Knit (Crochet or Sew) Ear Savers for Health Professionals

There’s been a surge in making homemade cloth masks for medical professionals and everyday people to wear to help slow the spread of the virus and protect workers who might not have other equipment to use.

But the elastic on these and other masks can be really irritating to the backs of the ears when you need to wear a mask all day.

One option is to make masks with ties, but if you are making the elastic ear band ones you can also make ear savers, which is just a piece of fabric that can be sewn, knit or crocheted and placed on the back of the head. Buttons on each end hold the loops of elastic so they don’t have to rest on the ears.

The instructions for all three methods are available on Ravelry. (There are no actual knit photos in the instructions; but it’s just a strip of Garter Stitch.) Or check out my pattern for knit ear savers.

Want to knit a face mask? These are fine to wear over a medical mask, and are a fun conversation starter!

[Photo: Cuddly Crochet Creations.]

Getting ready for back to school makes me think about pencil crafts, so let’s take a look at some pencil themed knitting patterns!

I recently made a pencil on a circular knitting machine, and it was a fun, quick, easy project that uses little bits of leftover yarn (and if you don’t have yellow you can make it a colored pencil using whatever color’s your favorite). And if you want to make a bigger version check out this pattern from Orange Olive Road on Etsy.

If you want to knit a pencil pillow by hand, check out Sketchy, available on Ravelry from Shana S. Cohen. This one uses worsted weight yarn and has two size options and the choice to make a pencil with an eraser or a colored pencil.

Pencil scarves seem to be the most popular kind of pencil knitting pattern, and there are lot of cute ones. This one from Cosy Craft UK mostly uses garter stitch, with some welts to add texture and what looks like an I-cord edging. It calls for DK weight yarn.

If you want to go all garter stitch try this version from Emsley Co Creations, which uses five colors of DK weight yarn and just a little shaping to make the point of the pencil.

There’s also this fun, mostly stockinette so it looks like it curls a bit, pencil pattern that looks like it’s worked in chunky yarn from Little Knits Studio. This one uses just a little garter stitch and easy shaping for the point.

If you don’t want a pencil scarf, how about some pencil socks? The No. 2 Pencil Socks from The Yarn Enabler are available from Ravelry and use five colors of sock yarn. They feature wide ribs to mimic the texture of a pencil and have options to be worked from the top down or the toe up.

Needs Sharpening by Alexander Walker is a free pattern on Ravelry that uses five colors of sock yarn to make a sort of shortie sock. The little bit of black at the tips of the toes inspired the name. These, too, can be worked in either direction and are available in three sizes.

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