Berroco, the popular yarn company, releases several new yarns just about every season. Because they're a leader in the category of fashion yarns -- that is, those you might use to make a special-occasion top with a bit of flash, or a fancy scarf that isn't necessarily intended to keep you warm -- their products are often complex, and relatively expensive and delicate. It might not be practical to make a full garment out of some of them.

Fortunately, Berroco is also known for their large archive of free patterns. Their most recent releases are small fashion accessories that you can make out of delicious yarns like glittering Lumina and textural Seduce... without breaking your budget.

My two favorite patterns from the latest update are Lurema and Scarfina. A close look suggests that they're actually essentially the same pattern, written for two different yarns: both are long (64"), slender (5") lace scarves. Lurema is shown as a head-wrap, while Scarfina is depicted as a belt, but you should be able to wear either of them either way: just choose your favorite yarn and run with it.

You may also be interested in Hedda, a small crocheted headband made in two colors of Linen Jeans, which was part of the same recent pattern update.

Popular yarn manufacturer Berroco frequently releases new free patterns, so it's not surprising that they started with Christmas patterns back when we were still posting about Halloween stuff.

Their latest free holiday pattern is Minutia: a collection of twelve tiny, detailed sweaters knit from a sport-weight yarn. They're cute, and they only take a few hours each to knit. When you're finished, twist a hanger out of craft wire, hang the sweater on it (the only time it's acceptable to put knitwear on a hanger, as far as I'm concerned), and put it on a tree or a package.

These might be a better way to use up yarn scraps than a project to invest in, unless you're going to make a lot of them. Many of the designs are multi-colored, and it seems wasteful to me to buy a whole extra hank of yarn just so that one of these miniature sweaters can have a contrast stripe at the collars and cuffs.

Among Berroco's other holiday offerings, you might like Lattice, a colorful lattice-stitch stocking, the Silent Night cabled tree skirt that can also be made as a capelet (just eliminate one of the wedges), a collection of felted ornaments called Decorate that was released around this time last year, and John, a Fair Isle stocking.