V-Day and Pot Dyeing

Following an unplanned seasonal bout of flu, things got a little off track. I did get to watch season 2 of Gossip Girl guilt free from the comfort of my couch. At the weekend I did a little Valentine's day workshop where in my rush I forgot to bring a camera. I had a good little group and we made very cute embellished heart pins. Finally made progress on a store front and I have one thing in my shop which by the time I post this will hopefully be fuller. You think it's going to be so simple and before you know it you have to design a banner and change all the colors of the text etc etc. I do protest too much, if I wasn't so indecisive I'd be fine. There's also been some graphic design projects which I'd been working on for some time which thankfully were completed. Nothing worse than a deadline and a raging headache.

Heart pin

You may recall I mentioned a Pringle jumper that shrank from XL to mini mini. I decided on some pot holders, too thick for what I had originally intended. I blanket stitched the outside. I'll probably stitch a design onto the center but trying to stay focussed.

Pot Holder Super Felted

These should be in Thrift store find. In the spirit of Valentine's Day his n her cups. I love these they both have little lids/coasters. Whoever decided these weren't treasures must have been mad they are so adorable aren't they ?

his n hers mugs

Before I got ill I decided to dye a pink cashmere sweater on the stove. Like most of my ventures it was messy but ultimately successful. I plunged this garment into a pot of boiling water and dye and a cup of vinegar. For the next thirty minutes I had to stir it with my wooden spoon. Cashmere is usually hand wash only delicate and there I was stirring it like a stew. The color looked amazing and I would be lying if I didn't think it was going to shrink to the size of a small infant tee but praise be no shrinkage and beautiful color. The secret is apparently to let it cool naturally no shocking it with cold water and no tumble drying. So if you have a sweater in a color that doesn't suit you, or is plain blah. Have a go, you're not going to wear it any less are you ? You can use your washing machine if you want but I didn't want to risk the wrath of an unsuspecting neighbor accidentally having blue tinged clothes in the next wash and it sounded far more complex than the pot method.

From pale pink to lovely blue

Invigorated by this success I am planning more dyeing adventures, there is a rather plain jane oatmeal blanket that I just purchased which will be perfect for testing out various colors. I'm thinking I can make some bags and exciting pouches, creatures who knows....

Thrift store Find - Blankets

There hasn't been one of these for a while which is not to say that I haven't been thrifting I just haven't gotten around to taking photos. When I was little someone gave me a coin collection and by default I became a coin collector as various relatives gave me their foreign currency but it wasn't really my thing. Since then I've not really dedicated myself to collecting much other art really, well that was then. Blankets are my new thing I can't resist a good color scheme and they are so practical, they envelop you like a good hug and brighten up a room. I recently stumbled upon the chevron patterned blanket and it was love at first sight. It was then that I knew blankets was my thing. They are by and large 100% wool or a mix of natural fibers. No acrylic in this collection. It's not the smallest most compact item to collect but at least it has a purpose and I can happily state that I have used them all. I just can't imagine when a blanket would be surplus to requirements ?

Crocheted blanket in shades of green.

Chevron knitted blanket

Troy Robe

Charterweave

Glenn Cree

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February, already how ?

Well 1 month into the new year and it just whizzed by. The catalog is coming along and I'm still aiming for the mid February finish. I just need to make some hot water bottle covers so that they can be photographed, write descriptions, make an order form.......yep there is still an awful amount of mundane stuff to do. Here's some fun stuff, my mother in law has an ipad (she already had a cover) which is pretty snazzy so I decided to make a felted ipad cover worthy of its sleekness. My husband insisted that the apple had to be exact, no freehand cutting so I duly obliged I'm quite pleased with the outcome seeing as the jumper had been overfelted (again). Note to self do not use heavy duty wash cycle when felting or you will end up with tot sized apparel. I did some thrifting and found a woven coat which I can't bring myself to cut into, this has happened with a couple of treasures that I have found, I think they still have a job to clothe and so despite the potential of the fabric I just can't. This is also known as hoarding. There are currently 5 items that fit into this category who knows I may end up with a vintage line.

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A friend of mine insisted I should try Pinterest and it really is a marvellous thing, but the time that can be lost browsing through all those boards. You've been warned.