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Hands Occupied

Colorful knitting, crochet, latch hook and macrame from craft book author & designer Heidi Gustad.

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Announcing the Exquisite Mystery Knit Along!

December 27, 2016 3 Comments

Join the Exquisite Mystery Knit Along starting January 1. Designed collaboratively by three designers: Heidi Gustad, Christopher Salas & Sarah Abram, this knit along is not to be missed!

What happens when three knitwear designers come together to create a mystery knit along design? Lots of fun, it turns out. Fellow designer Sarah Abram (aka sarahbearcrafts) approached Christopher Salas (aka alternaknit) and I several months ago with a proposal: help design a pattern where each of us is given three balls of yarn and two weeks to design a third of a finished pattern. Inspired by the exquisite corpse storytelling model, each designer would build on the previous designers’ section, not knowing at ALL what to expect from the other sections until the finished designs were in their inboxes. Kind of crazy, right?

Yes, yes it was totally crazy, but it was also the most satisfying creative collaboration I’ve ever been lucky enough to be a part of! At the end of the design process, we all got together in Chicago (Sarah’s and my home turf) to shoot some photos of each of our finished pieces, to shoot videos with tips for success and behind the scenes tidbits about our clues, and of course, to edit the pattern as a whole. Here’s the first little video that may be familiar to Facebook followers.

That’s right! Preorders of the Exquisite Mystery Knit Along pattern are open now through January 1 for just $5 before jumping to $7 when the first clue drops. Here’s the schedule we put together for this knit along:

January 1 – Clue 1 by Heidi Gustad/me drops
January 8 – Clue 2 by Christopher Salas goes live
January 15 – Clue 3 by Sarah Abram is published, completing the pattern

All three of us designers will be active on the Ravelry thread for the duration of the KAL, ready to help answer all of your questions. I’ll also be releasing video tutorials for the particularly tricky stitches on my YouTube channel throughout the process, and all will be available on this playlist if you’d like to bookmark it to get ahead on things. :)

How to get ready for the #exquisiteMKAL

Speaking of getting ahead on things, there are a few things you can do besides bookmarking the Ravelry thread & playlist. Before we cast on January 1, pick out your yarn and swatch! We recommend 3 skeins of Dream in Color Jilly with Cashmere or Jilly, in a light color, a dark color, and a bright color. Swatch with the dark color to make sure you choose the right needle for your project! (Spoiler but important: we built enough yardage into the design to accommodate swatching with the dark color. Gauge is important only with regard to yardage. Knit a swatch of stockinette in DC and gently wet block it to measure your gauge.) For now, this is all I can tell you, but soon, all will be revealed!

Join the Exquisite Mystery Knit Along starting January 1. Designed collaboratively by three designers: Heidi Gustad, Christopher Salas & Sarah Abram, this knit along is not to be missed!

Yarn support for this design was provided by Dream in Color yarn. To learn more about the Exquisite Mystery Knit Along and get tips for choosing color combinations before the first clue goes live, check out the Exquisite Mystery KAL Ravelry Thread and preorder the pattern here.

Filed Under: Knit Along, Knitting, Knitting & Crochet Tagged With: alternaknit, christopher salas, dream in color, exquisite mystery knit along, exquisitemkal, handsoccupied, knit along, mkal, sarah abram, sarahbearcrafts

About Heidi

Heidi Gustad is a craft book author, designer & creator specializing in yarn crafts like knitting, crochet, latch hook & macramé. Her first book, Latch Hook: 12 Projects for the Modern Maker, is out now.

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Comments

  1. Sarah Abram

    December 27, 2016 at 9:03 am

    So excited!!!

    Reply
  2. Kelly davis

    December 27, 2016 at 11:04 am

    Cant wait have three Cashmere jilly grey,purple DC, teal. Love mystery kal.

    Reply
    • Heidi

      January 9, 2017 at 11:25 am

      Those colors sound amazing! (and pretty close to what I designed with too!)

      Reply

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Heidi Gustad from Hands Occupied / Craft Book Author and Knitting, Crochet, Latch Hook and Macrame Designer

Hi! I’m Heidi (she/her/hers), a craft book author & pattern designer specializing in knitting, crochet, latch hook & macrame. Really anything with yarn! ❤️  My work combines vintage and modern design elements, featuring bold colors and graphic motifs.

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handsoccupied

Craft book author, designer & creator specializing in yarn crafts like knitting, crochet, latch hook & macramé
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Heidi Gustad 🧶✂️
Nobody panic. This is just the back of an (admitte Nobody panic. This is just the back of an (admittedly insane) intarsia project. One day, this will be a seamed sweater, but today is not that day. 🧶 
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Have a good weekend, everyone! 
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Yarn: @universal_yarn’s Fibra Natura Cobblestone in Antarctica & Dragon’s Breath 
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#handsoccupied #intarsia #intarsiaknitting #wip #knitting
Here’s how to work a Norwegian purl stitch for e Here’s how to work a Norwegian purl stitch for easier continental style knitting. With this purling method, the working yarn says tensioned (held) at the back of your knitting at all times. For many knitters, always holding the yarn at the back helps with tension issues, as well as feeling a little more comfortable. 
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Have you ever encountered this style of purling before? If you’ve tried it, have you found it helps with your purl tension and knitting speed? I’m curious.
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For a written tutorial, visit handsoccupied-dot-com. For video, you guessed it, You2be. Both of these platforms allow for longer, more in-depth versions of this tutorial, including full transcripts, alt text & the ability to pause, slow down or speed up at will. (Like if you really want to learn this, I recommend using a platform that doesn’t keep your hands occupied. Thinking of putting this in all my captions these days tbh - shout out to you if you made it this far. 🙌🏻😂)
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#handsoccupied #learntoknit #continentalknitting #howtoknit #norwegianpurl #norwegianknitting #knit #knitting #knitter #knittersofinstagram #knittinghack  #handknitting #handknit #norwegianpurling
Have you ever tried this style of purl? . All thi Have you ever tried this style of purl? 
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All this recent talk about throwing vs. continental style knitting made it clear many people struggle with purling in continental knitting. Turns out that Norway may have the answer! In Norwegian purling, the working yarn stays tensioned at the back at all times, helping with speed and tension. 🤯
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Head to the bl0g (🔗 in bi0) for a more in-depth look at how to work a Norwegian purl stitch, including a photo tutorial with animated GIF & a video tutorial. Wrapping your mind around how to work a stitch you’re familiar with in a totally new way can be confusing, so I tried to give a few options for clarity. 🤙🏻 Video is also on You2be. 
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#handsoccupied #norwegianpurl #norwegianknitting #norwegianpurling #continentalknitting #howtoknit #learntoknit #knitterofinstagram #knitters
It’s been a hot second since I showed my face or It’s been a hot second since I showed my face or reintroduced myself, so here goes! I’m Heidi Gustad, a craft book author, pattern designer, and tutorial creator who specializes in yarn crafts. Lately, I’ve been focused on releasing quality knitting videos and related blog posts to help teach things like the difference between provisional cast ons and how to fix common knitting mistakes. Next week I’m shooting requested crochet and latch hook videos, so h👀kers, your time is coming! And if you ever have tutorial requests, please let me know. ☺️
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TLDR: I’m Heidi. I design & teach yarn crafts. You can find tutorials on my blog (est. 2010) & You2be. I also have several knitting & crochet patterns + a book about latch hook available. / All of these can be found on my website, the 🔗 is where you’d think. 
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#handsoccupied #fridayintroduction #heidigustad #knitting #knitter #knittersofinstagram #yarncrafts #latchhookbook
Are you a picker or a thrower? Do you knit Contine Are you a picker or a thrower? Do you knit Continental or English Style? Here’s a quick overview of the differences between the two most common knitting styles, including a side by side comparison. (A good one to save for future reference. 👍🏻) 
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There’s more on the differences between picking and throwing in my latest blog post & You 2ube video - the l1nk is where you’d think!
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#handsoccupied #learntoknit #knittingstyles #howtoknit #knittersofinstagram #knitter
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