Hands Occupied

Contemporary yarn crafts by Heidi Gustad. Knitting, crochet, latch hook and macrame.

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Picks of the Week

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We are approaching the end of summer! With that comes a renewed interest in what to make as temperatures begin to fall. If you’re looking for projects to transition your making from warm to cool weather, here are a few colorful new ideas from around the internet. :)

Picks of the Week

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St. Patrick’s Day is just around the corner, and there are some absolutely adorable patterns out there to help you celebrate the holiday with yarn.

Picks of the Week

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I have a couple of little plans I’m really looking forward to this weekend, but other than that, my plan is to spend ALL of my time hacking away at some works-in-progress. I can’t wait!

How to Make Fabric Yarn

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A couple weeks ago, I shared how to make yarn from an old t-shirt, and based on the number of times I’ve seen it pinned, you guys were into it. The thing with t-shirt yarn is that one t-shirt doesn’t yield all that much yarn. I mean, the cross-body phone case pattern I shared took most of one t-shirt’s worth of yarn to make. But what about when you’re thinking about projects on a larger scale? That’s when I recommend you try your hands at making fabric (a.k.a. jersey) yarn. It’s super easy, and if you get your hands on a set of jersey sheets at the thrift store, you can upcycle that into yarn using the same technique I’m about to share. It’s so easy and the effect fabric yarn has on knit and crochet projects is something I’m LOVING right now!

DIY Eggshell Tea Lights

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All right! It’s finally Easter crafts time on Hands Occupied! I’m starting things off with an easy (and a little adorable) tea light candle DIY. These sweet little dudes are made with eggshells and a combo of scrap wax from old candles and soy wax flakes. They’re a great way to recycle household items, and they are the perfect Easter table accent. Bonus: they don’t take long to make.