My grandpa recently started making these great little wooden boxes. They’re perfect for so many uses. They even fit in awkward spaces like a car or truck. I’m using mine as a trash can, since a plastic grocery bag fits perfectly inside. My uncle has a great custom one with three sections for his log books and maps and whatever other magical uncle things he carries around. We’re selling them on Etsy! Free shipping in the USA!

I’m completely devastated today at the news of the passing of one of our time’s greatest and most brilliant minds – Alexander McQueen. This man’s work has been such an inspiration and a comfort to me for as long as I’ve been involved in fashion. His most recent show, the Spring 2010 Ready-to-Wear collection, went beyond what anyone else could have ever imagined. The world has been blessed to be allowed to see the colors and shapes invented by McQueen. I feel a great loss today.

Recently, I got engaged, and the wedding planning that has ensued has been more than a little overwhelming and time-consuming. As a life-long crafty girl, I’m hoping to make as many decorations as possible by myself, as well as all the paper goods. So this morning, I was wondering what I could knit for the event, which will be in the winter, so it won’t be inappropriate.

My first idea is to wear the scarf my mom knitted for my dad, which he wore at their wedding. It’s purple, and it nicely complemented the silver vinyl suit he was rockin. Not kidding! I think it would be cute to wear as we leave the reception, plus it will keep me warm!

What other things would you knit for a wedding?

I have been uninspired lately. I’ve been trying… but nothing’s happening. I’m sure something great will hit sooner or later, but for now, check out some of my most popular posts, over there in the sidebar!

Hey all! I’ve got a pair of socks up for sale at my new Etsy shop: Made by Nae (opens in new window/tab). Right now they are the only product I have for sale, but I’m working on a few other projects that will be posted here as patterns and on Etsy for sale.

I don’t have any patterns to post today, but I wanted to update with something, so instead, here are some pieces that I have found that are inspiring me to create. I can’t post pictures because of possible copyright issues, and I don’t want to cause any confusion, so I’ll just post links. All the links will open in a new window/tab, so you don’t have to keep clicking back.

From Free People, a great clothing company I discovered earlier this fall in Dallas:
Pink/White Knit Hooded Cowl
I like this cowl because it’s very simple. The detail stitching on the edges is just too cute! I prefer the bright pink, not only because that’s my favorite color, but also because the pattern is a lot easier to see.

Cable-Knit Hooded Cowl with Pom-Poms
This one is really cute in white. The grass color is okay, but I’m not a grass kind of girl. It looks a little weird with the model’s blonde hair to me, so I would imagine it might look odd with my blonde hair.

From Anthropologie, which I have love love LOVED for several years now! Their clothes have sort of a vintage feel without the fear of vintage smell :)
Floppy Handknit Ribbed Sweater
This cardigan looks SO soft and comfortable! Plus, it looks simple enough that I could actually attempt to make it. The description says it’s like a sweater and scarf all in one.

Basketweave Knit Cowlneck Sweater
I usually think that allover basketweave like this is just a little too much texture, but I love it on this sweater. Something in the shape just makes it work perfectly!

From Fossil. Ever since one of these opened in one of my local malls, I have learned to love their clothes and accessories more than the watches they’re best known for.
Cableknit Scarf with Tassels
This scarf looks super soft and cozy. I love the colors, and I’m a sucker for anything with huge cables.

Alrighty, those are my few inspiring things! I’m a little behind schedule, but I do have some excellent winterwear knitting patterns on the way.

Earlier this spring, I knitted a few socks. The first set turned out great, but the second one I made was just way too tight! I could hardly squeeze my tiny tiny foot into it. So I came up with this ribbed pattern that allows the foot portion to stretch. These pictures are the third sock I ever made. Keep in mind that I used a self-striping yarn, rather than switch between all those different colors. If you want to have identical socks, be sure to start each sock in the same color sequence.

Click the photos for a larger view!

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Yarn: One skein of any sock yarn. I prefer any brand that has a little bit of stretch to it, and of course something self-striping. Self-striping sock yarn is one of my favorite things in the world!
Needles: Size 2 (3mm) double point needles – set of 5.
Cast on: 60 stitches over 4 needles – 15 per needle.
Cuff: Work in the round, 3×3 rib (k3, p3) for about 3″.
Next: Once the cuff is complete, start the next row in stockinette – knit every stitch – for 39 stitches. After 39 stitches in stockinette, you should have only 21 stitches left. These stitches you will continue to rib to create the stretchy run down the center of the sock. When only those 21 stitches are left, you will p3, k3, p3, k3, p3, k3, p3. You should now be back at the beginning of the row. Continue in this pattern – k39, rib as described above – for about 4″.
Start Heel: The heel gets a little tricky due to the ribbed stitches. On a normal sock, the heel is the first point that the shaping of the sock starts, but for this one, the ribbing starts it. Take your spare needle (the one without stitches on it) and transfer stitches amongst your needles as follows:
Needle 1, OR stitch holder: 30 stitches will go on this one. From right before the ribbing starts, put 4 stitches on the needle/holder. Also move all 21 stitches of the ribbing, then the 5 stitches past the ribbing. You should have 30 stitches on your needle or stitch holder. The main concern is that the ribbed portion should be in the middle. You will have 30 stitches left on your other needles.
Needles 2 & 3: Move 15 of the remaining 30 stitches to one needle and 15 to another.
Needles 4 & 5 should have no stitches on them. However, if working with only 3 needles becomes difficult for you, it is okay to split the ribbed portion up onto two needles or stitch holders. You will only be working with the non-ribbed area until the heel is completed.
Shaping the heel: With the right side (outside) of the sock facing you, knit until the last stitch, bring your working yarn to the front of your work, then slip the last stitch onto a spare needle or stitch holder. Move the working yarn to the back and return the slipped stitch back onto the needle and turn your work over to the wrong side (inside). This method is referred to as wrap and turn.
Next row: Purl until the last stitch, wrap and turn as you did before.
Third row: You should now be on the right side again. Knit until the last stitch before the last one you worked, then wrap and turn. Continue to repeat this pattern every row, working 1 less stitch at the end of every row until there are 14 stitches left in the center.
Foot: Go back to stockinette stitch, reincorporating the ribbed area that has been on your extra needle or stitch holder, and go back to using all 5 needles. Treat the wrapped stitches normally to close up holes and gaps. Once you have done a few rows of stockinette, you will see the shape of the heel, just like a store-bought sock. Continue to knit in stockinette for about 7.5″. If you have a longer foot, add some length. I wear a size 8 US shoe and 7.5″ was just right.
Toe: On needle 1, knit until the last 3 stitches, knit 2 together (k2tog), knit 1. On needle 2, K1, slip 1, knit 1, and then pass the slipped stitch over the knit stitch (SKP), which decreases your row. Repeat needle 1′s pattern for needle 3, and needle 2 for needle 4. This is your first decrease row. You should now have 58 stitches left. For the next 3 rows, knit in stockinette with no decreases. Work one decrease round, then two normal rounds. Work another decrease and two more normal. Then, for 6 rounds, repeat a pattern of decrease round, normal round. Next, work a decrease round every round until you have only 8 stitches left. Cut your working yarn, leaving about 6 inches to work with. Weave the working yarn through the remaining 8 stitches to finish the toe. Tie off very securely.

I’ve been avoiding knitting any scarves for about a year now, because I couldn’t come up with any different, creative ideas for patterns. I have about a dozen brightly-colored stockinette scarves in a plastic tub in my closet, so I don’t really need a new one. But then I saw a fantastic sweater in Vogue that was very hip, very different, and a lot less complex than it looked, so I went to work adapting it into a scarf. I absolutely adore this look. It’s edgy, reversible, and it can be stretched out wide or rolled up thin. The fringe is very optional, so don’t worry if you are not a fan. The gray is the same yarn as my super-popular slouchy beret pattern, so if it ever gets cold here, I can wear them together!

Click the photos below for a larger view!

Yarn: one skein per color of worsted weight/light bulky yarn. No surprise, the yarn I used here is still my fave Bernat Softee Chunky. I made my scarf kind of short because I didn’t want to wrap it multiple times around my neck or loop it. Mine is about 4.5 feet long and I had probably a third of each skein left when I was finished. Unless you want to go for knee-length, one skein per color should be more than enough. I used black and grey because those are the colors that I had on my yarn shelf already :D
Needles: #13(9mm) straight needles. I love using big needles whenever I can because it’s so fast :D
Cast-on: 21 stitches, using your first color (mine was black). To adjust the width but keep the same pattern going, add or subtract increments of 4 stitches. For example, a skinnier scarf would start with 17 stitches, and a wider one would have 25.
First Row: Knit one, purl 3, repeat to end.
Second Row: Using the same color, purl one, knit 3, repeat to end.
*OPTIONAL* Fringe: After two rows of one color, you will switch to the other color. To create fringe, do NOT pull the new yarn tight when you knit the first stitch of the row with your new color. You must leave about 8 inches of yarn hanging from the needle in order to have yarn to tie off into a tassel-y fringe later on. The best way I’ve found is to just pick up my working yarn about 8″ down the strand and use it normally. This yarn will create loops about 4″ long as you continue. Don’t skimp on the length of your loops or you won’t have enough yarn left to work with when it is time to tie off the fringe!!! This will make the first stitch of the row very loose every time you switch to a new color, but just pull it as tight as you can so it doesn’t get hung up or twisted. You will be able to pull it tight when you tie off the fringe later on. It will be confusing to work with at first, but after a few color-switches you will get used to it and figure out how to work with it.
*WITHOUT* Fringe: If you are not a fringe fan, ignore the optional options above and just pick up the new color at the beginning of the third row. Pull the yarn tight as normal and leave no extra yarn at the end of the row. The edge of your scarf will look perfectly normal and fine without it.
Third Row: Switching to your new color, knit one, purl 3, repeat to end.
Fourth Row: Still using the second color, purl one, knit 3, repeat to end.
To continue: Repeat the above four-row pattern until the scarf is your desired length. When you reach your destination, bind off loosely.
To finish fringe: Spread out your scarf on a hard, flat surface. I do not recommend your bed, lap, or a couch, unless you are absolutely sure that you won’t accidentally cut anything other than yarn! I do not trust myself that much, so I used a table. With the fringe toward you, cut each loop in the middle, creating two approximately 4″ long strands per loop. Unless you are very picky, don’t worry if they are not all the same length. After you tie them off, you can trim them if necessary. Pick up the first four strands of each color (8 strands total per tassel) and twist them into a thin rope. Turn the rope into a loop and push the end of the rope behind and up through the loop to create a knot. Pull tightly while holding the edge of the scarf and any looseness created by leaving the extra yarn will cinch right up. Continue until all the loops are tied up!

I’ve been obsessed with New York Fashion Week since it started, and despite my efforts to watch all the slideshows, I’m still waaaaaay behind. I did pick up on a few trends, however, so I figured I should try my hand at one. Sadly, Marc Jacobs’ fanny pack was a little more than I was willing to handle. I’ve seen armwarmers on some celebs, models, and in a few campaigns, and although I haven’t worn them since I was 15, I went for it. I apologize that I am only wearing one armwarmer in these photos. I know that two would have been the full effect I was going for, but my sister and nephews are coming to town on Monday and I just won’t have the time to finish a second armwarmer before then. However, you can kind of tell that I have pink highlights in the first photo :) – which I am SMILING IN!!! (Shout outs to Dean, who is one of my favorite people and a big supporter of this site)

Click the pictures for a larger version:

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Yarn: One skein, worsted weight yarn (again, I used Bernat Softee Chunky. I bought a lot of it after I liked it so much on my hats and now I’m trying to use it all up :D) For one armwarmer, half a skein will be plenty. The whole skein should be plenty for a pair of armwarmers, but if you need to modify the pattern much (adding stitches), pick up an extra skein just in case.
Needles: #7 (4.5mm) double-point needles. A set of 4 should work great, but you can use 5 if you prefer. Also, sock-knitting length dpns can be used instead of 7″ or 8″ length.
Cast-on: I have pretty small arms. I used 34 stitches, but if you have larger arms or just want extra room for added slouch, add stitches to your cast-on in increments of 5. It MUST be in increments of 5 or the “swirly” pattern will be thrown off. Divide stitches between your needles.
Starting Ribbing: I wanted 2×2, but I realized after I settled on 34 stitches that 2×2 wasn’t happening :/ So my armwarmer uses 1×1 rib. In any case, make a cuff about 1.5″ long.
Length: This pattern looks a lot more complicated than it is at first. I love the texture that I wound up with. This was completely experimental and it turned out fantastically. Anyway… The pattern for the entire length of the armwarmer is: knit 4, purl 1, repeat. Because this is a grouping of 5 stitches and you started with a number of stitches that is one less than a multiple of 5, it creates a swirling effect and an illusion of “stair-stepping.” I love it! Continue doing this until your armwarmer is as long as between your elbow and wrist, or about 2″ longer if you want them extra-slouchy.
Ending Ribbing: Using the same ribbing as before, make another cuff about 1.5″ long.

Ta-Da! You too can now look like a high fashion model. And heck, just for funsies, here’s one last photo of my entire outfit, which I threw together in the 30 seconds between “Star Wars” and “UFC Fight Night.” Yes, those are brown leggings with black shoes! PS My shirt is bunched up in a weird way on my butt, which is not sticking out in a weird way like it looks. PPS and yes, this is mostly an excuse to show off my Carrie Bradshaw shoes.

Just wanted to let you all know I’ve redone the theme around here.  This is the one I plan to keep for now, as it’s got all that great info on the sidebars.  Let me know what you think!