Chicago Friends! Here I am realistically posing in front of The Bloomin’ Spindle, in real life, with my real new book. Come see me here on Sunday 11/26 at 11am for a book signing and trunk show! I’ll be hanging out until 2pm or so with books, cat kits, and probably some cat animations too.
If you haven’t visited The Bloomin’ Spindle, it’s a gem of a yarn store and well worth the trip from wherever you are.
Hope to see you there!
UPATE: The Kitty Canes pattern is now available as a PDF download!
Introducing the 2023 Mochimochi Land holiday pattern: Kitty Canes!
They’re like candy canes…only with 100% more kitty 😻
Kitty Canes’ not-so-secret ingredient is a color-coordinated pipe cleaner that holds the I-cord tail in a twisty bend. Because the pipe cleaner is visible, and because different colorways are fun, we’ve created a limited number of kits for this pattern that let you knit THREE Kitty Canes in three color combos!
Each kit comes with an intermediate-level pattern (an instant download that you get right away), stuffing, and enough fingering-weight yarn to knit three Kitty Canes: Peppermint, Blueberry, and Raspberry.
You’ll need to provide a set of size 1 US (2.25mm) double-pointed needles and a tapestry needle.
Please note: orders placed Thanksgiving week will ship the week of 11/27.
Techniques include knitting in the round on double-pointed needles, I-cord, grafting stitches, picking up stitches, and and some simple embroidery. All key techniques (aside from basic circular knitting) are demonstrated in videos linked in the pattern.
🍬😻🍬🎄🍬😻🍬🎄🍬😻🍬
And yes, a standalone PDF pattern is coming soon too!
It’s cozy cat season, and ny newest pattern is all about getting cozy between the pages of a favorite book! Inside Cat will mark your place in the coziest possible way and offer snuggles when it’s reading time too. The pattern is now available for FREE as a surprise in the Deep Fall 2023 issue of Knitty!
I designed this project to be advanced-beginner friendly, incorporating I-cord, flat knitting, and a bit of circular knitting. Use whatever yarn you like and corresponding needle size—I used worsted-weight yarn (Tosh Vintage in GG Loves Speckles) and a set of size 5 US (3.75mm) double-pointed needles.
If you could use a little guidance, check out this YouTube video I made demonstrating all the key techniques used in the pattern.
Inside Cat was inspired by my new book, Catside Up, Catside Down, and I think it’ll make a sweet gift to accompany the book. In it, cats demonstrate different prepositions, and Inside Cat has a talent for such demonstrations: this stretchy, flat cat can be under, over, around, through, and a great number of other words beyond inside. Show us what preposition positions your Inside Cat is into by tagging your photos #mochimochiland !
This is my FOURTH pattern published in Knitty. (And my second cat pattern! 😸) Knitty means so much to me: early on in my career, Knitty founder Amy Singer exposed me to a community of knitters and encouraged me to pursue designing as a career path. 🥰
Knitty is a wonderful resource, especially as it’s free to everyone! And Knitty can also use your support if you are in a position to help keep this wonderful publication going.
Thank you to Amy, to Kate Atherley, and to everybody at Knitty!
I’ll be teaching knitting cats, unicorns, and all things stop-motion animation at Knitting LIVE by Vogue Knitting in January! Come join me and a slate of talented teachers and makers in NYC for a long weekend of all things fiber arts!
Here’s the schedule and class descriptions:
FRIDAY 1/26 10:30-11:30 am
LECTURE: STOP-MOTION ANIMATE YOUR KNITTING
Did you know that knitting and animation go together beautifully? Anna Hrachovec of Mochimochi Land will share how she turned her tiny knitted toys into animated stars of the internet and an upcoming television show, all with basic materials and a trial-and-error process. You too can use stop-motion animation to bring your knitted toys and other projects to life—it’s simpler than you may think! Whether your want to add some motion to your social media stories or make a mini movie with characters, this lecture will cover animation basics and tools that will set you up for animation fun.
FRIDAY 1/26 6:00-9:00 pm
CLASS: KNIT A “HANG IN THERE” CAT
Pick up basic toy knitting techniques while making a little friend who feels the way we all do sometimes: just hangin’ in there! This project-based class accommodates knitters who prefer to work flat, those who are comfortable knitting in the round, and those who are somewhere in between. We’ll cover basic increase and decrease stitches, mattress stitch, I-cord, simple embroidery, and more.
SATURDAY 1/27 6:00-9:00 pm
CLASS: TINY TOY KNITTING BASICS: UNICORNS AND RAINBOWS
In this class, we’ll knit a tiny unicorn together, covering all the techniques from start to finish: knitting on double-pointed needles, I-cord legs and horn, and embroidering a magical mane and tail. We’ll also go over how to use mattress stitch to shape knitted tubes into a little rainbow, so your unicorn can have a friend!
And of course, so many more classes are available from the biggest names in the knitting and crochet world.
Earlybird packages are available (though some are sold out!)—sign up at the Knitting LIVE website. I hope to see you in NYC!
Catside Up, Catside Down is now on sale everywhere! To get my new book of cats and prepositions, just ask or it AT your local bookstore, or order it FROM your favorite website. If you placed a preorder, check INSIDE your mailbox!
This is my first-ever picture book. It’s a slightly scary thrill to finally have it out in the world. There’s a lot of me in this book—my goofy rhymes, my photography—and, of course, my more than 50 knitted cats! I hope the cute kitties will engage kids and charm grownups, and maybe inspire some people to make something with yarn.
Speaking of yarn, the yarns I used in this book came from all different makers and dyers, both big and small. Some of my favorites to work with were Madelinetosh (especially Tosh Vintage in GG Loves Speckles), Knit Picks Chroma, Sister Ananse Yarn’s mohair/silk blend, and quite a few selections from Hand Dyed Diva and Gnome Depot Fiber. They didn’t give me anything to mention them here—I just really like these yarns, and I’m so happy to have them be part of the book, too.
One of the best things about working on Catside Up, Catside Down was collaborating with people who made my ideas so much better. I’m grateful to incisive editor Anna Roberto, astute designer Mike Burroughs, and to my agent, Ammi-Joan Paquette, for believing in my whole deal and turning me into a children’s book author!
Finally, thank YOU for joining me on the Mochimochi Land adventure, where knitted toys have ended up doing all sorts of things. Your support makes a moment like this possible. (Now, keep it up and go buy my book please! 😸)
Oh, and watch out for a FREE Catside Up, Catside Down-themed pattern coming soon…
p.s. Local yarn stores can order Catside Up, Catside Down through Sommer Street Associates!
Exciting cat news: It’s a new “Hang in There” Cat kit! 😺
I’m thrilled to offer a limited number of these kits featuring custom yarn hand-dyed by Grace at Gnome Depot Fiber right here in Chicago. Grace and I worked together to come up with four sweet kitty colors to choose from: Orangey, Gray-y, Light Brown-y, and Party!
The kit comes with an advaced-beginner-level pattern (written in both flat and circular versions), lovely yarn to knit a cat, lovely yarn to cover a stick for your cat to hang from (and knit a leaf of two), polyester stuffing, plastic safety eyes, and… an authentic Chicago stick!
I recently taught a workshop using this cat kit at the Ann Arbor district library, and so many dangling cuties came out of it. It never ceases to delight me to see the same pattern (and even the same yarn) turn into such individual creatures in different knitters’ hands.
After all, we’re all “hang in there” cat sometimes, even though we may be grasping for different stuff.
We’re hanging’ in there in this hazy midwestern air this week 😶🌫️
On a less miserable note, I’ve got a pattern update and an upcoming “hang in there” workshop to share!
I’m planning to make kits for this persistent little guy in different cat colors. More on that soon!
And if you’re in the Ann Arbor area, I’ll be doing a workshop around this project later this summer! Please join me for a “hang in there” cat knitting event at the Ann Arbor District Library on August 12th! I’ve done quite a few workshops at this wonderful library over the years, and I’m thrilled for my post-covid return.
Plus! If you’re in the area and happen to be into classic Simpsons and/or pop culture trivia, you can join my husband, John, for a fun evening of trivia later in the day on August 12th.
One more thing—If you find yourself walking around Ann Arbor this summer, you might happen upon one of my Huge & Huggable friends, which are hanging out at various establishments around town as part of the library’s summer game. Say hi to Omelet if you run into him!
The Wooly Woods happened TEN YEARS AGO this spring!
This was a project that started when Superstorm Sandy came through Brooklyn, where I was living at the time, and among its milder effects were lots and lots of downed trees and branches in nearby Prospect Park. I saw a lot of beauty in the scattered wood, and started taking pieces home to use as little landscapes for my creatures to play in.
It was a meditative pleasure covering the twigs with colorful stripes of yarn, and I loved finding nearly endless ways to use the happy twists and bends in the wood as places for perching, nesting, and play.
The pieces were displayed at smallspace gallery in Berlin, where the show was part of the character walk accompanying the Pictoplasma festival. (The gallery is no more, but Pictoplasma is still going strong!)
I still love this concept, and I’ve come back to it a couple times over the years. (I also still have several pieces hanging in my house.) And I still feel like there’s lots more to with wool and woods! How fun would it be to fill a space with more branches and creatures hanging every which way around you? There could also be adorable stumps with little scenes happening on them 😀
The only tricky thing is shipping, but after this show I felt like if I could figure out how to ship delicate twigs from NYC to Berlin, I can ship anything 😤
Thank you to Jenna Teti for many of these images! More after the jump.