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Hands Occupied

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

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Hands Occupied Studio is Open!

February 6, 2019 Leave a Comment

The Hands Occupied Studio is now open! See the finished space, read about the Studio Warming party, and share your ideas for workshops and events you'd like to see!

Man, the last two weeks have been some for the books! I finished moving into the Hands Occupied Studio, hosted a sold out live show for the Very Serious Crafts podcast, attempted to keep up with my regular work, and held a Studio Warming party …. oh wait. All of that? That was all on my plate before the coldest polar vortex-induced temps in 25 years hit Chicago.

Fun fact: It was so cold out when I washed the outside of my studio windows that the cleaning solution froze & left streaks! 

The Hands Occupied Studio is now open! See the finished space, read about the Studio Warming party, and share your ideas for workshops and events you'd like to see!
The Hands Occupied Studio is now open! See the finished space, read about the Studio Warming party, and share your ideas for workshops and events you'd like to see!
The Hands Occupied Studio is now open! See the finished space, read about the Studio Warming party, and share your ideas for workshops and events you'd like to see!

The Studio Warming Party!

Take a look inside the new Hands Occupied Studio in Chicago, learn about when it's open to the public, and share your ideas for workshops and events you'd like to see in the new space! #handsoccupiedstudio
Just a few of the friendly faces who made it out to the Studio Warming party this week!

Last Friday night we thoroughly warmed the Hands Occupied Studio. We had about 3 dozen folks in and out during the open house style soiree, and I’m so grateful to each and every one of you for taking the time and braving the cold to be there. We all contributed to a giant community weaving project as the first official creative act in the space, we had snacks and drinks, folks brought knit and crochet WIPs, and it was hopping! It was such a special evening. I can’t wait to see how Hands Occupied Studio will grow and evolve over time!

The Hands Occupied Studio is now open! See the finished space, read about the Studio Warming party, and share your ideas for workshops and events you'd like to see!
The best weaving power stance of the night!
The Hands Occupied Studio is now open! See the finished space, read about the Studio Warming party, and share your ideas for workshops and events you'd like to see!
The current status of our community weaving – come help us work on it this month during Craft Nights! :)

What’s next for the Studio?

While I first pursued a studio space to, you know, use as a place to do my design and other creative work, I also really envision it as an opportunity to foster a community of crafters. We’re starting slowly with weekly open Craft Nights (more on that below), which will take the place of last year’s monthly Meet Ups. Then I want to expand to include a monthly weekend Crafternoon, requested by folks who can’t come in to the city on weeknights, as well as out-of-towners who want to come visit. In addition to open crafting, there will be workshops, private lessons, guest instructors and more. If you’ve got any ideas for things you’d like to see in the Hands Occupied Studio, or if you’re interested in collaborating on something with the space, drop me a line at heidi-at-handsoccupied-dot-com. I very sincerely would love to hear your ideas. ❤️

Craft Night every Wednesday!

Tonight is our first open Craft Night from 6-9 p.m. at Hands Occupied Studio. (We’re at 3323 W Diversey Ave. #1 in Chicago. All crafts are welcome, and feel free to bring any snacks and drinks to share.) Mark your calendars! We’ll be doing this open Craft Night every Wednesday unless otherwise posted. I’ll make Facebook events for each of them as well as posting them to the Events page on this site, though RSVPing is optional.

The Hands Occupied Studio is now open! See the finished space, read about the Studio Warming party, and share your ideas for workshops and events you'd like to see!
The Hands Occupied Studio is now open! See the finished space, read about the Studio Warming party, and share your ideas for workshops and events you'd like to see!

Before I go, I wanted to once again say that I’m so grateful for the Chicago crafting community. Y’all showed up on Friday after a hell week of terrible weather, and I couldn’t have been more humbled by and truly grateful for the support. See you at Craft Night! :)

Filed Under: Hands Occupied Studio, Workshops & Events Tagged With: chicago, craft night, craft workshop, crochet studio, hands occupied studio, knitting studio, logan square

About Heidi

Heidi Gustad is a craft book author & content creator in love with primary colors & vintage vibes. She specializes in knitting, crochet, latch hook and macramé, and her first book, Latch Hook: 12 Projects for the Modern Maker, is out now!

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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

Yarn craft designer & author. Into intarsia knits, latch hook, color & vintage-modern style.
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Sneaking in a few stitches in the shade. 😎 Sneaking in a few stitches in the shade. 😎
Another morning of filming! One of the knitting vi Another morning of filming! One of the knitting videos I’d like to release soon is a big overview of how to swatch and why - if you have any questions or favorite tips, let me know. 
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To be honest, I want to be able to link to this video as a resource when I get angry gauge questions, so please don’t hesitate to share your best tips. Together, we can tame the knitting Karens. 😆
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#stopswatchandblockit #handsoccupied #knitting #knittersofinstagram
A big issue I've had in the last year is putting t A big issue I've had in the last year is putting together new design work but not doing any independent releases of them. Chalk it up to anxiety, burn out, or whatever but here we are. 
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Last week I turned 35, so in honor of that here’s 3 things: 
❤️ a picture of me at my most stylish 
💛 a little glimpse at some of the design things I've recently been working on
💙a promise that I will be releasing some of the pictured designs this year. Getting back in the swing of things after taking it easy is hard 😆 - wish me luck!
Like a riding a bike! June guarded the neighborhoo Like a riding a bike! June guarded the neighborhood while I shot a new crochet tutorial today. With any luck, editing will go smoothly & I’ll be posting new videos to YouTube regularly soon! Got any requests for tutorial topics? 
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#handsoccupied #crochet #studiodog #crochettutorial
This yoke deserved a mid-blocking closeup, don’t This yoke deserved a mid-blocking closeup, don’t you think? ❤️💛💙
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Pattern: modified #soldotnacrop sweater / yarn: various from my stash
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