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Hands Occupied

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

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Picks of the Week for April 8, 2016

Picks of the Week

April 8, 2016 Leave a Comment

Find weekend yarn craft inspiration right here.

Picks of the Week for January 22, 2016 | Hands Occupied

Picks of the Week

January 22, 2016 Leave a Comment

Doing this roundup every week means that I see quite a lot of the same types of patterns/ideas/etc. done about a thousand different ways over and over again. This week there were some really fun and different ideas shared on some of my favorite blogs. Add a little variety to your yarn crafting this weekend and give one of these new ideas a try!

Picks of the Week for January 8, 2016 | Hands Occupied

Picks of the Week

January 8, 2016 Leave a Comment

How great are these ideas? Get inspired to try one of these cute ideas and patterns this year!

Picks of the Week for October 16, 2015 | Hands Occupied

Picks of the Week

October 16, 2015 Leave a Comment

It’s mid-October, which means we’re at the point where we have to decide if it’s too late to incorporate yarn into Halloween costumes or not. I vote yes! I’m going to be buckling down this weekend to knock out my vision for this year’s getup, and I’m crossing my fingers my vision matches the reality of the finished costume. Wish me luck!

Top Knitting And Crochet Inspiration at handsoccupied.com

Weekly Reader

May 30, 2014 Leave a Comment

I’ve been experimenting with a new format for my Weekly Reader recently, and I think I’ve finally got it! Every Friday, I round up my favorite yarny finds, and then when I do other inspiration posts, I pick a different theme. The next big hurdle for me as a blogger, which has been a hurdle of mine for awhile now, will be actually opening up and sharing more of my personality. For now, I’m still most comfortable with being a teensy bit opaque and continuing my grand tradition of simply sharing my overwhelming enthusiasm for DIY and knitting. For now. :)

Weekly Reader 04.18.14 | Hands Occupied

Weekly Reader

April 18, 2014 Leave a Comment

Easter weekend is finally upon us! And once again, the craft blog world did NOT disappoint. The decoupage bunny eggs and doodle eggs above are particular faves of mine from this whole Easter season. I wonder what will inspire the world’s DIYers next month? Mother’s Day? Spring gardening? I can’t wait to see what everyone posts next week!

Weekly Reader 10.04.13 | Hands Occupied

Weekly Reader

October 4, 2013 1 Comment

Vegan recipes, crochet patterns, fall TV picks, and of course, more Halloween DIY inspiration!

10 DIY Knotted Jewelry Picks | Hands Occupied

10 DIY Knotted Jewelry Projects

August 13, 2013 3 Comments

Knotted accessories are super fun to make, and they’re also a really affordable way to add some DIY to your style.

How-to: Turn a Vintage Scarf into a Headband without Destroying It - HandsOccupied.com

How-to: Turn a Scarf into a Headband (without destroying It)

July 22, 2013 5 Comments

Temporarily morph a favorite scarf into a cute headband with a bit of elastic thread.

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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

Helping yarn crafters untangle various techniques on the internet since 2010
🧶 Really into intarsia
Stay up-to-date 💌 & shop the latest patterns ⤵️

Heidi Gustad 🧶 knitting & yarn crafts
How to convert a closet into WIPs storage with jus How to convert a closet into WIPs storage with just a few supplies ✂️
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When I was a librarian, we would use these hanging bags to circulate books with audiobook CDs. They came to mind when I wanted to develop a filing cabinet-like system for my differently-sized WIPs. To fit in my studio closet, a standard bedroom closet, they just needed custom hangers. 🤙🏻 
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HOW TO MAKE THE HANGERS
1. Carefully cut approx. a 9” (23 cm) length of flexible 3 mm aluminum wire.
2. Near the end of a large knitting needle or dowel, wrap the wire around it as you would a twist tie. 
3. Bend the other end into a hook shape, perpendicular to the circle shape you just created. 
4. Hang like a hanger in a closet, as shown. 
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#handsoccupied #handmadelife #knitting_inspiration #craftcloset #craftroom #craftroomorganization #craftroomstorage #craftroomdecor #crocheter #latchhook #knittersofinstagram #wip #wips #hangingstorage
It’s time for the monthly review and giveaway! T It’s time for the monthly review and giveaway! This go around, get to know two new sister yarns from @manosyarnsusa, Marla and Sami, and enter to win a skein of each to try for yourself. 
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What makes these yarns sisters is that, while dyed differently, they’re the same weight and come in intentionally coordinating color palettes. For my review, I opted for a sky-inspired combo of Sami in Natural and Marla in Nube. 🌧️ 
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Check out the full review & enter the giveaway at the link in my bio. 
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#handsoccupied #yarnreview #manosdeluruguay #knitting_inspire #crochet #yarngiveaway #knitters #yarn #crochetersofinstagram
If only knitting a whole project took 39 seconds… 😮‍💨 
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In this video, you can see how the Intarsia Flower Pillow pattern knits up - two flat panels, one with intarsia, both are blocked, and then they’re seamed. Find the pattern on @hi.ravelry & my website, just search Intarsia Flower Pillow. 🌸 
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P.S. I’m really smiling in this video while seaming the pillow, so I guess I’m proving last week’s claim that I truly enjoy that sometimes-dreaded task. 😆🫣
In knitting, a Left Lifted Increase (LLI) lets you In knitting, a Left Lifted Increase (LLI) lets you add a stitch in between two columns of stitches that leans to the left. Similar to an M1L, LLIs allow you to increase nearly invisibly.
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To learn more about lifted increases, including when to use them and how they differ from Make 1s, head to the 🔗 in my profle. 
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Have you ever used lifted increases? I used M1’s almost exclusively for a long time when I needed to inc between stitches, but when I designed the Intarsia Flower Pillow pattern, I needed something that would allow me to increase a lot near my cast on, and M1’s resulted in edge curling. The more you know! 🌈 
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Yarn: @lionbrandyarn Wool Ease from my Stash / Neddles: @boyeyarncrafts - Just remembered these are the needles I learned to knit on at age 8. 😂
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#handsoccupied #knitting #learntoknit #howtoknit #sweaterknitting #knitinspiration #knittersofinstagram #liftedincreases
Last week I got to hang out with my family & helpe Last week I got to hang out with my family & helped babysit my red-headed niece and nephew. So here’s some plane knitting, and a couple pictures (shared with permission) of my babysitting adventures.
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Lessons learned: 1️⃣ Trying to knit around 2 toddlers, 2 cats & 2 large dogs is pretty hard. 2️⃣ I learned during water color time that pink and black make “colorful black.” 🩷🖤 3️⃣ Toddlers do NOT care about your rainbow sorting of their toys. 4️⃣ Toddlers are very good at finding mischief in a very short amount of time, what a surprise. 😂
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#handsoccupied #knitting #placesyoucanknit #knitters #knitinpublic #handmadelife #knitting_inspiration
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