My Knitted Pictures

October 9, 2014June 29, 2016 | julieandtheknits

As you know, this year I decided to start publishing my own patterns as well as working on commissions. My first pattern was 30 Animal Squares and I still can’t believe the response – thank you to everyone who has purchased it on Craftsy, Ravelry and Etsy! So naturally this made me want to look through my pattern notebook and pick my next project.

I am super excited to introduce you to the new collection of patterns – The Framed Knits!

The idea of ‘knitted pictures’ came to me after I saw all these cool cross stitch framed pictures online. I thought ‘yarn should be up on our walls too’! And the Framed Knits were born. They are really fun and quick projects and make a cute addition to your home decor.

The Framed Knits collection includes 3 patterns: Under The Sea, Dream Big and Phone Home. Each piece was knitted using the Intarsia technique (and a little bit of fairisle).

Who doesn't love unicorns? — Who doesn’t love unicorns?

These Framed Knits patterns are sold as PDFs and are now available on Ravelry and Etsy. You can purchase each pattern separately or as a set at a special price here! I hope you like them :)

Click here for more patterns.

Happy Knitting!

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My Tea Cosy Knitting Pattern in Mollie Makes 45!

September 19, 2014February 12, 2016 | julieandtheknits

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you already know that I am a regular contributor for Mollie Makes (one of my proudest life achievements!). I’ve designed various projects for their app Gathered in the past, but this time I am lucky enough to have made it to print!!! Seeing my work published in a magazine for the first time is just an incredible feeling and I have to thank the lovely Mollie Makes team for making this happen. Lara, Charlie, Nina & co. are an amazing bunch of ladies to work with, and I can only hope there will be many more moments like this one <3

You will find my project – a pretty tea cosy – in the subscriber issue of Mollie Makes (45), out now with a brand new-look cover! It’s a super easy pattern so if you’re a beginner, this is an ideal one to start with!

I’m planning on getting my brother and his girlfriend a tea set for Christmas (can you believe that French people don’t really own tea sets these days?) so I will definitely be knitting one of these again to dress up the teapot – i will have to go for sober colours though as, unlike myself, not everyone wants their house to look like a rainbow. WHY NOT?!

If you are a Mollie Makes subscriber, I hope you like my tea cosy pattern (if you’re not a subscriber, you’re obviously missing out so subscribe here)! And if you give it a go, I would love to see pictures!

Macramé plant hanger

June 7, 2014June 29, 2016 | julieandtheknits

Sorry for the lack of posts lately, I’ve not only been having issues with WordPress but am also working on a top secret project which has been taking up a lot of my knitting time. Hopefully I’ll be able to tell you all about it soon!

Do you remember the macramé tutorial I did a while ago for Mollie Makes’ Ipad app Gathered (RIP)? Well I have great news! This tutorial is now available for free on molliemakes.com!

My macramé plant hanger tutorial includes step-by-step images and is the perfect project to decorate your home this summer. Share your pics if you give it a try!

Click here for more patterns

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30 Animal Squares

May 5, 2014June 29, 2016 | julieandtheknits

It all started on Instagram on a cold December evening. As I was going through my feed, I came across one of these ‘one photo a day’-type challenges, something I never take part in, but this one was different. The wonderful Lindsay from Em & Sprout (who I interviewed before, read the post here) came up with a fun challenge to draw one different animal a day throughout the month of January. I LOVE animals, but I can’t draw, so instead I thought this project would be a great way to develop my chart design skills. For those of you who are not familiar with chart design, this is what we knitters use to create a pattern. This was also a great opportunity to discipline myself in a month where I would probably get a bit lazy.

So every day, I ‘doodled’ the animal on graph paper, then knitted it as a square and posted the image on IG. Not only was I amazed at how much people liked them, but I discovered many talented drawers/illustrators. You can see all the photos from the challenge by searching for the hashtag #animaldoodleaday on Instagram.

Here are my animal squares:

This challenge turned into something much bigger than I expected! Due to the huge interest my animals received, I decided to make the patterns available as an ebook so anyone can use them to make their own cute animal squares.

You can buy the the pattern for my 30 animal squares in my Etsy shop, on Ravelry and Craftsy. If you’re only interested in one or a few animals, just contact me by email at julietheknits@gmail.com and we’ll work something out :)

A lot of you have also been asking what will become of my squares. I have sewn them together and framed them. As there were only prototypes I didn’t want to make a blanket as it would be of no use. This framed knit would look lovely in a child’s bedroom, but this one will stay in my knitting room for now :)

Don’t forget to share your pics with me if you have knitted your own animal squares!

Click here to check out my other patterns :)

UPDATE: You can now buy individual patterns of my animal squares on Etsy!

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Cute & Easy Bow Headband

April 19, 2014June 29, 2016 | julieandtheknits

Following the huge interest the Heart Coasters Pattern received a few months ago, I felt it was time I share a new free pattern with you – a cute bow headband! You might recognise this project as it was first published in issue 14 of Gathered by Mollie Makes – it was actually my first ever published project! These headbands are also available in my Etsy Shop :)

Knitted Bow Headband Pattern

Please do not sell any finished items made from this pattern, thank you! However, I’d love to see your knitted headbands, so do share pictures – Leave a link in the comments, find me on Instagram or Ravelry. Happy Knitting!

Material

– DK Yarn in 2 different colours – I used King Cole Merino Blend DK in 855 Mustard and 926 Petrol
– Size 4mm double pointed knitting needles (DPNs)
– Tapestry needle
– Scissors
– Tape measure

Instructions

Make the bow
Cast on 12 stitches using King Cole Merino Blend DK in Mustard. Work in stocking stitch (knit one row, purl one row) until the bow measures 13 cm. Cast off.

Make the bow gathering
Cast on 6 stitches using the mustard yarn and work in stocking stitch until the gathering measures 5 cm. Cast off.

Assemble the bow
Fold the big rectangle in half with the right sides facing each other and, using the tapestry needle, sew up the seams and weave in the ends.

Repeat the same process with the bow gathering. Turn the work inside out, take the bow through the gathering and shape it until you get a pretty bow!

Make the I-cord
Cast on 4 stitches using the shade Petrol. Knit one row then slide the stitches to the other end of the double pointed needle. Pull the yarn along the back of the work and knit the next row. Repeat until the I-cord measures 50 cm. Cast off.

Assemble the headband
Take the I-cord through the back of the bow, make a knot and weave in the ends. Place the knot of the I-cord behind the bow gathering so there is no visible seam.

If you wish to set your bow into place rather than have it move freely around the I-cord, use a little bit of yarn and the tapestry needle to sew the bow and bow gathering to the I-cord.

Click here for more patterns!

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Die Young Stay Pretty

March 2, 2014March 14, 2016 | julieandtheknits

It’s about time I share with you my love for one of my favourite crafters in the world, Victoria from Die Young Stay Pretty. I’m not just saying that because she is one of my best friends, promise! She actually inspired me to start Julie and The Knits and create my Etsy shop.

Victoria lives in Paris and launched her brand Die Young, Stay Pretty a few years ago. She makes necklaces, earrings, brooches and more based on what she loves. As we have very similar taste, I tend to love every single piece she creates, so I have grown a nice personal collection of DYSP pretties over the years – see the pic at the end of this post! Time to find out more about this talented lady.

Hi Victoria! Tell us more about Die Young Stay Pretty

Hello Julie! Die Young, Stay Pretty is a rock’n’kitsch jewelry brand I created in May 2009. At the time, I was unemployed and a bit depressed: I needed to do something to make me feel better, using my creativity. Since forever, I’ve been creating things from scratch, and I really love crafting and the DIY spirit. I naturally decided to create jewelry, the medium of choice for expressing myself: I could mix my love of kitschy and quirky with musical and cinematographic references.

What inspires when you create new items?

Is it okay if I answer “everything”? ;-) I’m similar to a sponge as far as inspiration is concerned: I feed on everything I see. I collect thousands & thousands of pictures on my computer of things that inspire me: bands, fashion, tattoos, home decors, paintings, pop culture stuff, horror movies stills, guitars, food, travels…

You can follow my Pinterest if you wish: http://www.pinterest.com/dieyoungbaby/boards/

What are your favourite DYSP creations?

Definitely, horror movies brooches!! Especially if worn with a granny cardigan. Also, I made a very ridiculous belt buckle for a friend featuring Annette and Monsieur Roger, 2 characters from a very cheesy & silly French TV show from the 90’s. I was so fond to work on such a piece!

What piece of advice would you give to creative people who’d like to start selling their work?

This is going to sound a little bit cliché, but don’t give up and don’t be too hard on yourself. Crafting and DIY should be fun, not a constraint.

Links to your website/shops

You can buy my jewels on Dawanda and Tictail:

And you can follow my Facebook page for news & information:

https://www.facebook.com/dieyoungstayprettyboutique

Hope you love Victoria’s jewelry as much as I do, make sure you check out her shops for more! And without further ado, here is my cherished DYSP collection! I wear my Moss necklace almost every day ♥♥♥

Simple Mittens in Gathered for Mollie Makes

December 27, 2013March 14, 2016 | julieandtheknits

UPDATE: This pattern is now available for FREE on the Mollie Makes website!

I hope you’re all having a lovely Christmas! This is just a quick post to let you know that my latest tutorial is now out in Gathered! It even made it on the cover again – what a great way to end this already amazing year, thanks Mollie Makes :)

This week, you can learn to knit cute mittens in a few easy steps. Issue 63 of craft magazine Gathered is available for Ipad and Iphone.

If you have the next few days off, this is the perfect project for you! As usual, let me know if you give it a go – tag me on Instagram (julieandtheknits), Twitter (@julie_theknits) or post a pic on my Facebook page. I’m looking forward to seeing your pics!

Mustard Yellow Scarf in Gathered for Mollie Makes

November 29, 2013March 14, 2016 | julieandtheknits

The new issue of Gathered is out! As usual it is packed with crafty inspiration, beautiful pictures and tutorials – one of them being my simple mustard scarf tutorial, yay!

Look, it’s the cover star this week!

If you’re a beginner knitter and bored with garter stitch, you’ve got to try this pattern. The stitch might look tricky but it’s actually super quick and simple.

Download issue 59 of Gathered on your Ipad or Iphone now! And let me know if you give it a try :)

How to knit a heart

November 22, 2013March 14, 2016 | julieandtheknits

Many of you must be looking for Christmas gift ideas right now, so I thought it was the perfect time to share a pattern with you all! You might have seen these knitted hearts before. My pattern first appeared in Gathered (Issue 16) and was then published on the Mollie Makes website.

I initially made these hearts to use as coasters and knitted a few sets, but they actually have many other uses! They’re perfect to add a personalised touch to a gift. Or what about using them to embellish a garment, like Gathered reader Wendy did with her knitted scarf? ♥

This is a great project for beginners – it uses simple knitting techniques (garter stutch, kfb, k2tog). Have fun!

Material

Super chunky yarn (I used Sirdar Big Softie)
Size 8mm needles
Tapestry needle
Scissors

Instructions
Start by knitting the top of the heart – cast on 5 stitches.

Row 1: Knit.
Row 2: Increase the first first stitch by knitting in the front and back (kfb) of the stitch, then knit to the end of the row.
Row 3: Knit.
Row 4: Knit to the last stitch, increase (kfb).
Row 5: Knit.
Row 6: Increase the first first stitch (kfb), knit to the end of the row.
Rows 7-10: Knit.
Cut the yarn and push your work to the bottom of the needle.

Now make the other top half of the heart – cast on 5 stitches on the same needle where your work is.
Repeat rows 1-10.
Once completed, the 2 pieces should be on the same needle.

Join the two pieces by knitting across them.
Knit 4 more rows.
On the next row, decrease first and last stitch by knitting 2 stitches together (k2tog).
Knit the next row.
Repeat the last 2 steps until you have 2 stitches left.
Cut the yarn off, take your tapestry needle with the yarn through the remaining 2 stitches and weave in all the ends.