I am an artist, but every now and then I draft a sewing pattern for personal use. If I think others may enjoy the use of a pattern I make, I scan it in, make it a pdf and let you have it for free. If you are feeling munificent and want to pay for the patterns, I ask that you donate to a charitable cause, instead. They need the money more than I do.

For many years I had a specific charity in mind since I have a dear friend with a daughter who had brain cancer. Recently I decided I'd like to list a few more options:

1. National Brain Tumor Society
2. Hemophilia Foundation of Northern California
3. National Multiple Sclerosis Society - Northern California Chapter

Also, on a somewhat random note, I have written a tutorial for newbie sailboarders, entitled Yakityak's Basic Windsurfing Guide for Noobs. It comes complete with handy-dandy diagrams for your viewing pleasure.

As of now, I have 13 sewing patterns and one knitting pattern available. I have a second knitting pattern for a tea cosy available for sale on ravelry.

• Handspun Yarn Labels - Well, this isn't a pattern, either. This is a printable pdf with 5 labels to tape around handspun yarn skeins. I'm really pretty reliable about recording all the details of my spinning in entries on ravelry. But the more I spin, the more handspun skeins collect in my stash. I have often lamented the need to haul my laptop with me to recall details like yardage and fiber content when I go "stash shopping" for a knitting project. But lately I was disturbed to realize that I had a little difficulty in remembering what skein went with which project - similar wool and colors had been used in the two under consideration. I realized it was time to start labeling skeins in the flesh as well as online. There are other labels out there for this purpose, but I didn't care for the layout nor the information included, so I made my own.
• Yak's Adaptable Tea Cosy Pattern - This pattern is available for sale on ravelry. This is a knitting pattern for a tea cosy. Tea cosies allow you to brew a pot of tea and keep it warm longer without the need to reheat in the microwave. Basically, it's a sweater for your teapot. It really only makes sense to knit one for a larger teapot that holds more than one serving of tea. Anyway, I wanted a pattern that could be adapted for any size or shape teapot. This pattern is essentially a recipe, so you will knit your cosy to measure for your particular teapot. It is knit top down so it requires that you are comfortable with top-down construction from a small number of starting stitches.
• Yak's Party Pants Coaster Pattern - did your dog tear a hole in your best dress pants? Does your son wear out the knees on everything he owns? Make drowning your sorrows that much less damaging to your furniture by making some awesome coasters out of your sartorial misery.
• Yak's Spinner's Lap Cloth Tutorial Spinner's lap cloths are non-essential but rather handy to have if you spin on a wheel. It can be annoying (and occasionally embarrassing if the fiber is very glittery) to have to scrape fiber off your nether regions if it's the sort of thing that likes to stick to clothing. This is particularly true if you are breaking out chunks of fiber for color management purposes or for spinning from the fold. And if the lap cloth is kitted out with pockets, you have a handy place for the oil bottle, cell phone, vm matter or nepps you pull out while spinning. An old rag works just fine if you don't care about the pockets, but if you want something cute you can take to a spinning class or you don't want your rolled up rag with fiber in it accidentally pitched into the laundry (insert sad emoticon here)... well this pattern's for you.
• Yak's Hot and Cold Packs - Need to hot compress that finger you just sewed over? Need a cold compress for that headache? Better make more than one of these so you can keep one in the freezer and microwave the other (for 45 sec - 1 min). As patterns go, this is pretty bare bones, but nobody likes chatter when they've got a headache, anyway.
• Yak's Fingerless Mitts for Little Yaks - This is a simple knitting pattern for child-to-small-adult size fingerless mitts. It is pretty bare bones as knitting patterns go, and assumes you know basic terminology and leaving the method of stitch increases up to you. But it's nicer than many children's mitt patterns out there in that there is thumb gusset shaping to it. This results in a very nice fit. It's a fast knit and a great last-minute gift option since it's made up in bulky yarn.
• Better than average Mason Jar Cozy - it's better than average because it's got double the protection against the sleeve slipping right off the straight sides of your mason jar. But I can't really use too much hyperbole because, let's face it, I'm talking about a coffee sleeve here. If you need the mason jar converter lid for coffee, you can find one here by Cuppow.
• Tooth Fairy Pillow Make a small pillow with a tooth shaped pocket so you can deliver lost teeth in style! The pattern includes detailed instructions on how to make a pillow using piping and ruffles so that you get professional looking results. And don't feel limited to something small! these piping and ruffling instructions can be used to make a pillow of any size - for your bed, your couch or any other setting where you want a nice looking custom-made pillow for a fraction of the cost of retail.
• Doggy-Doo Right Bag Holder Take along bags for cleaning up on your dog's walk... without being left holding the bag! This little project lets you carry your clean-up bags in style, and even has a loop mechanism for carrying the used bag hands-free until you find a trash can.
• Moishe's Little Dog Vest and the separate Instructions For Moishe's Little Vest. Little dogs are best walked on harness because their small size means it is easy to accidentally injure their neck when a leash is hooked to a conventional collar. And harnesses fit best underneath any clothing the dog may be wearing. Due to the surface area to mass ratio, small dogs are more likely to be cold and need clothing than large dogs. But most dog clothing patterns do not accommodate a harness latch loop. This pattern is specifically sized for dogs that are around 12" from neck to base of tail (give or take a few inches), and contains instructions for creating a slot to accommodate a harness hook-up.
• Yakityak's Fabric Envelope This is a fast project that is super practical on all counts. You can use it to carry your sheet music, your papers to grade, your study notes, or anything else written on paper that is 9" X 12" or smaller. It features a pocket for a stiffening sheet of plastic that can be removed for laundering. You can even make the envelope largely waterproof by using the appropriate materials. This makes a great teacher's gift!
• Yakityak's NeedleBook of Wonders! This sleek little sewing aid has a hanging loop, 4 leaves for needles, a handy pocket for needle threaders, a very secure elasticized pocket for a thimble and the cutest wee little box pleat you've ever seen.
• A 6-panel Kippah Pattern This fast and easy pattern allows you to make a kippah out of any stable (non-stretchy) material. With the enormous variety of quilting cottons out there, your imagination is the only limit. Child-size and adult-size are on the same pattern sheet. You can see a photo of actual kippahs being worn on (adorable) heads in my blog.
• A Travel Tissue Pack This is a super fast project - about 15 minutes from cutting out to done. Make a small pack to keep those travel-sized tissues easily accessible and clean. A great item to have during cold and flu season - make it as fancy or plain as you like... keep for yourself or give as a cute little token of affection.
• Here is the Toddler/Travel Pillow Pattern These make well-constructed pillow cases and pillow covers that are perfect for kids who are too small to use an adult sized pillow. This is also a great pillow case pattern for those "bucky" pillows that are much smaller than standard size, or for travel-use. 12" X 16" pillow-forms are a standard size available at many sewing retail chain stores.
• Here is the Yak Snack Pack Pattern. Use these easy-to-make, easy-to-clean reusable bags instead of plastic sandwich baggies. No corners = no place for crumbs to collect. The blog entry contains more details.
• Here is the iPod Cover Pattern Using this pattern, you can make yourself an iPod cover that has moderate padding (enough to protect against run-of-the-mill bumps and scratches but not a major insult) and an original fabric cover, unique to you! This pattern allows for a sync cable slot in the cover. The pattern comes in two separate pdf files. You'll need them both. One is the pattern pieces and the other is the instructions. And, NB... sigh. Technology advances and this is turning into a "vintage pattern" before my eyes. This cover is only for the iPod classics. It could be narrowed for a nano, but it's no go for the Touch.
• Here is the iPod Cover Pattern instructions