Ideas for Craft Fairs and a Cute Christmas Project

Did you know you can share what you’ve been blogging about with me and I can share it with readers? Just click on that link at the top that says “suggest a DIY.”

There are several people who regularly share links, and I really appreciate it. One of them is Donna, aka purl3agony, and I have a couple of links from her this week because I’ve been slow getting through them lately so I thought I’d share them together.

The first has to do with ideas for things you can knit that will sell well at craft fairs or shows. There are some great ideas here for what is trending in the craft world (boot toppers, headbands, ruffle scarves) as well as perennial favorites (baby things, washcloths) that you should consider making as well.

A lot of these are great gift ideas, too, if you’re still thinking about such things (I am seriously considering ruffle scarves in school colors for the girl’s teachers).

The second post is another great one leading into the holidays, all about knitting a tree skirt for a tabletop tree. Donna received a ceramic tree from her in-laws, but was worried it might scratch the table. She knit up a circular doily for it to sit on that looks like a tree skirt. And while hers is plain white so she can use it for other things through the year, she offers ideas for giving it more of a holiday look if you want.

Who are some of your favorite knitting bloggers? I’m always looking for more people to keep up with!

[Photo via purl3agony.]

Not too long ago I did a test knit for another designer that was for a cabled cardigan. It’s really cozy and nice but it just about broke me in a ton of different ways. I couldn’t get gauge, which I suppose is my own problem, but mainly I was somehow both bored and forced to pay attention at the same time.

Because it used the same cable all over, I always had to know what row I was on, but nine out of ten of those rows, nothing in particular was going on. So I couldn’t stop paying attention, but what I needed to attend to was boring.

It may have ruined me for knitting cabled sweaters, but maybe I just need something that’s more engaging. Like this Modern Aran Cardigan pattern from Lion Brand Yarn.

This is a reworking of an old pattern from their archives, and you can tell that form the classic look of the cables and the oversized feel (nothing cropped about this one!). It has allover cables, but like a classic Aran sweater it’s not the same cable, so you’ll have to pay attention to what row you’re on and what cable turns happen for which cables on that row.

Because of this, it’s considered an intermediate knitting pattern, but if you’re comfortable working from multiple charts at once it shouldn’t be a problem for you. There are three different charts and seven different cable moves.

Also because the pattern is so big and boxy there are only two sizes available, with a finished chest measurement of either 49 or 63 inches (that’s 124.5 or 160 cm). It’s up to you to decide how much ease you would like and whether that will work for your body.

The pattern uses worsted weight yarn (and calls for another classic, Lion Brand Fisherman’s Wool). It calls for six buttons and includes pockets to make it extra cozy.

This one looks like a great winter project to make and to wear if you’re up for a bit of a challenge. You can grab the free pattern or buy a kit with the yarn needed direct from Lion Brand Yarn.

[Photo: Lion Brand Yarn]

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