Let’s go get a Slushie. Of all the teenage cult classics, Heathers remains one that stands above the rest. It was truly a trailblazer, far ahead of its time and still remains poignant and modern to this day. One of my favorite things that have happened in recent years is the revival Heathers had with its Off-Broadway musical namesake.  There has been many a film converted to the stage, with varying degrees of success (looking at you, Spiderman: Turn off the Dark). The Heathers, however, is what the other companies wish they could achieve. The newest adaptation of the series (I’m not even entertaining the notion that the TV show counts) is the best case I’ve seen of an adaptation capturing the essence of its source material. Honestly, I like it even more that the Mean Girls musical and you KNOW how I feel about Mean Girls.

One of my favorite songs from Heathers is Freeze Your Brain, a ballad performed by Mr. No-Name Kid himself; JD. In it, he explains his struggle to fit in, suppression of his feelings, and his safe place (any 7-11 gas station). That song is teen angst at its finest, and we’ve all felt like a JD at one point or another.

Enter the Mr. No-Name Kid Cable Scarf! If you’ve been following my designs for a while, you’ll know that I had this pattern sitting around for a while, patiently waiting for its time to shine. This pattern was made to highlight the endless possibilities of color working crochet cables! Two colors of cables is possible, and within reach! Even if you have never attempted cabling before, I would recommend this pattern. Especially because every technique used is available in video tutorials on my YouTube channel! Need to learn cables? What about colorworking cables? Or colorworking with two or more colors? I have you covered!

Also- Today (Thursday, Dec, 6th) and tomorrow, this pattern is available to you for FREE on Ravelry! Input the code TWENTY1 at checkout to grab you a copy! It’s my gift to you in celebration of my 21st birthday! What are you waiting for? Click the photo to snag the pattern now and get to hooking!

As the end of the year draws nearer, I find myself in awe of the amazing opportunities I've been presented with in 2018. I will have a year in reflection post next month, but suffice to say it has been a magical experience. Part of that experience was attending two fiber related events back-to-back! At the beginning of this month I flew out to L.A. for the first ever Stitches SoCal Convention in Pasadena California. I met a few Instagram friends, like my longtime pal Claudia of the CrochetLuna Podcast (who gave me an amazing set of buttons I forgot to show off), or Arica of Skeinsnsticks Designs. Along with my old friends came some new ones, like Will of The Budget Knitter Podcast. How did I celebrate? Buying fiber. Like, a lot of fiber. 

After getting home I had about two seconds to admire my acquisitions before I started prep for the East Texas Fiber Festival. The week went by in a flash and I soon found myself in Lindale Texas waiting in line for the doors to open at ETFF. The first smiling face I saw was my dear friends Anna and Whitney of Moontower Dyeworks. There was hugs galore as I made my way around the grounds and greeted each of my Instagram friends, like Johanna of The Color Cauldron Podcast. I spent most of the two fiber-filled days at the Moon Tower, ogling the expertly dyed yarns. On Saturday I taught a crochet cable (featuring a custom colorway by MTDW) and was delighted to find out my student, Debra was the podcaster behind Buckthorn Farms.

All in all, both shows left me with a heart full of love and reminded my why I've decided to pursue a career within this amazing community. Now on to what I got! If you've watched the video above, you will know that it was quite a haul. We aren't going to even talk about how much ramen I'll be eating to make up for my shopping sprees. Just know it was totally worth it. Here are some links to the things I purchased or was gifted, so if anything caught your eye, give these small buisnesses some love!

East Texas Fiber Festival:
Paisley Ducky Bags
Brazen Stitchery
Katrinkles
ChiaoGoo
Savvy Skeins
Yarn Carnival
Shipwrecked Sheep
Phantom's Paw
DJ's Classic Alpaca
Ewe Hues
Leon Alexander Yarns
Moontower Dyeworks
Potion Yarns

Stitches SoCal:
Needlepoints West
Alexandra's Crafts
Blue Moon Fiber Arts
Yoth Yarns
Red Heart Yarns
Addi
ThreadBear Dyeworks
Shaky K Fibers
Forbidden Fiber Co
Brooklyn Tweed
Blackcat Fibers
Fancy Tiger Crafts
Leading Men Fiber Arts







​



​

Happy I Love Yarn Day! As a celebration of all things yarn the third installment of my tutorial series on crochet cables is live! In it I dissect the process I use to create colorworked cable patterns where cables are more than one color. The steps gone over in this video are what I used to create my Wicked Little Towns Cable Scarf and the Mr. No-Name Kid Scarf which will be released soon! Use this technique in those patterns, or my Melchior Cable Scarf, which is free on my blog!

"If you've got no other choice, you know you can follow my voice through the dark turns and noise of this wicked little town."- Stephen Trask

It's time to release my newest cable pattern! The Wicked Little Town Cable Scarf is already a favorite of mine. I had the pleasure of meeting the guys over at Leading Men Fiber Arts at Stitches Midwest, and they kindly gifted me a couple skeins of their Show Stopper base to run wild with. This cable scarf was the result. 

​For this project I had a few distinct characteristics I wanted to play with. Firstly, I loved the fact that it was fingering weight, and knew that I could have a semi-complex pattern repeat that wouldn't make a finished scarf so wide or bulky. I also knew that I needed to make this pattern colorworked and as long as possible. In the winter, I love layering my scarves underneath my jackets for a pop of color and texture, so a long thin scarf would work perfectly for wrapping. After my swatches checked off every box on the qualification list, I was off!

How will you work your Wicked Little Towns Scarf? Will you be daring and try to make a fingering weigh version, or stick to worsted? And what about colorworking? I recommend you give it a try! For a colorworking cable tutorial, see my video here. I'll also be filming and publishing a follow up tutorial about working with two or more colored cables this Saturday for I Love Yarn Day! Until the video is released, pick up the pattern here and enter code TRASK for 20% off.

Those who are frequent viewers of my podcast will recognize the name Olivia. Olivia, for the uninformed, is my usual videographer and the best friend I have. For this challenge she goes in front of the camera and I quiz her over words from the fiber field to see how well she pays attention to me. It's a doozy. 

The Friends of Fiber challenge is something that I've wanted to create for a long time, and this first video was a great kickstart to it! Watch the full video below, or at The QUOE Podcast YouTube page. I have plans to continue the series with other friends and family members as well (e.g. asking my grandmother what a hooker is). 

Do you want to test your friends of fiber? Great! Click the button below to download your free wordbank and scorecard. If you film your challenge, please be sure to credit and link back to me and this post so that others can join in the fun!

What is more classic than a granny square? When I was first learning crochet, the granny square motif was the one thing that I knew I had to create.  The signature motifs were a cornerstone in my childhood home. I always loved the soft artwork of the small clusters, whether I was cuddling up with one of my grandmothers afghans or climbing the mountain of blankets in the laundry room.

This love of the classic folk art staple is what inspired me to create the Modern Granny Throw, my newest free pattern for Red Heart Yarns. The classic granny is taken to the modern age with locks of double crochet to break up the sections. This is and Ideal pattern for beginner crocheters who (if you're anything like me) have a few spare skeins of Red Heart Super Saver!

Get the pattern for FREE ​here or by clicking on any of the project photos.

Click the video below for a full YouTube tutorial for the Modern Granny Throw!

It's finally time to introduce you to my favorite Red Heart pattern to date! Welcome the Cabled Hooded Cowl. Back in February Red Heart contacted me about designing a pattern with their brand new Hygge Charm yarns, a beautiful acrylic line that has a soft halo and subtle sparkle. I immediately began work on the new design. The pale mossy green of the yarn stuck in my mind as I sketched out a few possibilities for the piece. I knew I wanted cables, and decided to play with a new design element I've been working on which I call "Wedged Cables". You will hear much more about the technique down the line, but let this debut suffice for now!

Once I had the cables down, I needed to move on to shaping and structure. Up to this point I had never made a hood, and many of my designs hadn't strayed far from the standard rectangular construction format. To get the shaping and accessory I wanted though, I knew I would have to break my own status quo and challenge my designing skills. 

I would like to take this time as a moment of silence for all the cotton fabric I destroyed while creating a muslin prototype of the cowl. Seriously, there was a lot. I'm not sure how many other designers create fabric proofs of their crochet and knit pieces, but for me it is a great help. One audiobook and countless yards of fabric later I finally had the shaping I wanted. That is where the Cabled Hooded Cowl was born!

As per usual, Red Heart did a phenomenal job with the formatting, tech editing, and photography of the pattern. The one thing that didn't made the cut for the downloadable pattern was the cable chart. If a cable chart is helpful for you, I've left the chart for the Cabled Hooded Cowl as a free errata download below! The repeating cable chart starts on row 8 of the cable section.

Get the pattern for FREE ​here or by clicking on any of the project photos.

​

If you were to look around my room, you could quickly tell that I love two things; eyes and hands. On my bookcase, there are three separate hand forms, and many tchotchke pieces involving eyes. When combined, the two make a powerful image. In Middle Eastern and North African cultures, a hand with an eye is called a Hamsa and is used to ward off negativity. In Japanese folklore, they appear on the body of Tenome, a powerful entity, and on March 24th, a new meaning will be forever ingrained into this symbol. 
    
In light of the recent school shooting in Florida, many have decided enough is enough. Surviving students were left with a million what-ifs and no closure. This is when the March for our Lives was formulated. The march aims to call attention to the inadequate regulations put forth for guns. It lets Congress and the world at large know that the people are watching.


After hearing about the march, craftivist, and creator of The Pussyhat Project, Krista Suh lept into action. Within no time at all, Suh launched the Sea of Eyes project. The symbol is simple and strong, a fingerless glove with an eye in the middle. The knit version was available right away, and I knew that I had to help as well. Not even twenty-four hours passed between when Krista accepted my offer for a crochet version and its publication.
​ ​

It is my hope that people in the crochet community can gather and make many gloves to donate to the march in Washington D.C. and elsewhere on March 24th. Click the button for a free download of the crochet Evil Eye Gloves, and visit Krista Suh’s website for more information about the project.