Knit a Basektweave Style Mug Cozy

Blogger A Cook by the Book is inspired by lots of things when she creates projects. This time around it was a mug cozy with a diagonal knot pattern, along with the pattern stitch from a baby blanket, that inspired her Silvie Coffee Mug Cozy.

It’s a pretty easy little project, worked flat in alternating sections of stockinette and reverse stockinette, along with a garter stitch edging. The pattern doesn’t quite explain how to loopy thread bit that the buttons go through happens, but I’ll bet you can figure it out. Or work a little garter stitch strap with a buttonhole in it that you can use to hold the cozy in place. Either way it’s a cute way to keep your coffee or tea warmer longer.

[Photo via A Cook by the Book.]

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Throughout the saga of the closing of Joann, I’ve been wondering what would happen to CreativeBug, the subscription-based online craft learning platform that Joann acquired in 2017.

Golden Peak Media has announced its acquisition of the company in a media release.

Golden Peak is “one of the largest media and education companies serving art and craft enthusiasts in the United States,” according the release, and includes in its portfolio brands like Interweave, Sew Daily, and nine print magazines including Love of Quilting and Interweave Knits. They have daily newsletters, magazines, digital patterns, on-demand classes and host live events.

David Saabye, CEO of Golden Peak, calls the purchase a “very natural fit” supporting crafters in their lifelong learning journeys.

CreativeBug general manager Liana Allday will stay on and the company will retain its headquarters in Berkeley, Calif.

Abby Glassenberg of the Craft Industry Alliance collected reactions from some CreativeBug instructors and others with a history at the company, and heard lots of optimism about the news. Ursula Morgan, who was CEO of CreativeBug when the company was acquired by Joann, said Golden Peak is a “perfect home” for CreativeBug as they’re getting an owner that “deeply understands the craft consumer.”

I, too, am relieved to see that this platform will be able to continue. I’ve been a subscriber for years and I love that it has solid instruction in a wide range of crafts (including knitting, of course!) and is always adding new content to keep the platform interesting. It’s also a great service that CreativeBug is available to many for free through their local libraries, so be sure to check on that where you live if you don’t already subscribe.

This feels like the last piece of the puzzle in the story of Joann that’s going on all year, along with the announcement that Michaels had purchased Joann’s intellectual property so its private label brands can live on, but of course I’ll keep watching to see if there’s more to come.

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