Knitting

Patterns, projects and techniques

Knit a Patch Full of Pumpkins

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Now that it’s October, fall is really here and pumpkins are popping up everywhere. So you might as well have a knitted pumpkin  on your knitting needles too, right?

The good news is there are lots of really cute options for knit pumpkin patterns on Ravelry and elsewhere, so you can knit up a whole wooly knitted pumpkin patch in different styles and colors if you like.

Natural Suburbia has a really cute, simple and quick (though all those words could probably be used for all of these) little pumpkin that’s a whole 13 rounds long. You can probably knit it in less than an hour!

The Curly Purly Pumpkin Pattern is a great one because you can knit it with any yarn you happen to have around. Pick corresponding needles (or go down a needle size to make the fabric a little firmer for stuffing), cast on 35 and you’re ready to go.

Knit Picks’ Spice and Clove Pumpkins are available as knit or crochet patterns, and they’re kind of nice because they are more of a harvest orange rather than a Halloween orange (much like my Pumpkin Spice Knit Bowl, by the way).

Anne Mancine’s Funky Pumpkins look great in novelty yarn, but you can use whatever yarn you have on hand for these rustic beauties.

Jordana Paige made pretty felted pumpkins for Knitty, which you can stitch up in two different sizes. Another cute felted option comes from Joy Jannotti.

And Jan Lewis’ Autumn Pumpkins are a nice simple pattern worked in the round with an I-cord stem and a garter stitch leaf. Cute!

Have you ever knit a pumpkin? I’m really thinking about it now!

Looking for more Halloween Knitting patterns? Check these out on Etsy.

Specific to knitters, you can join our Knitting Patterns Only group to get, well, knitting patterns, ask questions and gain inspiration for what to knit next.

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Golden Peak Media Acquires CreativeBug

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.