The Perfect Basic Beanie (for every head) Free pattern!

**Pictures Coming!**
So, I've been knitting for years ---YEARS!--- and hand on my heart, I swear to Bob that I have just this week figured out a simple and easy *perfect* basic beanie pattern. The trouble with me and beanies is I always seem to end up with a much bigger hat than I really want. I mean, a slouchy beanie is cute and definitely in right now, but sometimes a girl needs a little more warmth on her noggin, know what I mean? I'm talking coziness here, people.

Free Pattern Wednesday: Basic Mug Cozy for your Basic Mug

Yay! Free pattern Wednesday! Let's start this off with a real easy pattern to work up. If you're new to knitting, wanting to get back into it, or just want something to do with your hands for about 30 minutes to an hour, this one is for you!

Are you a tea/coffee/whiskey-disguised-as-tea-or-coffee/hot cocoa drinker? Is your mug always too hot? Or maybe it has been complaining that it's too cold and it needs a sweater? Well hush those annoying complaints and sip your whiskey in style! Here is a simple mug cozy pattern that you can whip up lickety-split!

That's a happy mug

On Experimentation, Long Distances and Cozy Covers

I'm a huge experimenter with my knitting. I could say that I like to look up patterns, and then tweak them to make them my own. But it's probably more truthful to say that I sometimes goof a pattern, so I'm likely to switch it up -- in the immortal words of Bob Ross, we don't make mistakes, just happy little accidents. So sometimes I end up with a weird little thing I wasn't intending to make, but I've learned something about my craft.

Usually, my happy little accidents or experiments find their way to my little sister. She's the best baby sister a girl with too much knitting ambition could hope for. She's always accepted my gifts with grace and sweetness. We're 12 years and 600 miles apart, since I've been living in Oregon for the past 5 years. It's tough for us to stay close, but especially now when she's going to be graduating high school and going off to (gasp!) COLLEGE, it's top priority for me to be the big sissy she needs. Oh, I'm making myself tear up!

ANYWAY, for the past couple of years, I've been making her special projects with themes on her favorite movies and TV shows. She's a HUGE Harry Potter Fan (it's something we have in common); last year for her birthday, I made her a sweater in the style of the ones Molly Weasley makes for Harry and Ron in Sorcerer's Stone.

Star Wars Style: The cozy side of the Force

Happy Star Wars day! Today is the official release day for Star Wars: The Force Awakens! I got to see it at the "midnight showing" - at 10:30 last night. I'm not sure if that really qualifies as a "midnight showing" technically speaking. But I'm not actually complaining, because it was totally worth the temporal displacement. I'm not super into spoilers, so I'm not going to say anything about it at all except that I liked it.

What I really want to share with you is two special Star Wars projects I made recently in eager anticipation of the new movie!