Yoga mat bags

If you don't know this about me already, you need to know that I love yoga.  Everything about yoga--the message, the spirit, the teachings, the poses, and the way that it is part of everything in life.  My love of yoga ties with my love for yarn (now that's saying something, isn't it?).  As you know Matt just completed his yoga teacher training and he has been teaching me a lot about yoga and its foundations.  He specifically has been teaching me about Raja yoga and its 8 limbs.  I have been trying to abide by the yamas (the first limb that represents the social code) and the niyamas (the second limb that have to do with the 'self').  One of the yamas is Aparigraha which says that one should not hoard things and should be non possessive.  I do have a problem with this sometimes (evidenced by my growing yarn stash).  So I have been trying to work on this in various ways.  I've been gathering items to donate, trying to get rid of items that are unnecessary to me, and also trying to destash when possible.  I am definitely not an expert on the yamas or how to live by them, but I am trying my best.

So what does this all have to do with knitting and crocheting?  Well, I have been making yoga mat bags with my stash.  I am planning on "selling" them at my yoga studio very soon.  The yoga studio has a boutique and it would be a perfect place to sell these items.  So far I have made 4 different bags and have at least one more planned before I'm going to bring them to the studio.  I've used a bag for my yoga mat that I knit back in 2011 and I'm ALWAYS getting complemented about it.  I really like it--it is machine washable and dry-able and is perfect for quickly stashing a sweaty yoga mat.  However, there were things that I could improve on--the strap was too long and the drawstring tie would come untied or be a bit of a pain to tie.  So I improved on these things with the new bags I made.

Here are the first two I've made for the studio.  The purple one is crocheted out of cotton in a ripple pattern.  You can see how they feature a shorter strap and a drawstring that cinches closed when you pick up the bag.  That's my favorite part :).  The second one is knit out of acrylic and also features the same shorter strap and cinching drawstring!

I have two others--one that looks like a tree and a blue lacy one that I developed the pattern for.  I'll post those in another entry when I get some decent photos of them.  I'll also be posting the pattern for my lacy mat bag--so keep an eye on my blog for that :).

Om hand warmers

Matt (my best friend) just finished his 200-hour yoga teacher training at the beginning of June.  So, being the crafty friend I am, decided to make him a yoga-themed gift.  Using my knowledge of his love for hand warmers and all things Om-related I set off to make him the perfect gift.  And...the Om hand warmers were born!

He absolutely loved them and can't wait for it to get a bit cooler to wear them.  (I'm also hoping to do a photo shoot with him to get some swanky yoga-riffic photos!)

Since he loved them so much, I really wanted to share the love and share my pattern and Om chart with you!  So without further ado, here is the recipe for my Om hand warmers!  Enjoy!

As always, feel free to sell items you make from my patterns, but please do not claim this pattern as your own, post any parts of it or the whole thing in other locations, or sell the pattern. :)

Gauge: roughly 7 rows = 1 inch; 7 stitches = 1 inch on size 7 needles.  The Om chart is 20 stitches by 17 rows and this measured 3 inches (stitches) by 2.5 inches (rows).
Needles: US size 7 and US size 9 or size need to obtain gauge
Yarn: Aran or Worsted weight

You can use any yarn and needle combination that you like.  If you use thinner yarn, increase the cast on stitches by 2 until you have enough to fit nicely around your palm, above your thumb.  These mitts are meant to be fitted to the hand--so if you'd like them looser, increase your cast on.

This hasn't be tested by others, so please let me know if you find any errors!

Mitt Instructions


Cast on 34 on 9s.
Switch to size 7s on the first round of knitting.
Join in the round, place marker for the beginning of the round.
Rounds 1-12: K1P1 ribbing
Rounds 13-24: Knit

This should get you to up to the base of your thumb or slightly higher.  You'll now begin to work back and forth in rounds.  DO NOT JOIN the next 13 rows.  You're creating the thumb opening.




Rows 25-37: Alternate a knit row and a purl row, continuing in stockinette stitch but in rows, ending with a knit row.  You can slip the first stitch of each row to create a nice edge if you'd like.

In more detail:
Rows 25, 27, 29, 31, 33, 35, and 37: Knit
Rows 26, 28, 30, 32, 34, and 36: Purl

[This section leave the hole for your thumb.  If you have a smaller or larger thumb (or different row gauge) adjust the number of rows--adjust by increments of 2 rows.]

After Row 37 join to the beginning of the round and start knitting again in rounds.




Rounds 38-47: Knit (this is 10 rounds in stockinette stitch)
Rounds 48-51: K1P1 ribbing


BO in pattern using size 9 needles, or stretchy bind-off of your choosing.

Repeat for the second mitt.

Adding the Om on the front of the mitts
Us the following chart to duplicate stitch the Om on the front of the mitt.  Remember that you'll need at least 20 stitches by 17 rows to complete the chart.  Try the mitt on first before stitching.  I found it worked nicely to have the side of the Om closest to the thumb opening begin about 2 or 3 stitches inside.

I'd love to see your finished hand warmers!

Long distance hug

It has been a little over 2 weeks since Hurricane Sandy hit New Jersey and the surrounding area.  The after effects are still quite apparent.  I was very fortunate during the storm.  I lost power in my apartment  for 3 and a half days, but thankfully I was able to go stay with my mom who didn't lose power at all.  A lot of my area was without power for over 10 days.  Transit is still a mess, which makes getting to work and school a bit tricky.  However all of these things seem so insignificant when I think about the people who are homeless now because their houses got destroyed in the storm.  There have been drives for supplies, toiletries, food, clothing, blankets, and other items all over my area.  One was even started at my yoga studio.  My heart just breaks for anyone hurting because of the storm.  Right after Sandy hit, the weather became so so very cold here and people were freezing.  I wish that I could just help everyone one out and make it all better, but I know that I can't do all of that.  So, I tried to do what I could.  I donated 3 bags of gently worn clothes and a whole bunch of brand new socks and underwear in all different sizes.

I still wanted to do more.  I looked around my yarn stash and I realized that I had a bunch of yarn that I could use to make a blanket.  I knew that it would be a challenge to do, but I was determined to make a blanket for donation, as quick as I could.  I gathered up all different kinds of purple-ish yarns that I had.

I had a lot of Lion Brand Homespun, some other Lion Brand color waves yarn (or something like that) and a few other random fuzzy yarns.  I also had a bunch of Red Heart Super Saver in various purples and some white yarn.   I got out one of my largest hooks, held a fuzzy strand and a RHSS strand together, and got crocheting.  I don't remember how many I chained, but the blanket ended up being large enough to cover the top of my full-sized bed.   The blanket is just all double crochets.  I changed yarns as the other ran out and I edged it with a round of single crochets.  I was able to get the entire blanket done within 25 hours of starting it---and no, I did not crochet every single minute of that time :).

I really am happy with the way that it came out.  I love the color changes and it is SO snuggly soft!  I was so happy to donate it at my yoga studio.  I attached a little note to it saying that I was thinking about the person who got it and I hope it kept him/her warm.  I only wish I could make more of these.

Matt's Yoga Mat Bag!

Back in July I introduced my best friend to hot yoga...and of course he loved it! (Seriously it is addicting...if you haven't tried it yet, I really encourage you to go take a class.)  After his first class he was so excited about yoga!  I had made myself a bag for my mat a while back.  Matt asked me if I could make him one as well in blue.  So I searched my stash and I found some organic cotton by Patons and got knitting!

Here's the finished product.  I made his strap shorter than the one I made for myself and also a bit wider since it will stretch due to the weight of the bag.

Just for reference...this WIP picture shows the color most accurately :).