Pointy gnome hats

Don't know which is keeping me busier --
spinning yarn or making baby hats with it.
Both are so much fun!

One of my earliest successful skeins was from
a bit of red alpaca blend that I bought at a show last year.

 It needed some more length so I added white trim.
The other two were made with handspun yarn from The Fine Lime.
Each one is $30 including shipping.

Two more gnome hats in masculine colors and 3 month size.
Made of my own handspun yarns.
$30 each including shipping.

  These are gnome hats made with store-bought yarns.
Two newborn sizes and the green one a 3-6 month size.

$20 each including shipping.

More newborn-sized gnome hats in a rainbow of colors.
$20 each including shipping.

Second attempt at spinning

What an improvement with my second attempt at spinning. 

Thinner and more even yarn.

No more of that thick-and-thin yarn

unless that is what I am going for specifically.

 I've had the lime green roving since last fall

and brought the bamboo silk yarn more recently
with plans to make myself a shawl.

Amazing results when the two of them are plied together!

And the resulting scarf is thick and cushy

and shimmery all at the same time.

I can't wait for it to be done and for when I can wear it.

I've caught the spinning bug

I have my own drop spindle and bundles of roving.

An failed attempt at spinning wool with a YouTube video,

made me give up trying over six months ago.

 But thanks to the ladies of The Rhode Island Spinners Guild

had me successfully spinning in about 10 minutes.
Can't wait to practice more!!!!
And maybe a real spinning wheel will be in my future.

One last Christmas post -- with crochet directions

I know I'm running a little late on this,

since I am posting even after the Epiphany

but I don't think it can wait a whole year.

These are the Christmas-themed crochet projects

I worked on during the month of December.

For my son's kindergarten holiday party I made three hats

with the super-easy elf hat pattern from CrazySocks Crochet.

The other homeroom mom and I didn't dress up for Halloween

so we agreed to kind of get dressed up for Christmas.

The teacher and the two of us looked very festive!

The pointy crochet idea kind of stuck with me,
so  I started making decorations red and green too.

Specifically 75 Santa hats for immediate family members.

Yes, I said 75. I am one of 6 and my husband is one of 9.

Between our siblings, their spouses and their children

the numbers have really risen in the last few years.

Each red and white hat was packaged with a gold hook
for hanging as ornaments on the recipients' trees.
A nephew put his on a nutcracker from his collection.
(He's allergic to nuts, so how ironic is it
that he has a bunch of nutcrackers?)

Since I made quite a few of them while watching
"Gnomeo and Juliet," I want to make gnomes with beards.
I could also adapt my leprechaun hats this year!

As the holiday season wound down,
I used the same stitch pattern to make a few evergreens,
adorned with white buttons and glitter snow.
I simply stuffed them with polyfiber with unfinished bottoms
but felt or fabric could be sewn on as bases.

 CROCHET SANTA HATS OR TREES 

I used a H hook and worsted weight yarn in the appropriate colors. The ch 2 at the start of each round doesn't count as a stitch. At the end of a round, join to first stitch not the ch 2. (The best way of hiding your seam.)

Ch 4 and john in first ch to make a loop.

Round 1: Ch 2, 6 dc in loop, join with sl st to first dc. (6 dc)

Round 2: Ch 2, *2 dc in next st, 1 dc in next 2 sts* twice, join. (8 dc) 

Round 3: Ch 2, *2 dc in next st, 1 dc in next 3 sts* twice, join. (10 dc)  

Round 4: Ch 2, *2 dc in next st, 1 dc in next 4 sts* twice, join. (12 dc)   

Round 5: Ch 2, *2 dc in next st, 1 dc in next 5 sts* twice, join. (14 dc)   

Round 6: Ch 2, *2 dc in next st, 1 dc in next 6 sts* twice, join. (16 dc)  

Round 7: Ch 2, *2 dc in next st, 1 dc in next 7 sts* twice, join. (18 dc)  

Round 8: Ch 2, *2 dc in next st, 1 dc in next 7 sts* twice, join. (20 dc)   

The Santa hats are 8 rounds tall, 7 in red and 1 in white trim. The trees were anywhere from 6-9 rows tall. If you prefer something taller, continue on with the increase pattern until it is the size you would like. 

Shopping sprees

Between the fiber festivals and craft fairs I went to this fall,

I've added to my stash, though I should be trying to use it up.

I have a hard time using the "good" yarn I buy though.
Want to make something extra special, usually for me.

Here are 3 wool yarns.

The top one is a hand-spun, bulky denim tweed.

The middle is hand-dyed worsted Norwegian wool

The last two red and white are fingering weight

and were seconds from a mill in Maine.

Any suggestions on how to use them?

I always go for the bargain bins at shows,

and don't mind buying vintage stock.

These are both wool and about $2 a skein.

I'm thinking of using them together.

I'm also building up my roving stash.

I have used the drop spindle once to make some yarn,

just enough to make a sweet flower brooch.

Need more time or to find someone who gives lessons,

in both spinning and felting, to get the most of these.

And I couldn't resist these cute pewter buttons with bagpipes!!!

I still have a stash of Scottish wool tartan and solids

I would love to pair these with.

Maybe a bag for me .... to carry my latest yarn projects in.

Needle felting lessons

I just love how giving and sharing crafters can be.

It shows just how much they love what they do

when they teach others, especially with youngsters.

At the fiber festival a few weeks ago,
my two youngest got a lesson in needle felting
from the ladies of Mountain Fiber Folk in Vermont.

Such a kind gesture since my little crafters
totally took over the project one was working on.
They even brought it home!

Great results with child labor!

Remember making loopy potholders as a kid?

After finding three pretty fancy wooden looms at a garage sale,

my 9-year-old son is weaving pretty fancy pieces

from yarn he has picked out of my stash.

With the help of Noreen in this YouTube video,

it was pretty easy for us to figure out how to get started.

 Ta-da! There is a completed one.

Next time we will need to use bulkier yarns,

or even thick yarn made from old t-shirts.

The posts of these looms are far away from each other,

and, therefore, the edges very loose.

Once he has perfected his technique,

my little crafter wants to open his own Etsy shop.

His work is so good, I might just let him!

The Holy Grail of yarn

For awhile now I've been hearing heroic tales

about ventures to the magical Hobby Lobby.

 Since it was from a group of crocheters,

I mainly heard about the bounty of yarn there.

Many months after the semi-local store opened

I was finally able to visit last weekend.

I wasn't too impressed when I first walked in

and all I saw were the rows upon rows

of seasonal decor and home accents.

Then I saw it -- my Holy Grail!!!

Tucked way in the back corner were

row upon row of multi-colored yarns.

I fell instantly in love, especially with

the large clearance section along one wall.

Keeping my home stash and tight budget in mind,

I narrowed my purchase to just 4 skeins of yarns.

Really yummy hues of Stitch Nation's bamboo ewe --

55% viscose from bamboo, 45% wool in

Beach Glass, Mercury, Eucalyptus and Geranium.

I'm thinking a matching hat and scarf 

if I can find any patterns I like.

Anyone with suggestions, pass them my way please.

Little bits of nature around my neck

I keep seeing cute little glass vials with cork stoppers

and eye hooks hanging on plain chains,

filled with everything from fairy dust to tiny beads,

beach glass to live moss, butterfly wings to dandelion seeds.

I knew exactly what I wanted to put in a few of them --
tiny bits of garnet collected locally this past summer.

After finding a source for the supplies on Etsy,

I ordered some and only had to wait a few days for them.

We try to go to Barton Garnet Mines

in North River, NY at least once every summer.

The boys love to go hunt for huge chunks with 

flecks of garnet embedded in dark granite.

I prefer the scenery, to take photographs and

to collect perfect little pieces of ruby red garnet.

Just right for filling the vials so I can wear

a reminder of our summer outings all year round.

A change of direction for Red Hen Studios

Five years after seriously crafting for income, I've come to the conclusion it isn't the best way to spend my time right now.

While I love creating, and will continue to do it more for fun, selling my wares both online and at craft shows wasn't very successful at generating income.

I do have something "to fall back on" so to speak -- buying and selling vintage goodies. Through Etsy, and a little bit on eBay, that has been lucrative, more so as time passes, as I have quite a following now and have gotten better at SEO (search engine optimization).

Over the past 10 years or so I have accumulated so much in the way of vintage materials, I will have plenty to fill my Etsy shop with for quite awhile. I have already sorted through the colorful trims and still have all the white and off-whites to do, including some very lovely antique laces.

It was like Christmas morning opening up the half-dozen plastic bins that line my workspace. They were filled with mostly vintage linens -- flowery 1970s sheets and pillowcases, piles of snowy white chenille bedspreads, brightly-colored tablecloths plus bits and bobs of small linens.

After all of these are coordinated and listed, I will move on to my fabric "cupboard," actually a china cabinet filled to the brim with stunning colors and textures from the 1940s to present.

Instead of being disheartening, this has actually been a lot of fun for me. I'm more interested in the hunt for treasures and love sharing them with others. It's so interesting in hearing what the buyer will do with these nearly-lost goodies.

Maybe, just maybe, this will get me closer to my goal of eventually having a local shop selling vintage goodies and locally handcrafted items, possibly financing my dream with my destash.

Birdie hoop dream

Got some embroidery hoops you don't know what to do with?

Fill them with fabric and you have instant wall art.

I found these four round metal hoops,

as well as four more oval ones I haven't finished yet,
at the New Year's Day thrift sale we went to.

Wanting to use more of the bird fabric I have amassed,

I knew this was the perfect project (there are 8 panels total).

The only embellishment is colorful rick rack trim

glued around the outside of the metal hoops.

I didn't even add hooks to the back

knowing they can just hang on nails.

To make the backs neater, I motified these instructions slightly

and then wrote down what kinds of birds they are.

Stay tuned for the remaining four birdies
and share with me the art you have hung in hoops.

Sweet-smelling baby booties

Ever wonder what to do with

those sweet baby booties

you have saved all these years?

I turned some into lavender sachets

and it was so easy to do.

First, cut a small circle out of any

lightweight white material,

like a sheet, hankie or scrap fabric.

I sewed a basting stitch around the circle,

filled it with a few teaspoons of dried lavender

and then pulled the thread tight to close it up.

If you aren't handy with a needle and thread,

just tie off the top with string or thread

to hold the lavender inside.

Next, I placed the little packet inside the booty

and filled it the rest of the way with fiberfill.

The booty tops were sewn closed by hand
then I added bits of lace, vintage buttons
and, as the finishing touch, a sprig of lavender.

12 Days of Christmas Decorating: Day Eleven

Don't toss those wool sweaters you mistakenly washed.

So many things you can make, like  a woolen holiday wreath.
Or head to the thrift store for inexpensive options.

To shrink a sweater to reuse the resulting felt,

wash and dry it repeatedly on hot until the weave is tight.

After cutting through the side and sleeve seams

I was left with fairly big flat pieces of fabric.

You can use scissors but I used a straight edge 

and rotary cutter to cut approx. 1" strips.

With scissors, I then cut approximately 1" squares.

Don't worry at all about perfection as

messier pieces actually make a prettier wreath.

Next, thread a large needle for your elves

leaving a long tail on the end for later.

Let them take a go at stringing the pieces together

until the stack is about 6-8 inches long.

Once their strand is done, as tightly as possible,

tie the two ends together to form a circle about 4" wide.

After that, add any embellishment you want.

I used silver cord for hanging and

added a mini red glass ornament to the bottom.

I didn't even use one panel of the sweater

for all six ornaments we made.

Next, I am going to try making a larger wreath

from much larger cut-out squares.

We area almost done with my series

"12 Days of Christmas Decorating."

Check back tomorrow for the final installment 

and to see how beautiful our tree looks.

12 Days of Christmas Decorating: Day Ten

All done with the scented decorations.

Let's move on to ones that taste good.

Who is peaking from behind the branches of our Norfolk pine?

Why they are stick ponies and Rudolph made from candy canes.

I can't take credit for these adorable stick ponies.

They were made by my friend a few years ago for my boys.

Two pieces of felt cut out in horse-head shapes

with fringe sandwiched between for a mane,

googly eyes and tiny ric-rac for  the reins.

These are sewn but could be glued instead.

These sweet but simple reindeer are soooo easy.

Tiny pompom red noses and googly eyes glued on

plus pipe cleaners wrapped and bent for antlers.

You can add other elements to make Santa or snowmen.

Just use your imagination!

12 Days of Christmas Decorating: Day Nine

Consider this a holiday decoration for your sense of smell.

For years, I have put past-their-prime apples and oranges
to good use instead of just tossing them out.

In a pot, combine sliced fruit with whole or ground spices

such as cinnamon sticks, star anise, allspice, ginger and cloves.
I happened to have cranberries leftover from our popcorn chains
so I tossed them into the mixture too.

Cover with water and let it boil, then simmer, on your stovetop.

The smell is so delicious and will last all day.

Reuse it the next day with the addition of more water.

An alternative is to dry rings or slices of apples and citrus fruits

in a dehydrator or your oven to use in this stove-top potpourri.

Mix up a batch of the ingredients to store in a sealed container
for use anytime you want this heavenly scent.

This potpourri is a great teacher gift, especially if the kids

help mix up the whole spices to package in organza bags

and write out the instructions for their use.

Throw ian apple and orange on the gift bag

for a whole new take on "an apple for the teacher."