As Seen On Our Screens: The Projects We Can’t Stop Watching

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We all know the feeling. You’re settled in and ready to binge watch the new season of that show everyone is talking about. You’ve got your latest project in your lap and nothing but a few hours of streaming in front of you. Then, just a few minutes in, you find yourself having to pause and replay scenes because something distracted you.

Above: Image source – Getty Images

You ask yourself, “Is she wearing a handknit hat?” Or you turn to your partner and say, “Did you see that crochet blanket on the couch?”

It has happened to the best of us. We get so caught up in the handmade projects on screen that we don’t pay attention to what we are watching. Costume and set design that good demands our attention. And before you know it, you’re scouring the internet for a pattern to make something similar.

Related: Binge Watching, Just for the Sweaters

In this article, we look at some of the best knit and crochet projects we can’t stop watching in shows and movies. Plus, we’ve got a few Interweave patterns that come close to what you see on the big screen. And these scene stealers aren’t just for cosplayers. Many of the pieces would look beautiful in our real lives.

Joyce Byers’ Hat, Stranger Things

The fourth season of Netflix’s most popular show, Stranger Things, just dropped a few weeks ago. And while everyone is downloading Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill”, we’ve got eyes on Joyce Byers’ red knit hat.  

As Winona Ryder’s character Joyce makes her way to Alaska with Brett Gelman’s character Murray, she wears a cabled hat knit with chunky yarn. The shade of maroon is too dark to make out the pattern exactly, but it’s clear this is a classic design. You can get a similar look with Lana Jois’ Wheatsheaf Hat. In the same shot, Murray sports a fantastic stranded colorwork scarf that would also be fun to try to replicate.

John Dorie Sr.’s Crochet Blanket, Fear the Walking Dead

If you’ve got the stomach to get through the gore of AMC’s Fear the Walking Dead, you were treated to an epic crochet blanket in season six. Keith Carradine’s character John Dorie Sr. finds comfort as he recovers from injuries wrapped in a gorgeous Tunisian crochet blanket. Look closely and discover, the maker cross stitched on top of the Tunisian stitches.  

You might be thinking, “haven’t I seen something like that before?” Indeed, you have! In Spring 2020, Interweave Crochet shared Natasha Robarge’s Garden Path Wrap—more than a year before season six aired. We like to think the show’s costume and set designers loved the project so much they adapted it into a blanket for the show. Either that, or it is a stunning vintage find. We’ll let you be the judge.

Padmé Amidala’s Wrap, Star Wars: Episode 2

With the release of the new Obi-Wan Kenobi related series on Disney+, we were reminded of the eye-catching wrap worn by Padmé Amidala in Star Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones. As actress Natalie Portman wears an all-white costume reminiscent of Princess Leia’s wardrobe in earlier movies, she has a cozy shlanket* around her shoulders.

*Note, a shlanket is a term we first heard coined by knitter Stephen West. It refers to a shawl that is the size of a blanket. Shawl + Blanket = Shlanket.

Granted, this is most likely a woven fabric from a remote settlement on Hoth, but it could be knitted or crocheted, too. For a knit version, we recommend playing with knit-purl patterns to produce a similar texture. For a crochet version, work Nirmal Kaur Khalsa’s Kinetic Throw in white yarn and show the Empire who’s the boss—fringe optional.

Juliet Ashton’s Hat & Sweater, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

Sci-fi shows don’t get all the fun. There is no end to the distractions for knitters and crocheters when it comes to period dramas. From Outlander [affiliate link] to Downton Abbey and Call the Midwife, there are countless shows and films that take our yarn-loving breath away.

In The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, a film based on a novel by the same name, actress Lily James’ wardrobe is a knitter’s dream. In one scene, she dons a beautiful butter yellow knit sweater with a high neckline and graphic reverse stockinette triangles. The outfit is topped off with a garter stitch beret in a natural wooly brown.

While the perfect vintage pattern to knit or crochet a similar sweater might be hard to come by, beret patterns abound! Sarah Solomon’s Phryne Beret is a great choice for knitters. And April Garwood’s Kewpie Beret would be a fun choice for crocheters.

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What TV shows or movies have inspired you to start a new project? Let us know in the comments below.

-Kerry Bogert
Content Manager, Yarn

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Recreate your favorite film and television looks with patterns from Interweave!