500!

Today is Knitting Project of the Day's 500th post! Today I want to honor my follows, readers and fellow knitters who have enjoyed my free knitting patterns. I spend some time on Ravelry (username ChemKnitsBlog), where I love seeing finished ChemKnits projects. I don't think I'll ever stop feeling excited when I see a newly uploaded photo. Thank you everyone for making my blogging activities a success.

I have started a new group on Ravelry called ChemKnits Designs. If you would like to chat with me about my designs, or anything else fiber related I would love to hear from you!

I started KPOTD because friends and family kept sending me amazing knitting projects, and I wanted an outlet to share them with the world. I felt (and still feel) that every kind of fiber artist a place of honor, not just designers. Through these 500 KPOTD posts, I have begun to notice some changes to how I find projects. Last March I created a ChemKnits Facebook page, and since then I've found myself sharing amazing knitting feats as I find them immediately. It seems silly for me to share something on KPOTD that I've already shared on Facebook.

It is with a heavy heart that I announce that I will no longer be publishing amazing knitting projects daily here on KPOTD. (Don't worry, ChemKnits isn't going anywhere! ) I will continue to share amazing knitting projects on Facebook and/or Google+ as I find them, but not daily since they can no longer be scheduled in advance. Thank you for your faithful readership!

Stitch N' Pitch

I first learned about Stitch N' Pitch from the KnitPicks Blog. An event that combines baseball and knitting? Count me in! I was so bummed when I learned that there was a Stitch N' Pitch event at the White Sox earlier this summer. I missed it! You can bet that I'll be checking the 2013 calendar to see when they're hosting another Chicago event.

PomPoms

Sometimes you need to create a pompom to complete your knit project. Once you start making pompoms, you'll find it hard to stop! As a young girl I had a kit to help me make them, but you really only need two pieces of cardboard to get yourself going.

This Pompom making tutorial is fantastic for two reasons. 1) Stunning, colorful and clear step by step photographs and 2) concise written instructions. (The written instructions come after the pictures, so don't run away if you don't see the words you need right away!)

Darling Photo

I am in love with the below photo. The frilly little pink knit dress is enough to make me swoon, but pair it with a dashing lad in a faux tuxedo vest and I've completely melted.

From Sassy Skeins

Handpainting Yarn

I tend to prefer space dyeing to handpainting yarn because of the ease of the technique. But nothing can replace the precision you can acheive when you handpaint a skein of yarn.

Yarn Bombed Chair

I have to say, this picture is eery because it really does look like she is wearing a swaeter. When you see the picture on the next page without her head, it still looks like there should be a body in it. So is this a picture of a person acting like a chair, or of a yarn bombed chair? I cannot tell!

Photo credit judy_and_ed via a Creative Commons License

Photo credit Rose Momsen via a Creative Commons License

E. coli

Now this doesn't quite look like the bacteria I used in my disserataion, but isn't it cute?

Photo credit audreym via a Creative Commons License

The youngest yarn bomber?

How cute!

Photo credit Ped Xing via a Creative Commons License

Bombshells

"BOMBSHELLS MANIFESTO: We anonymously promote fiber craft as adventure. We aim to soften the edges of an otherwise cruel, harsh environment. We juxtapose vandalism with the non-threatening nature of fibers. We aim to readdress the nature of graffiti with a nonpermanent, nondestructive, cozy medium. If you don't like it, just unpick it. We are a non-discriminating collective. Cincinnati today, the world tomorrow! We are actively contributing to a more positive type of global warming. BombShell Rules: The first rule about BombShells is don't talk about BombShells. The second rule about Bombshells is don't talk about Bombshells."

Photo credit TheEnglandboys via a Creative Commons License

What you can't dye with food coloring

If I got a dime for each time someone asked me about dyeing acrylic or cotton with food coloring/Kool Aid I would be a rich woman. I decided to answer these questions once and for all by creating a video showing people what you cannot dye with food coloring.

Surprisingly, the 100% organic (unbleached) cotton that I used in this tutorial did pick up some color. I am not sure how colorfast it is, but there are certainly more efficient ways to dye cotton vibrant colors. (Compare the cotton color to the 100% wool!)

Peruvian Knits

Looking at stunning Peruvian knitting patterns makes me itch to start knitting a new earflap hat. Here is a great tip, if you cannot find a pattern you love, start looking at photos for inspiration. It would not be hard to convert the llamas below into a chart!

Hand Knit Gloves with Llamas at the Pisac Market, Ruins at Pisac, Peru

Photographic Print

Miller Hopkins,...

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Knit Chair

I'm not sure if I would call this yarn bombing, because I don't see this as an act of graffiti, but of home decoration. Whatever the case, this chair is surely a work of art. Now I want to figure out how to make one of these myself...

Photo credit Lorna Watt via a Creative Commons License

Plan Ahead

This is an intersting yarn bomb that shows a message. "Magda Sayeg, founder of Knitta, takes knitting out of the home and onto the streets. In Plan Ahead, she intricately weaves a playful message to pedestrians, bikers, and drivers onto an ordinary fence using colorful yarn. The message – to plan ahead – is reinforced by the artist’s choice to shrink the last to letters of the phrase and bend them vertically into only the small bit of space left over at the end of the installation, as if writing in a notebook and running out of space. Plan Ahead directs viewers' attention to Brooklyn's waterfront environment and examines the occasionally contentious, often harmonious relationship between nature and constructed space."

Photo credit New York City Department of Transportation via a Creative Commons License

Knitting Machines

I wanted to be able to make my on blanks (not necessarily sock blanks) for dying yarn so I purchased an inexpensive knitting machine. I selected the NKOK Singer Knitting Machine even though it had poor reviews. I think that anyone who purchases a crank knitting machine expects fantastic results... but since I don't care about a few dropped stitches when I plan to unravel the projects anyway, I thought it would work well for my purposes. Expect to see some dyeing experiments with these blanks in the future!

Knitting while Working Out

I'm not sure a slenderizing machine really counts as working out, but I have thought about knitting while using stationary bike pedals like the InStride Cycle. I fine these leg rollers terribly amusing, and it makes a fantastic knitting picture!

Pat Ogden at Slenderizing Salon Knitting in Padded Chair While Leg Rollers Work from Thigh to Ankle

Photographic Print

Eisenstaedt,...

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Dyeing Yarn with Tea

You can dye yarn with so many different kitchen products. The following tutorial will take you through dyeing 100% wool yarn with three different types of tea.

Girl sitting in the Garden

Girl Sitting in the Garden, or the Knitting, 1879

Giclee Print

Manet, Édouard

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I really should get a print of one of these art knitting images for my future knitting studio! (along with many vintage knitting magazine covers)

Cute Knitting Patterns For Every Season

I find it a bit harder to knit in the summer. The warm weather sometimes makes it hard for me to think about creating warm garments. If your fingers are itching for something to do, there are many knitting patterns available for a variety of seasons.

Get free knitting patterns, ideas & special offers + a FREE ebook, “15 Free Cute Knitting Patterns For Every Season.”

Ziyal Cowl

I never tried smocking in my knitting until I cast on the Ziyal Cowl. The simple ribbing in this pattern is jazzed up by the smocked stitches. An excellent tutorial accompanies the pattern, so don't be afraid to try to do this yourself!

Crochet Measuring Tape

Some people think it is hard to get a gift for a knitter, but there are many fun things out there including some darling crochet tape measures! Why not get a crochet measuring tape for your favorite knitter or crocheter?