YOP Update - All Over the Place

It's Sunday and time for a YOP update.  I finished 1 item on my list, yay!, and added 5 more. What?  Yeah, I was a bit all over the place this week for knitting because of a decision that's been a long time coming.  You see I've had a little knitted toy shop on Etsy for some years now, but I've decided to stop making toys and to change the shop over to something new - plant dyed yarn.  It's not too much of a stretch because all my toys are knit with plant dyed yarn (dyed by the wonderful Judy of Mamajudes also on Etsy) which is a passion of mine.  In my zealousness last Summer I purchased a good quantity of yarn for the shop, but with dwindling sales I have a lot of yarn leftover.  Since I don't want to knit toys anymore, all of it needs a new purpose.  Judy uses Lamb's Pride Worsted yarn for her base yarn which I love for making toys, but not so much for wearing as it's a rather stiff.  The great thing is that I have come up with a bunch of ideas on how to use it up, the bad news is I seem to be trying them out all at once!

So, I added a "Home" category to my YOP knit list with the following patterns: 

For the Home

Sock Yarn Braided Trivets by Martha Lazar 8 of them 

Sock Yarn Braided Rug by Martha Lazar 

My Oluffa Doorstop by Lucinda Guy 

Cozy Coasters by Joelle Hoverson  

Out of the Frying Pan by Amy E. Anderson

 

With the exception of the Cozy Coasters which uses some Frog Tree alpaca yarn (that never seems to run out as seriously I've made 3 sets of 4 coasters using the yarn doubled and still have yarn for more) they are all knit with my toy business yarn.  They Trivets I mentioned in this post, the rug you can see about halfway done above (it's basically a big trivet), the doorstop will be more of a pillow as it will use some other toy knitting yarn that's angora, and last are felted oven mitts which I'm making for use when dyeing and handling the hot pots.  Felted projects are really perfect for this yarn so I'm hoping to come up with a few more ideas along those lines.

Oh, and the finished object for this week was the Classic Cowl I knit with my rainbow handspun yarn which you can see here.  So, as you can see I didn't go with last week's plan to finish spinning my alpaca/angora yarn, but I'm pretty pleased overall.  Now I probably need to tweak my list a bit by removing a couple of items to make up for the additions I made this week.  Decisions, decisions, decisions...

Summer Sale!

Business has been slow in my Etsy shop Simply Playing so I decided to spice things up with a Summer Sale.  Everything in the shop is on sale for 20% off from now through Friday June 12th.  Just use the coupon code "TOYS20" upon checkout to receive your savings.  Thank you all for your support and happy shopping!

New Pattern - Wee Bunny Rabbits

I'm excited to share with you a new knitting pattern I wrote for a sweet stuffed bunny toy.  It's called Wee Bunny Rabbits and will be available for sale in a few weeks (in time for your Easter knitting perhaps?)  You may remember this post I wrote about searching for the perfect bunny knitting pattern, and at the time it was just what I wanted, but now I think I have an even better one.  This time around I wanted more prominent legs with a body shape that was more true to life.  It is a pattern for an intermediate knitter as it is knit on double pointed needles and has lots of short rows, but I think the end results are well worth the effort.  You can see more photos and read about them here.

I am knitting them using Angora Garden lovely angora yarns in Winter White, Cocoa Bean and Winter Gray colors.  There will also be a softer gray and light fawn available after I receive my new yarn in the post (don't you just love getting yarn in the mail?  It's my favorite!)  The bunnies have the same handspun 100% angora pom pom tails as my older version did and oh are they soft!  Along with releasing the pattern I hope to release some kits for these delightful animals that would include angora yarn, wool stuffing, pom pom tail and embroidery floss.  All you would need to provide are double pointed needles, scissors, a yarn darning needle and an embroidery needle.  You'll be able to request what color bunny as well as the eye and nose color.  What do you think?  I've always wanted to make kits for my shop and if these do well I'll try assembling kits for my Gnome Family, Teether and Rattles. 

Joining in with Nicole for Keep Calm Craft On.

Knitted Gnome Family Pattern

 

I have been busy knitting toys in hopes of a good Holiday Season of sales here at Simply Playing.  Along with knitting toys I developed a pattern (last year actually, but finally written out) that I'm hoping to launch in the next month or two.  It's of a gnome mama with her baby and child.  Some will be in the store soon sold as mama with her baby in a sling and then the child will be sold separately.  Being new to pattern writing I am looking for a few test knitter's to test it out before it's made public.  If you are interested in being a test knitter please email me at ann"at" simplyplaying"dot"net.  

Joining in with Nicole for Keep Calm Craft On and Ginny for Yarn Along.

Rainbows on a Toy Ball

If you've read more than 3 posts on this blog you've probably noticed I like rainbows A LOT.  Today's post is yet another about rainbows.  Most of my toys in my shop Simply Playing feature rainbows because I believe children should have bright and cheery play things.  Here is a very simple ball with rainbow coloring in wedges moving around the surface.  I use Judy's 12 section Ball pattern found on Ravelry for free, and as with all my toys the yarn has been plant dyed by Judy of Mamajudes on Etsy.  It's rather a time consuming knit, but I love the end result and it's a very popular item so I continue to knit them. They have been out of stock for a few months so I'm busy this week making some to add to my growing inventory - yay!

Joining in with Nicole for Keep Calm Craft On.

A Bunny Tale or Tails That Is.

I've been working on getting my shop's inventory of Waldorf styled knitted toys full to bursting and this week's assignment is bunny tails since Easter is less than a month away.  The cute pom pom tails are made with some of my own angora/merino handspun yarn using a fork, darning needle and a sharp pair of scissors.  I love how they look all jumbled up in a pile.  After the tails I start knitting the squares that make up there bodies using the dimensions in this pattern.  The yarn choices are grey angora/wool, brown mohair, tan angora/wool or dark brown alpaca (not shown in the photo.)  Next, using double pointed needles I knit up the ears, which are of my own design.  Lastly,  it's on the sewing and stuffing.  So, there you have it a bunny tale (of a sort)!

Joining in with Nicole for Keep Calm Craft On.

Crowns, Crowns and More Crowns

The other day I decided to drag out my Rubbermaid tub of all my knitted toys for my Etsy shop Simply Playing and take an inventory.  Well, I am low on just about everything I normally carry and completely out on a handful of toys too.  So, I yesterday day was deemed knitted crown day as our homeschool class out at Gale Woods Farm in Minnetrista was canceled due to icy roads.  Sam and I stayed in our jammies all day with me knitting while Sam bounced on his trampoline (and all the beds), played Minecraft, learned about Pixelmon (a Pokemon mod for Minecraft) and chatted incessantly about what Pokemon character he wanted to use in the new game when dad got it up and running.  It was a fun day.  I finished six crowns with just the finishing left on the purple one you see above.  I still have five to make today for a complete inventory, but we'll have to see what today brings.

Joining in with Nicole for Keep Calm Craft On.

Fresh Off the Wheel - Pastel Rainbow Dreams

 

Winter is long here in Minnesota and I am just craving color like my black lab Easy craves raw hide bones.  I turn to fiber to find the color I desperately need at times like these so fresh off the wheel this week is more rainbows of the pastel variety.  I thought a photo progression would be fun: fiber, single ply on the bobbin, double ply on the bobbin, finished product close up, wound and finally skeined.  The rainbow fiber was special ordered through Judy of Mamajude on Etsy and is a mix of domestic sheep's wool that has been naturally dyed with plants.  The gray ply is some heavenly fiber I purchased at last year's Yarnover event hosted by the Minnesota Knitters' Guild of baby lama.  It was so soft and drafted with such ease that if it wasn't for the price I would spin it ALL the time.  Lama is a weighty fiber with a lovely drape giving the rather plain jane sheep's wool a little more character.  That said, it took twice as many ounces as the rainbow fiber to make the skein which turned out to be a whopping 6.3 ounces/180 grams at 216 yards/197 meters of Worsted to Aran weight. All in all a rather expensive hank of yarn, but oh isn't it beautiful?  It's listed for sale in my etsy shop, but I must admit I'm tempted to keep it for myself to just look and touch when I need a fix.

Joining in with Nicole for Keep Calm Craft On.

Rainbow Jewelry Kits are Back in Stock!

Yes, Rainbow Jewelry Kits are back n stock at Simply Playing on Etsy!  I dragged my feet for a while as the beads are a bit of an investment, all coming in packs of hundred, but you've been asking for them so I made the plunge.  The all natural new wooden beads are of a much higher quality and are made right here in the USA.  I also upgraded the hemp twine to a much softer, flexible 3 ply hemp twine made in Romania and added 2 more yards for a total of 6 yards per kit.  The plant dyed felt pieces are in the same lovely colors as before with the exclusion of lavender which was hard to keep consistent and often came out looking much too blue.  This DIY kit makes a great gift and with all the options for coloring your beads it can keep your child occupied for a long, long time!  Enjoy!

Rainbows on a Dreary Winter Day

Winter can start to get you down for many reasons, but it's really the lack of color that gets to me.  So, I turned to my spinning wheel this weekend and spun out this self striping rainbow yarn.  The rainbow ply is from plant dyed domestic wool that I purchased through Mamajude on Etsy and the oatmeal ply is from some left over Shetland wool I purchased locally.  It turned out to be a healthy 230 yard skein in a lightweight DK thickness.  I was thinking of selling it just as a skein, but I wanted to knit those colors and absorb their beauty while watching the simple magic as one colored changed into another.  I settled on knitting a very simple garter stitch bordered doll sized blanket and I very pleased with the result.  It is now for sale in my Etsy Shop Simply Playing and it's twin is currently on my needles.  I tried spinning another yarn on my wheel this morning, but it wasn't quite cutting it like this one so I simply stopped.  I guess you can never get enough of rainbows.

Joining in with Nicole for Keep Calm Craft On.

Solstice Sale at Simply Playing

Hello Everyone!  I am having a Solstice Sale in the Etsy shop and Zibbet shop this week from December 15th - 22nd.  For 15% off your purchases on Etsy use the coupon code "SOLSTICE15" upon checkout.  For Zibbet the prices are already discounted so you just shop as normal.  Thanks for all your support this year and have a happy holiday season!

Fresh Off the Wheel - Baby Alpaca!

Hello!  I have a new skein fresh off the wheel this week that I'm quite pleased to show you.  It's a 2ply with the first ply being spun from a mixed batt of planted dyed merino, silk, BFL and domestic wool in beautiful shades of blue with a hints of lime green and purple from MamaJudes down in Georgia.  The second ply was spun from Baby Suri Alpaca in a beautiful natural charcoal grey color from Sunrise Suris in Iowa.  It was my first time spinning Baby Suri Alpaca and man it practically spun itself it drafted so easily! 

I only got about 100 yards of worsted weight yarn out of the Baby Suri Aplpaca since I could only afford a small 2oz. package. See, I am trying to stick to my fiber budget.  Do you have a budget for fiber?  Well, I found out I needed one since I overspend at every single fiber festival/show/store I go to.  But, to really make my budget stick I have to remove my debit/credit card and checkbook from my wallet and bring only what I can spend in cash.  I have no will power you see and am very skilled at talking myself into purchases I don't need.  This trick works like a charm though, and I highly recommend it if you have overspending issues.  It's sad that I only got a little of a fantastic fiber, but then I have already spun it and it's not just languishing in my stash (this happens to so much fiber and yarn when I overspend).  

Hmmm... this post was supposed to be about yarn not budgets.  Well, I do tend to go on tangents.  I listed this skein in my Etsy shop so stop by and check it out if you are looking for a silky soft squishy yarn treat!

Joining in with Nicole for Keep Calm Craft On.

Large Gnomes are Huggable!

I thought I'd introduce you today to what is new in my shop - large 14 inch tall gnomes!  They are from a pattern written by myself which I hope to have available in my shop in the next few months.  I really hate seaming so I went about devising a pattern for gnomes that would be knit in the round.  It has a smoother look to it that I adore.  The pattern will be in 3 sizes - mama, child and baby.  So far, I have the mama and child listed in the shop with the baby on it's way.  I need to dream up a knitted sling for the mama to carry the baby in first. Here's a look at my samples below.

 

 As well as trying out a new pattern I am also trying out a new online venue to sell through called Zibbet.  You can see my shop here.  I have put everything on sale for 20% off to celebrate the grand opening.  Why a new shop you may ask?  Well, Etsy has been good to me, but it's gotten so large and their rules for what is considered handmade includes just about anything now that I feel I'm not being represented well.  Please let me know what you think about the new pattern and shop and if you would be interested in test knitting in the future.  Have a great weekend!

Joining in with Linda for Creative Friday.

Finished Project - A Teddy Bear

I've been wanting to knit a teddy bear for some time now, but just haven't been able to find the right one.  The patterns are either too complicated, take too long to knit or are simple enough, but I don't like how it looks until I found this pattern.  I knit it with some of my earliest handspun yarn (very lumpy bumpy thick thin) that I just dyed with avocado skins.  The resulting color of the yarn was a warm pinky tan which, oddly enough, was about the color of my first teddy bear Fred.  Hmm...do you think that's where I got the idea? 

Please excuse the dark pictures as we have been having some truly gloomy days here in Minnesota.  The only thing I did not like about this pattern was the very thin neck so I gave him a little red garter stitch scarf to ward off the cold.  I'm already knitting another version out of my black walnut dyed yarn.  This time around I'm knitting the neck thicker and the head bigger (my mom's request) and will see if he"ll need a scarf or not.  This first one in now available in my Etsy shop if you think you can provide him with a loving home please purchase.

   

For books, I'm still reading A Thomas Jefferson Education.  With the darker days and earlier evenings I'm finding it hard to read at night and quite frankly, I keep falling asleep.  My guess is I just have to find another reading time while it's light out, but then what to do with Sam?  When do you find time to read?

Joining in with Ginny for Yarn Along.

Fresh From the Dye Pot

I've had the itch to dye some yarn this week and because of the season I decided to use black walnuts.  My friend's yard gets littered with the walnuts each Fall so I knew right where to lay my hands on some. Her daughter kindly collected a large bagful for me and I paid her a little something for her efforts - a win win!  I placed the black walnuts in my large 5 gallon dye pot along with enough water to fill it within a few inches of the rim.  They simmered for about 2 hours at which time I strained off the walnuts leaving a lovely dark brown dye bath.  While the pot was simmering on the stove I soaked some previously mordanted (I use alum and cream of tartar) handspun and machine spun yarn.  Then I placed the wetted yarn in the dye pot and simmered them for  about 1 hour.  The results were a lovely warm medium brown color.  I wanted to see what other shades I could get from this dye bath so some of the yarn went back in to see how dark I could make it and I added a couple of fresh skein to create a lighter shade.  You can see the processes below.

Black walnuts simmering away.  I kept this covered as it can be a little smelly. 

 Yarn soaking in sink.  If throughly wetted the yarn will soak up the dye evenly with no splotches.  Some skeins were previously dyed with osage orange wood chips or annatto seeds but I didn't just love the color so I decided to over-dye them.

Here are the final results drying in the sunshine outside.

The black walnuts were such a success I wanted to dye more yarn.  Dyeing is just as addictive as knitting and spinning for me, but thankfully I go in waves so I don't permanently overtake our tiny kitchen.  I have been collecting avocado skins for some months as I heard they are used as a dyestuff  and really, since we were eating them anyway it makes them free (just like the walnuts - are you seeing a theme?)

Here is the surprising color made by avocado skins.  I found out later I could have used the pits as well as the skins.  Which would have helped dye more yarn as it's a 1:1 ratio by weight.

Here are my single plies drying outside.  I spun them last spring and it has been satisfying to see I have improved quite a bit since then.  Practice, practice, practice as they say.   

Here is a closeup of the peachy tan color.  It kind of reminds me of dyeing with tea by how the yarn looks more aged than colored.  I think it would make a great skin tone for gnome doll faces.  

I will spin more singles to ply with the walnut and avocado skeins.  I've already made this skein with a confetti colored ply (also plant dyed, but with exotic plants mainly) which is already available in my etsy shop SimplyPlaying.  It's twin skein is still drying, but will probably be listed by tomorrow.  The really lumpy bumpy slubby yarn I will knit with myself probably into some more toys  for the shop.  I'm off to clean up my mess in the kitchen now.  Just on a side note, black walnuts contain a toxin that prevents other plants from growing so it is best to throw it in your garbage rather than composting.