Get Some Virtual Learning in with Melissa & Friends

Melissa Leapman is a well-known knitting and crochet designer and all around good human, and when the mess with Stitches went down, causing a lot of fibers arts teachers and vendors to lose money for event registration, travel and sales, she wanted to do something to help.

Melissa & Friends is a four day, virtual knitting event that includes a Friday evening welcome party and cookalong; a la carte classes in reading your knitting, adjusting patterns to your gauge, advanced beginner double knitting, shawl knitting, sock knitting, fixing mistakes and more; and a vendor’s marketplace in which select vendors will offer presentations about their products (often including a coupon code for an event-only discount).

I love this idea so much and there are a lot of great class options that I would say mostly trend toward intermediate knitters, but there’s something for everyone. The event is in Eastern time, but if you register for a class you’ll have access to the video for two weeks, so you can participate from anywhere in the world.

And since Melissa has been so great to organize this event, let’s show her some love by buying some of her patterns at her website or on Ravelry. She also has a bunch of books (her most recent is Insta-Knits) if you’re into that.

And if you missed the whole Stitches story, read about how parent company XRX announced the company would be closing down and ceasing events the day after one of their events finished, an update on people getting chargebacks and some ways to help teachers and vendors, and instructions from their attorney on filing claims. I just checked and the company did file its annual report with the state of South Dakota in July, which doesn’t sound like something a company declaring bankruptcy would do, but we’ll keep an eye on it and report any further developments.

In the meantime, if you’re a teacher or vendor who was affected by the Stitches shutdown, I’d love to help promote your work. Just click on Suggest a DIY at the top of the page and send me a note!

[Photo via Melissa Leapman]

Next Pattern:

Once you get past the rush of the holidays, it’s time to focus on yourself and your home and what’s going to make you feel good for the rest of winter. For me, that’s having a homemade blanket in every room. I’m currently working on a granny stitch crochet blanket, but I wanted to share some cozy knit blanket patterns with you in case you’re on the lookout for something great to knit yourself or someone you love.

I have really been enjoying log cabin projects lately because they’re a great way to use stash and I love the connections between knitting and quilting. This log cabin scrap blanket pattern is free from Very Pink, and it includes a video tutorial if you haven’t done log cabin knitting before. It’s worked in garter stitch and has blocks that are connected by borders in a single color.

Speaking of scrap busting (since that’s on my mind all the time, but particularly when New Year’s resolution time rolls around), the Hue Shift Afghan by Kerin Dimeler-Laurence is worked in a huge array of colors in garter stitch mitered squares. The pattern has options for working with sport weight or worsted weight yarn, and the blanket is worked in quarters and then sewn together, but the individual squares in each section are worked off each other for minimal finishing. Get the pattern from Knit Picks.

If you’re looking for an easy pattern that has a lot of texture, this quilted knit throw from Mama in a Stitch is a great choice. It uses chunky yarn in a single color to make a simple knit and purl pattern that looks like diamonds. The designer notes that a lighter colored yarn is helpful for making the stitch pattern stand out, but you can try whatever color you like.

Or go even simpler with the Bella Vita blanket from Christaco Design. This one uses super bulky yarn (or make it a stash buster by holding two strands of worsted weight yarn together). The pattern has a seed stitch border and allover knit and purl pattern, and includes sizes from baby blanket to California king.

If instead you want a project that will challenge you and occupy your mind as well as your needles, try the Aran texture cable afghan knitting pattern from Pattern Professionals. This gorgeous design features panels of cables and other textured stitches, and the pattern is originally form the 1970s. It uses worsted weight yarn and each pattern strip is worked individually and sewn together (though you could combine them into one big panel if you’d rather).

Next Pattern:

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