Category: Mochimochi Land News

Tiny Zombie Class at Lion Brand Yarn Studio on Sept 23

Posted on July 2, 2012August 22, 2012 by Anna

If you’re new to tiny knitting and live in the NYC area, I have a class coming up in September just for you!

On September 23 I’ll be teaching a Tiny Zombie knitting class at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio in Manhattan. We’ll cover all of my tips and tricks for knitting really tiny toys, and you’ll take home a finished Tiny Zombie that you made in class!

See the Lion Brand Yarn Studio website for all the info and how to sign up.

I haven’t been teaching many classes lately—my time is largely taken up with designing these days—so this is a rare opportunity to see exactly how I knit tiny mochis and get started doing it yourself. I’ll also bring other samples from my new book Super-Scary Mochimochi for a meet and greet, so it’s going to be a lot of fun!

Pictoplasma Character Compendium

Posted on June 22, 2012 by Anna

I’m honored to have some of my recent artwork featured in The Character Compendium, a new book published by Pictoplasma. Just look how beautiful this thing is!

It’s packed full of images from 200 artists who create the most original characters you’ve ever seen. So much cuteness, weirdness, and inspiration! Here’s a look at my pages:

charactercompendium2

The spherical guys are from my 2011 show “Mochimochi Worlds,” which was part of the annual Pictoplasma Festival in Berlin. And the colorful piece in the lower left was an installation hung at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio in 2011.

I am so in love with the other work in this book, which all way outshines my own contribution, in my opinion. A huge thank-you to the awesome people at Pictoplasma for including me!

Thank them, Wish upon them, Catch a Falling one…

Posted on June 20, 2012 by Anna

I’m super-excited to announce a new pattern in the Mochimochi Shop!

Lucky Stars have been in the works for a really long time. Back when I was first designing knitted toys, about five years ago, a star was one of my first ideas. But it took many failed attempts (and then a couple years in between tries, when I gave up on the idea for a while), before I figured out how to knit them the way that I pictured them in my head. It seems so simple now, but sometimes the simplest designs are the most difficult to work out!

The pattern comes in two sizes—a 2-1/2″-tall little Lucky Star that can slip into your pocket and a 5″-tall big Lucky Star that you can cuddly up with—and both can be knitted up in a matter of hours.

Techniques include knitting in the round on double-pointed needles (or magic loop with a circular needle) and picking up stitches.

The PDF pattern is now available as a download for $5 in the Mochimochi Shop!

Super-Scary Mochimochi Coming in September

Posted on June 11, 2012August 1, 2012 by Anna

Look what has a cover design!

This is my next book of knitted toy patterns, due to be released on September 18th! I’ll have some previews and more info this summer as the release date nears, but for now I can say that it’s packed with weird, silly, colorful creatures that are guaranteed not to scare you at all really.

The cover photo was shot by my good friend Brandi Simons, and the cool lab location was thanks to Robert Sheaff at the University of Tulsa. (I was psyched that liquid nitrogen was on hand!)

You can pre-order Super-Scary Mochimochi from Amazon and Barnes & Noble right now, or you can get it from your local yarn store in the US in September. (The UK release date is October 7th.) I’ll also have signed copies available in the Mochimochi Shop (with worldwide shipping) once it’s released.

Hurry up, September!

Last Day for Mystery Preview Kits!

Posted on May 31, 2012June 1, 2012 by Anna

Update: This promotion has now ended. The new kits will be coming to the Mochimochi shop this fall!

Today (May 31) is your last chance to get a free mystery preview kit from the Mochimochi Shop! All orders of 2 or more kits and/or books today will come with one of these kits.

Order 4 kits and/or books and get two different mystery preview kits; order 6 and you get all 3!

Like all of the Tiny Mochi kits, each contains a pattern for a mini knitted toy and enough fingering-weight yarn and stuffing to make multiples. The mystery kits will debut in the Mochimochi Shop this fall, so this is your last chance to get them for a while.

I’ve been psyched at the enthusiastic response to this special promotion so far. I guess everyone loves a surprise!

New Kits and a Mystery Bonus!

Posted on May 15, 2012May 15, 2012 by Anna

I’m excited to announce two new kits in the shop: Sushi and Unicorn!

These tiny mochi kits give you the pattern and just the right amount of yarn and stuffing to knit multiple itty-bitty mochis! They’re perfect for grab-and-go vacation knitting, and they make super gifts for your fellow knitters. All you need are a set of size 1 DPNs and a tapestry needle to get started.

Nine different kits are now available for $12 each in the Mochimochi Shop!

**Nab a Mystery Preview Kit**

Through May 31, purchase 2 or more kits and/or books from the Mochimochi Shop and get a free mystery preview kit!

These kits are new Tiny Mochi designs not available anywhere else! (They’ll be added to the Mochimochi Shop this fall.) A little hint: all three are human-type mochis, not animals or objects.

Martha Stewart Gets Mochi-fied

Posted on May 1, 2012May 1, 2012 by Anna

A little bit of Mochimochi Land found its way onto The Martha Stewart Show last week!

When Martha recently debuted her new line of yarns from Lion Brand, I thought it would be fun to use it to knit the crafting queen herself—a miniature version in Mochimochi style, of course. I was thrilled that my little diorama made it onto the show! And the audience all got to take home a copy of Teeny-Tiny Mochimochi, thanks to Potter Craft.

Here’s a closer look at Mini Mochi Martha.

mochimartha

I tried to include a wide selection of her many animals, from her two adorable French bulldogs to one of her canaries (sitting on her shoulder). You can see some beautiful photos of all of Martha’s furry and feathered friends on marthastewart.com.

A huge thank-you to The Martha Stewart Show and also to Kim Small at Potter Craft!

Announcing Jumbo Gnome! And a Knit Picks Giveaway!

Posted on April 19, 2012April 23, 2012 by Anna

Update: We’ve selected the winner of the Knit Picks giveaway, but we would still love to hear about your biggest knit in the comments!

I’m so excited to announce the newest pattern in the Mochimochi Shop!

At 18 inches tall, Jumbo Gnome is a huggable project that knits up quicker than you’d think with bulky yarn. The pattern incorporates fun techniques with simple construction, and your new friend will be great at hide-and-go-seek!

Jumbo Gnome also has a little secret: his beard is actually a pocket where he can stash away tiny treasures!

The pattern is now available as a PDF download for $6 in the Mochimochi Shop.

How would you like to WIN all six colors of Knit Picks Biggo to knit your Jumbo Gnome with?

Just leave a comment on this post telling us about the biggest thing you’ve ever knit by midnight Sunday night (April 22nd).

A big thank-you to Knit Picks for supplying the yarn!