Category: Knitted Things

The 2025 holiday kit is here!

Posted on by Anna

And it’s doggies!

I’m so excited to unveil this year’s Mochimochi Land holiday pattern: Drool Runnings!

These jolly doggies in their speedy sled were inspired by my dad’s stories of racing down any hill he and his siblings could find in their snowy Chicago suburb in the 1950s and ’60s.

For now, this pattern is available as a kit only (with the PDF download coming soon)—you get the pattern and all the yarn, stuffing, and pipe cleaners you need to knit a sled and two pups, Santa hats and all. You’ll need to supply a set of size 1 US (2.25mm) double-pointed needles and a tapestry needle.

Techniques include a few rounds of stranded colorwork, mattress stitch (for assembling the sled), and I-cord. Photos and demo videos will help you along at key points.

The entire project can be knitted up in a day or two, for a quick handmade gift. (And would make a very cute pairing with Short Dog, Long Dog!) Or the kit itself makes a sweet gift for your knitting friends who already have everything.

I wanted this year’s holiday pattern to be absolutely bursting with joy, so I hope that comes through!

Find the kit in the Mochimochi Shop.

A new ✨deluxe✨ tiny dinosaur kit

Posted on by Anna

New in the shop: a thrilling tiny dinosaur combo kit!

Transport yourself to a time when there was no social media, no creepy drones, and no AI slop. Instead, there were soothing tar pits, exciting volcanic eruptions, and the cutest dinosaurs ever to roam the earth. It’s time for DINO-RAMA!

Inspired by dinosaur dioramas of all kinds, Dino-rama is a new knitting kit that contains the makings of a whole tiny dinosaur play set: intermediate-level patterns, yarn, and stuffing to make THREE different tiny dinos (t-rex, triceratops, and apatosaurus), plus a mini volcano and two wee palm trees!

The majority of the yarn is a beautiful mix-and-match assortment of fingering-weight, hand-dyed yarn from WoolTribe, supplemented by a smattering of Cascade Heritage solids. Plus, each kit comes with a cute little t-rex sticker!


Dino-rama comes packaged in a 6-inch square kraft box, perfect for gifting or knitting on the go. 💝🦖

These are some of my favorite designs from recent years, and I’m so excited to put them together for the first time in this fun kit. We debuted Dino-rama at the crafts industry trade show H+H Americas back in May, and got a very enthusiastic reception from retailers.

I hope you love it too! And maybe it can even take you away briefly to a more playful time and space.

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It’s dinosaur time 🦕✨

Say hello to Holi-Log!

Posted on by Anna

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Introducing the sweetest new friend in Mochimochi Land, the Mini Holi-Log! This little treat of a design is destined to be the life of your holiday gathering. Just look at her adorable lil face! And her mushrooms! And her holly! And sprinkles!

Use the code YULEBEMERRY after adding $5 or more in products from the Mochimochi Shop, and the Mini Holi-Log pattern will magically appear in your cart!

Holi-Log’s elegant wood grain is made using a fun technique: basically knit and purl at random!

Other techniques used in this cozy little project include knitting in the round on double-pointed needles, I-cord, a little bit of mattress stitch for assembly, and French knots for holly berries. (These last two are shown in video tutorials linked in the pattern.)

You’ll need some woody-brown yarn (about 24 yards), some creamy white (about 8 yards), and a teeny bit of green, red, and black for details. Any weight of yarn and corresponding needle size will do, but the sample shown is made using fingering-weight yarn and size 1 (2.25mm) double-pointed needles.

As those of us in the Northern Hemisphere approach the darkest part of the year, we’re wishing you warmth and light and coziness among your favorite creatures and comforts!

Share the love

Posted on by Anna

UPDATE: With your help we raised $156 over the weekend with this little fundraiser! All went to Brave Space Alliance. Thank you!

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I’ll be donating all proceeds from PDF pattern sales this weekend (through 6/19) to Brave Space Alliance in honor of Pride 🏳️‍🌈 (Click on their name to learn more about all the great stuff they’re doing for Chicago’s trans community!)

This rainbow hug went through a couple of different versions as I was trying to figure out how to express the radiance of their love. You can see them in my latest Instagram post.

Peachy

Posted on by Anna

I didn’t expect this to be my first project of 2021, but I also didn’t expect domestic terrorism egged on by the president in the first week of the new year. Now I’m itching to knit a basketful of peaches. Also because Georgia! ❤️

A few people have asked for the pattern—here are my rough notes, in case you’d like to knit little peaches too!

Use any yarn weight with double-pointed needles that give you a relatively tight gauge.

With your peach-color yarn, cast on 6 sts onto 3 DPNs to work in a round.
Rnd 1: knit
Rnd 2: [kfb] 6 times (12 sts)
Rnd 3: [kfb, k1] 6 times (18 sts)
Rnd 4: knit
Rnd 5: [kfb, k2] 6 times (24 sts)
Rnd 6: knit
Rnd 7: [kfb, k3] 6 times (30 sts)
Rnd 8: knit
Rnd 9: [kfb, k4] 6 times (36 sts)
Rnds 10-15: knit (6 rnds)
Rnd 16: [k2tog, k1] 12 times (24 sts)
Rnds 17 and 18: knit
Stuff the piece
Rnd 19: [k2tog, k1] 8 times (16 sts)
Rnd 20: [k2tog] 8 times (8 sts)
break the yarn, leaving a long tail, and draw it loosely through the stitches

For a stem, make a 2-stitch I-cord for 8 rows. When you finish it off, insert the tip into the top of the peach, and draw the top stitches of the peach tight to close.

Use the long tail you left on the piece to make a long vertical stitch running from top to bottom on one side; pull it tightly for cleavage, and weave in the tail to secure in place.

For a leaf, cast on 2 sts to work flat
Row 1: [kfb] twice (4 sts)
Row 2: purl
Row 3: knit
Row 4: purl
Row 5: [k2tog] twice (2 sts)
break the yarn and draw it loosely through the stitches
Stitch the leaf to the stem and weave in the rest of the loose ends.

Embroider a face if you like, then enjoy your peach in whatever literal or figurative way you please!