I must have mentioned at some point that I’m a huge Harry Potter nerd. It’s true. And I’m not one bit ashamed of it. I’ve probably read through the books at least five or six times. I even dressed up with my friends to go to the midnight release of one of the last book. Then we all sat up until dawn reading. Good times.
One of my nerdier purchases (which is saying something), is my well-used copy of Charmed Knits, by Alison Hansel. It’s an unofficial Harry Potter knitting book, and it is utterly delightful.
![charmed_knits_h_sm[1]](https://ontheneedles.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/charmed_knits_h_sm1.jpg)
If you’ve read the books, you know that Mrs. Weasley knits sweaters for each of her seven children every Christmas. And, if you’re a knitter, you know what an undertaking that must be (even with the help of magic!). It’s one of the ways she demonstrates how much she loves her family and how much pride she takes in protecting them.
![harry79034[1]](https://ontheneedles.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/harry790341.jpg)
In Charmed Knits, Alison Hansel has two patterns. One pattern is for a full-sized Weasley sweater (with sizes running from toddler all the way up to adult XXL). The other is for a miniature, Barbie-doll sized sweater. She suggests bending a bit of wire into a teensy coat hanger to turn your tiny sweater into a Christmas ornament. (It’s pretty much the most adorable thing ever.) I’ve made both the full sized sweater (minus the big double-stitched letter on the front; I’m a nerd, but not that much of a nerd) and at least a half dozen mini sweaters.
(This is a mini-Weasley sweater I made for my friend Kate’s Harry Potter-themed 29th birthday party. Also pictured, a felt Mimbulus mimbletonia and a scroll with a magic incantation. Like I said, I’m a nerd.)
The coolest thing about these two patterns? They are constructed in exactly the same way. So, if you’re worried about making your first sweater, why not try knitting up a mini Weasley sweater first, to see how everything fits together before you go? The two patterns are great beginning sweater patterns; simple, and knit at a largish gauge to make the projects go quickly.
So go find a copy of Charmed Knits, and make your family some sweaters for Christmas.
EZ was sort of the original knitting blogger, so I have a bit of a soft spot in my heart for her. She published a quarterly knitting newsletter in the sixties that you could get delivered to your house for 25 cents. (A deal, if you ask me.) She has a ton of really clever patterns to her name, and they’re all written in an interesting “conversational” style, which I really enjoy (although I’ve heard some people complain about it).
In my opinion, her most interesting/clever/cool pattern is her “Baby Surprise Jacket” originally published in Fall of 1968 (though it’s been republished in many places now). It’s a little garter-stitch baby cardigan knit all in one piece. As you knit it up it looks like nothing more than a random pile of knitting. But, when you bind off and execute a couple simple folds and sew in two short little seams (along the shoulders), you end up with an adorable little sweater.
This sweater is one of my favorite things to knit for my friends that are expecting. Here’s why:
1. It’s easy to adapt the pattern for either boys or girls, or for babies whose parents refuse to tell you if they are going to have a boy or a girl. (Jerks)
2. I’ve probably made half a dozen of these sweaters, and I still get excited when I get to the final step and get to fold up the sweater. It’s like magic. Or origami. Or magical origami.
3. This pattern uses just about the same amount of yarn that a grown-up pair of socks uses, so one 100g skein of sock yarn will make an entire sweater. And, depending on the brand of yarn, you might have a little extra to make a matching pair of bootees or a little stuffed animal or something. AND, this pattern looks really cool when you use self-striping sock yarn.
So, go get yourself a copy of this pattern and make a bunch of baby sweaters. (Even if you don’t have any babies/preggo ladies in your life, it’s a fun pattern to try just for the heck of it.)
On the Needles 