Knit Headband Tutorial

I've shared this tutorial before in video form, but I thought I would share this simple pattern again. This is perfect for all you beginner knitters!

You will need....

- Size 7 knitting needles

- One ball of DK weight yarn (or 2 balls of sport weight yarn)

- Scissors 

- Large sewing needle

1) Cast on 4 stitches (more if you want a thicker band)

2) Knit about 70 rows (knit more or less according to your head size)

3) Cast off

4) Thread the large sewing needles with yarn

5) Sew ends of headband together

6) Cut off extra yarn 

You're all done! 

Knitting Basics: How to Purl a Row

Here's my next Knitting Basics video on purling a row!

HOW TO PURL A ROW a micro guide by Alexa Klopfenstein on How.Do

Drawstring Christmas Bag

I knit this adorable little Christmas bag the other day. It only took me an hour to knit!

Here's how I did it:

I used a round needles (US15) and cast on using thick red and green yarn. I knit about half of it and then began to decrease a few stitches. In the end it was pretty much a square that got narrower at the top (it was just a little longer than the width). I then sewed the bottom half together. I braided the yarn for my drawstring. With a needle I pulled the braid through every 4 stitches.

If you have any questions about how I knit it, feel free to ask.

Tips for Knitters: What To Knit During Spring/Summer

Part 1: Clothes and Accessories

During spring and summer, I often get knitter's block. Without the chilly weather to inspire me to knit hats and headbands, I tend to knit less. This year, I've come up with a simple list of things to knit that I can wear all spring and summer.

1) Knit Tank Top 

This lovely tank top only took me a day to knit! Not only can this tank top be dressed up, but it can also be used as a swimsuit cover up! 

You can find out how I knit this here: Lexalex: Knit Tank Top

2) Light Knit Slouchy Hat

I don't know about you, but I enjoy wearing hats all year round! Summon your inner hipster and knit some summery hats! 

You can find a summer slouchy hat pattern here: http://rubysubmarine.blogspot.com

3) Light Knit Shirt

I knit this light shirt last year and wore it on warm days. Though this may be a longer project, it will be worth it in the end!

You can find a shirt pattern similar to this here: http://fojfana.tumblr.com

4) Knit Bracelets 

These knit bracelets are so easy and will complete any summer/spring outfit! I knit a bunch in lovely pastel colors and added some fun buttons!

You can see more picture of these bracelets I knit here: Lexalex: Knit Bracelets

You can find the inspiration for my knit bracelets here: http://www.designsponge.com

5) Light Knit Shawl

I knit this shawl last year for a spring formal and it was perfect! Knit shawls are great for summer/spring since you can wear them to weddings and other formal events.

You can check out more pictures of this shawl here: Lexalex: Knit Shawl

You can find a knit shawl pattern here: http://www.classiceliteyarns.com/

6) Knit Flower Headband

This cute headband was super easy to make and can be worn all spring and summer. For the flower, I just knit a circle with left over yarn and added a button.

You can find a summery headband pattern here: http://www.craftleftovers.com

You can fin a knit flower pattern here: http://www.headhuggers.org

and here: http://www.creatinglaura.com/

7) Light Knit Scarf

I loves scarves and during spring I often knit light scarves in pastel colors. I also like to pair my scarves with floral patterns to make them feel more summery!

You can find a light knit scarf pattern here: http://knitty.com

You can find inspiring scarf pictures here: http://pinterest.com

Though some of you may not like wearing scarves after winter, I hope these links will inspire you!

8) Knit Bow Headband

This headband is similar to the one before, except it has a bow rather than a flower. This headband would make a great gift for Easter and would look lovely with a spring dress.

You can find a bow headband pattern here: http://racheliufer.blogspot.com/

You can find another bow headband pattern here: http://www.cattymakingout.com

  
 9) Knit Hair Bows
 Who doesn't love wearing pretty hair bows? These little bows are so easy to knit and they look great in your hair all through spring and summer. 

You can find a bow pattern here: http://untangling-knots.com/tag/hair-clips/
You can find inspiring hair bow ideas here: http://pinterest.com/joaniemom/knit-bows/
If you like sock buns, then you should check out this cool pattern: http://www.laylock.org

10) Knit Purse

I recently knit this rainbow cross-body purse with some left over yarn I had. I used some simple acrylic yarn to knit this and it worked great. I want to knit a bigger one for the beach!

You can find a knit purse pattern here: http://cookalotje.blogspot.com

You can find another pattern here: http://karolekurnow.com/blog

I hope these ideas inspired you to knit some lovely spring/summer clothes and accessories!

Knit Bracelets

After seeing so many different knit bracelets on blogs and Pinterest, I decided to knit myself a few! There are so many reasons why I now love knitting bracelets....

1) They are quick to make
2) They use up left over yarn
3) They make perfect gifts
4) They look lovely with fancy buttons (and I have hundreds of un-used buttons!)
5) They're stretchy so they can fit different sized wrists
6) They are so very pretty

If you would like a whole kit for making a knit bracelet make sure to enter the Valentine's Day Giveaway! 

Valentine's Day Giveaway

In celebration of Valentine's Day, we are giving you the chance to win this Hugs and Kisses Bracelet Kit by Knit Outta the Box! You can take a look at this lovely bracelet kit here: Hugs and Kisses Bracelet

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This lovely bracelet kit includes:

• 100% cotton yarn produced in the USA (25 yards)
• double pointed bamboo knitting needles
• easy to follow pattern
• darning/cable needle
• yarn cutter
• fabric notions bag
• canvas project bag

This kit would be perfect for taking on a trip or as a gift for a friend who knits.

Laurie, the owner of Knit Outta the Box, has answered a few questions so that you can learn a little bit more about her company.

How did Knit Outta the Box begin?

The idea came to me at the airport back in 2008. My flight was delayed and I had forgotten my knitting. I scoured the airport gift shops looking for something to knit and came up empty handed. I was desperate to knit and probably would have paid anything for some needles and yarn. Once back home I came up with the idea of developing a knitting kit for the “desperate knitter.”  Soon my kits were available in hospital gift shops across the country.  Then they were picked up by the Uncommon Goods catalog and soon other on-line catalogs followed.  In 2009 my kits were selected as one of the Top 100 Products of the Year by Hybrid Mom Magazine and in 2011 my iMitt© Texting Mitten kit was featured in People Magazine’s Holiday Gift Guide.  The success of the kits allowed me to grow the company and in 2011 I started offering patterns, yarns and fair trade hand-knit items.

What inspires you?

People that are passionate about what they are doing and are successful at it.  And by successful I don’t mean just making a lot of money.  Success can be defined in so many different ways.  Just the fact that I wake up every morning knowing that I get to “go to work” on something I have a true passion and love for makes me very happy.  That’s my definition of success – though I wouldn’t be disappointed if the “making a lot of money” were part of the equation too. Ha!



What's your favorite part of owning Knit Outta the Box?

That it has exposed me to so many wonderful people, products and cultures. In fact, this spring I will be starting a new business called The Feel Good Yarn Company.  We’ll be offering fair trade yarns from around the world including mohair & cashgora from Tajikistan, cashmere from Afghanistan (which I’m already selling on my site), vegan silk from India, and if all goes well, a Bolivian alpaca.  I’m also in the process of producing my own yarn line here in the States which I’m VERY excited about, but can’t go into details just yet.

Thank you so much for allowing me to tell my story.  It still amazes me that I was able to create all this from the basement of my home. I truly knew nothing about running your own business when I started this (I’m sure if I did I wouldn’t have done it!), but now I can’t think of anything else I would rather be doing except perhaps knitting more!




I was so inspired by Laurie's answers and I hope you were too!

You can subscribe to Knit Outta the Box's email list here: Knit Outta the Box Email List


Make sure to enter the Giveaway and check back in on Valentine's Day!

Tips For Knitters: The Best Yarn Deals

"Life is too short to knit with cheap yarn." 

 Do you love to knit with good quality yarn but don't have the money to waste on ridiculous prices? Since I have a knitting business and am buying yarn all the the time, I don't want to waste my money on bad deals. Lately I've made it my mission to find out the best yarn deals so I could share them with you. Here are some tips on saving your money while getting the best yarn deals.

1) Order overstocked or discontinued yarn online 

About a month ago I found an online yarn store called DBNY. They have deals where you can buy what they call "bags of yarn." You can get 5 balls of yarn for $5 or 10 balls of yarn for $10.

You can find this website here: http://www.discontinuedbrandnameyarn.com/shop/

2) Always check the sale section of online yarn stores 

Though the sale section doesn't always have what I want at the moment, I sometimes stock up on yarn I might need in the future. This can save lots of money. Knit Outta the Box currently has yarn on sale for  50 cents! (needless to say I bought ten! haha)

You can find this $.50 yarn here: www.knitouttathebox.com


3) Sign up online for emails and updates from multiple yarn stores 

By signing up for emails, you'll be reminded whenever the yarn store has a sale. Sometimes you can even get codes for certain percentages off! This can save loads of money while yarn shopping. I've signed up for emails from KnitPicks.com. They often have great sales during the holidays.

You can see this store and sign up for emails here: www.knitpicks.com

4) Use coupons

I don't know if you guys are addicted to Hobby Lobby like I am, but I go there for yarn often. I never go to Hobby Lobby without taking their 40% coupon that you can print anytime. Whenever I'm near to Hobby Lobby, I stop by and just buy one ball of expensive yarn with the coupon. This can save lots of money!

You can print the HobbyLobby coupon here: http://www.hobbylobby.com/weekly/coupon.cfm


5) Always check the clearance section at yarn/craft stores

Hobby Lobby also has a section where they keep clearance yarn. Sometimes they don't have much but other times they have really nice yarn half-price. Whenever I go, I get some yarn on clearance and save it to use when I need it. (just don't buy yarn you don't think you'll use.)

6) Look for yarn on Etsy 

When I first decided to look for yarn on Etsy, I was a little skeptical. Though I knew that Etsy would have some very high quality yarn, I thought the prices might be ridiculous. If you type in "Yarn Sale" on Etsy, you can sometimes find great deals though! Change the page so that the lowest prices show up first and then scroll through till you find some yarn you like. I also love being able to help out small businesses like mine.

Here's an Etsy store with awesome yarn and great sales: http://www.etsy.com/shop/brokemarys

7) Become friends with other yarn obsessed people 

There are many perks of being friends with people who love yarn as much as you do. You can trade yarn, sell leftover yarn to each other, borrow knitting needles, etc. I don't have a particular friend I do this with, but many of my friends know I love yarn so they buy it for me as gifts. People occasionally give me their unused yarn as well (It feels like Christmas!).

Hope these tips were helpful! 

The Half-Knit Sweater

Here are some pictures of the sweater I'm half done knitting. You can't really tell but I've already knit two arm holes. Once I've knit the length I want, I shall knit the sleeves, add buttons, and be done!

This Weeks Knits

Here are a few of the things I've knit this week. I've been brainstorming like crazy for my Spring Line on Etsy. I've been so inspired by Downton Abbey and many vintage knits I've seen on Pinterest. I've also read some really cool articles on knitting.

If you'd like to read about the health benefits of knitting, here's a wonderful article: Knitting Benefits

So here's the first result of my inspiration to knit more vintage clothing. This pretty blue shawl looks great with a simple, strapless dress.

I knit this pretty slouchy hat as a gift for a family member. I think I may need to knit many more in this style! I love it. 

Currently, I'm working on a pair of leg warmers. I'm try to gain more skill at using four needles before I start some socks! 

Last week I cut up a few old t-shirts and began to knit with them! It took me literally less than 8 minutes to knit this small washcloth that is perfect for scrubbing! I will no longer be throwing away any old shirt! haha