Stitch Up a Colorful, Stash Busting Headband

I recently rearranged my yarn stash so that most of it is arranged by color, and it’s inspired me to take a new look at what I have, and to realize that I have a lot of odd balls and little bits leftover from other projects.

I intend to do some big stash busting projects, too, but right now I’m focusing more on little projects that can be done with those little balls, like headbands and earwarmers. These sorts of projects are great for using stash, and they make great gifts, too, and it’s never too early to start thinking about that, right?

The Striation Headband from Lee Meredith for Knit Picks is a great option for using up leftover bits of sock yarn. You can knit it with a single skein if you like, or pull out all the little leftover bits to make a colorful and cozy headband.

Because we all know a pair of socks never quite uses the whole skein, right? I have so many little tiny balls of sock yarn leftovers, and this would be a super fun way to use them.

The pattern is worked in garter stitch, so all you have to do to make it look harmonious is use the same color for at least two rows (one ridge of garter stitch) and alternate colors after working two rows. Always change colors at the end of a row and always on the right side and it’s sure to look great.

Or if you have a skein of self-striping yarn that you don’t know what to do with, just work it by itself and this project will still be super cute and done in a flash.

You could even try the same method with leftovers of different yarn weights, but maybe cast on fewer stitches for a heavier weight yarn so the project doesn’t get too wide.

You can grab the free pattern from Knit Picks.

[Photo: Knit Picks]

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I’ve shared a lot of Christmas stocking knitting patterns over the years (see posts 1, 2, 3 for example) but what if you want to knit a stocking for a non-human member of your family. If you’re looking for Christmas stocking knitting patterns for your cats or dogs, this is the post for you.

These large paw print stockings are perfect for either dogs or cats, so they’re great to knit if you have both. They are worked in the round using DK weight yarn, and the stocking measures about 17 inches/43 cm from the top to the heel. You can get the pattern from nicolaluke.

The K4 Project has a super cute Kitty Christmas stocking pattern, which is worked in worsted weight yarn. They also have a dog version, or you can buy both and get a discount if you have both dogs and cats to knit for. Both projects have two patterns, showing how to work the stockings flat or in the round.

Put your dog into a Christmas scene with this stocking pattern from ifanhourChild. It shows a dog in a dog house in the snow, and has room for the dog’s name at the top. It’s worked flat using worsted weight yarn and the pattern includes charts for many small and medium dog breeds (there’s a separate listing for bigger dogs) so you can stitch a dog that looks like yours.

Annie’s Woolens has both dog and cat stocking knitting patterns that are worked in worsted weight yarn in the round. You can change up the colors to suit your pet if you want, and they come with an alphabet chart for personalization. Or you can stick with holiday colors and buy a kit to make the dog or cat stocking.

Waiting for Santa Paws is a pattern from Kate Agner on Ravelry that would be cute for a dog or a cat. It looks like a leg with a paw print on the bottom part of the foot and more paw prints running around the top of the leg. This is a great option if you don’t want to mess with a heel turn because it doesn’t have a heel, because dogs and cats don’t have heels so why would their stockings?

Book Review – 20 to Knit: Tiny Christmas Toys to Knit

Book Review – Knit Christmas Stockings

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