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My final Autumn post for this year is the quintessential Autumn vegetable - The Pumpkin! What can we say about pumpkins? They look good, they taste good, and they're a great color. So my knitting brain naturally connected this to babies who also always look great, especially when they're wearing cuddly cocoons. First came the Carrot Cocoon, then the Green Pea Pod Cocoon, and now the Pumpkin Baby Cocoon.... Just what's needed for taking babies Over the River and Through the Woods to Grandmother's House on Thanksgiving, or any other day! The cocoon is snug and warm for Autumn strolls in the carriage, photo-ops, or just cuddling. It's a great way to calm your infant! The pattern has a photo tutorial on how to knit the leaves and includes step-by-step pictures and directions for making invisible increases. Here's a full view of the cocoon: This Pumpkin Cocoon is available as a knitting pattern and there's also one available that I knitted in pure Merino wool. Th...

Happy Halloween everyone! I was going to write many more Signs of Fall, but this year the season has been extraordinarily busy for me. Most importantly, my daughter got married on October 5th and between the lead time and the aftermath time, it took me several weeks to get back on schedule. A very happy event! At any rate, my Carrots and Peas Baby Cocoon Patterns did very well this year as newborn baby costumes.   Carrot Baby Cocoon and Hat Set    Green Pea Pod Baby Cocoon Set   These patterns have been popular for a couple of years because they are so fast and easy to make with thick yarn and big knitting needles. Even new knitters tell me they can finish one in a couple of evenings. These are adorable all year, not just for Halloween. They're always sweet for family pictures and would be a great way to bring baby "over the river and through the woods to Grandmother's house" for Thanksgiving! I was even thinking that if the bobbles on the Pea Pod Cocoon were ma...

Autumn is my favorite season. I love the foliage colors, the golden quality of the light, and the bountiful harvest. Here in New York City, there's lots of fresh corn available at the Union Square Farmers' Market and elsewhere. I've been gorging on Sweet Buttered Corn and will be having some tonight. I love it so much, I've made a soft woolen scarf dedicated to it. So even when there's no more corn to buy and eat, you can still wear it! I used a beautiful 100% soft wool yarn for the scarf. It's knitted and then edged with crocheted bobbles. The textural result gives it a definitely corn-like appearance. As a final touch, I added two tiny corncob buttons to each end. So when it comes to corn on the cob I say... eat it or wear it! This scarf is available in my Artfire store Here . Happy Autumn!

My 4th of July celebration preparation continues with my newest pattern - Red, White and Blue Coasters. You can make one of these coasters in less than 30 minutes including crocheting, finishing and blocking! Create a little excitement for any national holiday - Independence Day, Presidents' Day, Election Day, Memorial Day - with these Fireworks Coasters.   I'm very lucky to have a view of the frequent holiday fireworks in New York City from my house near the New York harbor. They're always spectacular and were the inspiration for these coasters.  I wish you all a very happy 4th of July holiday! This pattern is available at Etsy and Craftsy . Enjoy!

Are you getting ready for the 4th of July? I made this Firecracker Necklace to celebrate this year. The necklace is a graduated series of curlicues on a choker base. I made it with a shiny red rayon (bamboo) thread and added an appliqued gold metallic chain around the base. The necklace fastens with a vintage button from the 1960s.  I've made this style before and it's firm and durable - made to last for decades. It's lightweight and fun to wear all year. Since it looks like firecrackers to me, it's especially nice for celebrations.  If you crochet, please let me know by your comments here if you'd like me to create a PDF pattern for this one and I'll add it to my TO DO list! The necklace is available in my Etsy shop.

I always make sure I have some Gifts for Men in my Etsy shop because I find it hard to buy presents for men. This week I'm having a Father's Day Sale. Just use code FREESHIPDAD when you checkout in my Etsy shop: http://www.KnittingGuru.etsy.com and you'll receive free shipping on your purchase in the Gifts for Men Section of my shop. Here's a picture of the knitted and crocheted men's scarves I have available. They're all made with luxurious Merino wool, English chunky wool, or mohair. They are also one of a kind or limited edition pieces, so you'll be getting an original. Also, there are still 14 days until Father's Day, so if you crochet, you can make the Fred Astaire Scarf featured in this picture in just a few short hours in your man's favorite colors. You can purchase the Fred Astaire Scarf in my Etsy shop in the Patterns Section, or at Craftsy .  Thanks for stopping by and Happy Father's Day to All!

Brand New This Week -  the 'Round the Loop Crochet Scarf Pattern . It's super-fast and easy to crochet. The stitches used are chain, slip stitch and half double crochet. You'll be surprised at the intricate texture you'll achieve using these simple stitches. Even a new crocheter could make one of these in an evening. The scarves shown are made with Paton's Roving - a soft wool unplied yarn, and Web's Berkshire Bulky - a wool and alpaca singles yarn. Because of the pattern's openness, the yarn texture really stands out so that the scarf looks very different in these two yarns. Suggestions for ways to vary the scarf are given in the instructions. An effective substitute for the bulky yarns, for example, is to use knitting worsted doubled. These scarves don't take much yarn at all. With one skein of each color, you'll have enough yarn left over to make a matching hat. You can get your pattern here at Craftsy or Etsy . I hope you'll enjoy making thi...