Tanis Gray

marketplace and was waiting to find the perfect pattern to use it in. Once I got the hang of the pattern, it was an addicting and quick knit. Blocking made it even more lovely, and this one is a birthday present for someone special born in the fall. It’s giving off perfect autumn vibes! 🍁

The third of my six finished projects while on my New Zealand, Tasmania, and Australia teaching adventure is the Tentacula Hat by the clever @wanded527. I got this gorgeous yarn from @littleloopy_pa last year teaching at @knittersdayout at the

This was excellent bus knitting, and I wish I knew what the yarn is! My daughter has also tried to claim this one, but since I sit firmly in the camp of “the brighter, the better,” it’s mine!

The second of six finished projects from my recent teaching trip is the Perfectionist Trap by @kaceyknits knit in an unlabeled bundle of DK minis. Super easy and satisfying, it’s more about showing off the lovely colors of bright yarn than a complex pattern.

registered what it was, my daughter claimed it. Since it took almost 30 hours door to door to get from home to Auckland, & I certainly didn’t knit that whole time, this cowl was just about finished by the time I landed. My daughter has barely taken it off since it came off the blocking boards!

While packing to teach, I decided to only bring gift knitting with me - no work. Between evening, bus, & airplane knitting, I got a surprising amount of projects started and finished on the trip. First up we have the Button Jar Cowl by my friend @shaina.bilow. Shaina sent me a kit, and before I even

@kelbournewoolens Scout in 2 contrasting shades (1 skein of each color is enough to make both the hat AND the cowl). Pattern link is in bio, and TanisKnits newsletter subscribers have a coupon code in their inbox. Let’s MAL!

tag the shop using the hashtag #SandSOntheFarm, join their Discord, when your masterpiece is complete, message them a photo of your finished hat, and you’ll get the discount code, join the shop Discord for your fellow MALers!
Grab your kit from Snake + Skein, featuring

from @snakeandskein yarn shop in PA, who are wonderfully hosting the MAL, we’re timing the pattern release so knitters have plenty of time to get their materials. Here are the deets: the MAL begins March 6th and ends on March 20th, participants will receive 10% off their next Snake + Skein purchase,

I am excited to share the new On the Farm Hat pattern, plus a MAL (make-a-long) hosted by Snake + Skein!

I’ve had a lot of requests for a matching hat to go with the popular On the Farm Cowl I designed for Farm & Fiber Magazine in 2024. Teaming up with Mary and Meg

warm while offering a nod to warmer days to come. This was such a fun knit and an honor to design for such a beautiful knitting magazine. Knit in @kelbournewoolens Scout on US 3s and 5s, it’s a great intro to colorwork! 🍃 #farmfiberknits #longthreadmedia

Oh!! Excited to have my Folium Toque featured in the Spring 2026 issue of @farmfiberknits Magazine! A tribute to leaves and a green palette that’s an ode to chlorophyll, which turns sunlight into plant energy, this hat keeps your head

Another week off due to snow and frigid temperatures. At least there’s plenty of knitting! ❄️

it knits up quickly and has been a great stash buster as I finalize manuscripts for my next two books. We’re supposedly getting 2 feet of snow this weekend, so I have my next few planned out! What’s your go to gift knit? Pattern is Dirken by @katedavies_design and yarn is deep stash @fiberstory.

Been on a bit of a hat kick lately as my “ferrying kids around to activities and waiting, waiting, waiting” knitting. I’ve been knitting this same hat over and over for gifts and love this latest version for one of my daughter’s friend’s mom. With DK held doubled,

The lace pattern itself is a simple 12-stitch x 12-round rep perfect for all skill levels.

Pattern link is in bio. Tanisknits newsletter subscribers have a coupon code in your inbox.

the icebergs on US 6 and 8 needles, beads are added as you go with a small crochet hook. By applying the beads from dark to light, these bits of sparkle within the lace are like floating icebergs.

When my family and I drove 2000 miles around the perimeter of Iceland back in the summer of 2024, this was one of my favorite stops and was unlike anything I had ever seen.

Worked in 340 yds (311 m) of @studiodonegal Aran Tweed in a gorgeous blue, the same color as

Inspired by Diamond Beach in southeast Iceland—where iceberg “diamonds” from the Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon are sculpted by the sea—the Diamond Beach Cowl with applied gradient beads echo their crystalline forms in this new cowl that glimmers and sparkles like the shore itself.

It just needed poly and flocking. I used a knob I only had one of that I’d been hoarding like Gollum, er, saving I mean, and it gave it the perfect touch. Off it flies to its recipient!

I enjoyed making that other little bird bandsaw box so much I made another for a baby gift! This one is two layers of ambrosia maple and one of Peruvian walnut, and was started before the holidays.

When your yarn is so bright, mindless nighttime knitting while waiting for kid pick up is no problem!

While things here have been quiet, it’s not for lack of crafting! Working on two books at once (which I always swear I won’t do again, yet it seems to be my jam) means I can’t post anything to do with those, but I am trying to get the background filled in on this birthday present!🎁

But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight—
“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!”

. I coated it with a few coats of poly, flocked the drawer insides, and used hardware I had on hand. There’s one more that’s almost done for a baby gift, but that’ll have to wait until the new year. Final handmade present done!!! ✔️

Whew! Down to the wire with this bandsaw box! It’s been too cold to be out in the shop, but I finally got out there yesterday to wrap this one up. Made out of Peruvian walnut and poplar, this is for my oldest nephew.

Another quick make to end the year. My mom used to wear sparkly Christmas tree pins and I always wanted one of my own, so I whipped this one up from a little kit. The randomness of the bead placement is an interesting switch from the precision of knitting. Sparkle on! 🎄

What we knit is more than yarn rearranged into stitches—it holds love, care, and hope, stitched together by our hands. Pattern by @idlehandsknits.

She pours herself into others, so I wanted to give something back to her. This is a small offering: warmth for cold days, comfort for hard moments, and a reminder that she is held, even when far from home.

A hat for a friend can be more than just a hat. It can be warmth carried across distance, a quiet reminder that someone is thinking of you. My neighbor is from Ukraine. She returns again and again to help—a mother of three, steady, brave, endlessly giving.