Category: Events

Opening October 7: Greetings from Mochimochi

Posted on by Anna

Update! The gallery will be open 2-4 pm on Saturday, October 30th for a tea party and trunk show!

Here it is, the official info for my show this October in NYC!

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Greetings from Mochimochi

a weird world of fun and chaos hand-knitted by Anna Hrachovec

October 7 – 29, 2010
Opening reception: Thursday, October 7, 7-9 p.m. – RSVP info@galleryhanahou.com

gallery hanahou
611 Broadway, Suite 730, NYC

In her first solo show, craft artist Anna Hrachovec stretches the possibilities of knitting as a medium to create an expansive and wacky landscape installation. Crash-landed aliens, rat-infested skyscrapers, giant ants, and everything else that comprises the 8-foot installation is entirely hand-knitted by the artist, who used 200 balls of yarn and more than a million stitches to make it all come to life. And just for fun, the piece includes a working model train – converted into a silly knitted monster, of course!

Some of the elements in the piece are based on designs in Anna’s 2010 book of knitted toy patterns, Knitting Mochimochi.

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If you are in the NY area, please join me for the opening on October 7th!

Yarns provided by Cascade
greetingsfrom_cascade

Naughty and Nicey Class at Purl Oct 16

Posted on by Anna

I’m excited to say that I’ll be teaching another toy knitting class in NYC in October—this time, at Purl in Soho!

Just in time for kooky homemade Halloween costumes, we’ll be knitting Naughty and Nicey on October 16th!

naughtynicey_purl

Here’s the class description:

Knit Naughty or Nicey with Anna from Mochimochi Land

Saturday, October 16th, 2:00pm – 5:00pm

Learn basic toy knitting techniques to make a set of toys that can double as a quick Halloween costume! Anna Hrachovec of Mochimochi Land will show you how to use double-pointed needles to make Naughty and Nicey – an adorable devil and angel pair that you can be worn on the shoulders – from her book Knitting Mochimochi. Techniques covered will include knitting small circumferences on DPNs, stuffing, picking up stitches, and mattress stitch. You will just have to choose whether to start with the angel or the devil!

The cost for the class is $75 if you already have a copy of Knitting Mochimochi, and if you buy the book with the class, you get $5 off!

To sign up, call the store during business hours at 212-420-8796.

A Visit to the Lion Brand Yarn Studio

Posted on by Anna

I had such a great time yesterday at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio! The book signing was of course a lot of fun—I had a blast meeting knitters in person and seeing what they have to say about the sample toys from Knitting Mochimochi. Thank you to everyone who came out!

The staff at the store were all super welcoming. Before the signing, I was interviewed by Zontee for the Yarncraft podcast, which I think went well despite some nervousness on my part (I’ll let you know when it’s up), and then Patty, the Studio Director, gave me a tour of the store and told me all about how their amazing window displays come together. (It’s a big team effort!)

You may have already seen photos of the current Coney Island display that they have up this summer—it’s amazing to see in person.

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I hadn’t really noticed it on previous visits, but they also exhibit fiber art pieces on the back wall of the studio. I was really impressed by the studio’s commitment to creativity and experimentation with yarn.

Thank you to Patty, Zontee, and everyone at the Lion Brand Studio!

I’ll be returning to the Lion Brand Yarn Studio on August 29th to teach a Master Class, so if you are a toy knitting beginner or would like to see exactly how I do it (it also helps if you live in the NYC area), I hope you’ll sign up!

Toy Knitting Class at Lion Brand August 29

Posted on by Anna

If you’re in the NYC area and could use an in-person session on toy knitting, I will be teaching a class at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio from 2 to 5 pm on Sunday, August 29th!

In the class, we’ll use my Baby Gators pattern from Knitting Mochimochi to learn basic toy knitting techniques like using double-pointed needles to knit in the round, stuffing, and seaming.

babygators_lionbrand
[photo by Brandi Simons]

By the end of the 3-hour class, you will have finished your own Baby Gator or will be well on your way to finishing one at home!

I recommend this class for beginning to intermediate knitters who know some basic stitches and who may or may not have experience with knitting in the round.

For more information and to sign up, see the class schedule at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio website.

And don’t forget that I’ll also be at the Lion Brand Studio on July 27th for a book signing!

Release Party Wrap-up

Posted on by Anna

The Knitting Mochimochi release party on Sunday at Brooklyn General was so much fun! I didn’t know what to expect, since many people are out of town on July weekends, but I was pleasantly surprised by the steady stream of friends and new faces.

I got a little practice signing books, which is still kind of strange to me. It feels like a mixture of vandalism and middle-school yearbook signing. (“Stay sweet!”)

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The best part was seeing people’s in-person reactions to the toys in the book. They were mostly of the “cuuute” variety (with one or two “huh?”s thrown in for good measure), and Grouchy Couch and the Feet Eaters seemed to get the most attention.

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Thank you to Brooklyn General for hosting, and to everyone who turned out!

If you missed the party, next I will be at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio on July 27th (Tuesday) at 6 pm for a book signing. I can’t wait!