WoolPets

CPSIA - One Year Stay of Enforcement Announcement

Good news! Many people have been fearing Feb.10th as a new law requiring mandatory (and expensive) testing of all products for children 12 and under was supposed to go into effect.

There is now a one year stay of enforcement which means that we have a year to express our concerns and make congress people aware about the way in which the law could affect craftspeople, toy makers, etc.

To read more, go to this article. It might also be good to check out Public Citizen, a non-profit public interest organization that is in support of the CPSIA and could even take legal challenge to this stay.

I don't mean to get political on you, and there are many important issues besides this. In general, I like to keep this blog all about creativity, my artistic inspirations and other things that amuse me (and might possibly amuse you, too?) So for a little fun, here's what I did tonight.

This photo was taken at my local library of a Toy Society drop. Hopefully someone will find it and be pleasantly surprised to see a little brown felt puppy to keep for their very own! I just hope that no one gets suspicious and throws the bag in the trash! I'm optimistic that won't happen.

Tomorrow I'm going to a big antique/flea market. I can't wait to go treasure hunting. If I find anything really cool, I'll share it with you next time!

Happy Weekend!

The Toy Society

Some of us makers of handmade toys who are concerned about the CPSIA legislation have been trying to find creative ways to raise awareness and appreciation for handmade toys. I won't go into the details on the law, but here is a great opportunity to DO something.

 The Toy Society started out as a small street art project in Australia and now is spreading all over the world.  Basically, you make a toy (or not, there are other suggested items), put it in a bag, include information about The Toy Society on a slip of paper and put it somewhere to be 'found'. There is a flickr group with photos of toys and where they've been dropped and by whom. It's random act of kindness kind of thing.

I made this little puppy out of wool felt from a pattern from the book "Feltcraft" by Petra Berger and I think it will be my first 'donation' to The Toy Society.

He looks a bit like a lamb!

I hope this inspires some of you out there to have fun and make some toys to hide (and find)! What a great way to spread the love!

Thrifting for Vintage

I used to thrift for vintage clothes, but now that I'm not so interested in fashion, I thrift for vintage books. Especially vintage children's books and craft books. They are an endless source of inspiration and nostalgia.

I found this book last week at my local St. Vincent De Paul's store. I had this book when I was young and used it to learn macrame. Remember in the 1970's people were knotting up a storm of plant hangers, owls and jewelry.  Stuff back then looked a little tacky. Perhaps macrame will make a comeback, as all hobbies seem to do, and artists and craftspeople will transform it into something really cool. Maybe using different materials besides twine or hemp cord?

If anything, macrame is probably great for kids, especially the ones who have trouble sitting still for long periods of time without at least having their hands busy (I include myself here).

Knitted Toy Patterns

I've noticed that in the last few years, there are more patterns available for making knitted toys. I first started knitting toys about 10 years ago and back then, there was very little available concerning patterns and books. Most of the patterns I got back then were from Waldorf craft books such as "A First Book of Knitting for Children" by Bonne Gosse and Jill Allerton.

I've found a few online sources for free patterns; Lion Brand Yarn's website has patterns for knitted and crochet dolls, toys and animals. The other site is Knitting Pattern Central.com.

I'm participating in a Handmade Toy Swap to help bring awareness to the CPSIA. My partner in the swap has designed some of her own knitted toy patterns at Fuzzy Mitten. Go check out her Flickr page if you get a chance. She's an amazing knitter!

I might make a knitted toy for her new baby in the toy swap. I found a pattern for a knitted mouse on the Lion Brand Yarn's website. I ended up felting him in the washing machine after I knitted him. I just can't help but to think that everything looks better felted!

One of my many wip's is a knitted pig from the book "Knitted Animals" by Anne-dorthe Grigaff. This book has lots of great patterns that are very easy.

 

Little animals are good for impatient people like me to knit. I could never imagine knitting a sweater! I admire those of you with the perseverance to tackle a big project like that.

Sheep Class at Ester's

Needle felted sheep from today's class as Esters.

Thanks to the very talented and enthusiastic ladies who participated in the class.  All new to needle felting! And look how cute their sheep turned out.

Craft Bomb

This is what one looks like-

This is what happens when I drink too much coffee and get too many ideas at once. 

Upcoming Classes and Events

I have just updated my website with upcoming classes and events. If you are in the neighborhood and would like to join in any of the fun take a look at what's coming up:

http://woolpets.com/info_shows.html

Making Flower Children

I've had this book on my shelf for awhile now and finally got around to using it.

This book is full of ideas for making your own flower children out of wool, cotton knit and felt. The author introduces  basic doll making techniques used throughout the book, as well as a few basic patterns that can be adopted to suit your doll.

Here's a forest gnome I made.

This is the forest gnome with a 'moss' gnome. Knitting pattern for the moss gnome is in the book. It's very easy and I think the results are really cute!

This is the 'Wild Rose' flower child. She has pink silk petals gathered around her neck. It was a bit tricky to keep the silk from unraveling, but I used a some fray check along the edges. The fray check has a  pretty nasty smell, but it disappears on the silk and definitely works to keep the edges from unraveling.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in doll making and puppetry. It was easy to follow and had great photos of sweet dolls. 

Hummingbird Class

Photos from a class I taught on Bainbridge Island to a knitting group. Thank you for inviting me! I had a great time!

Sitting around a table, chatting and needle felting with friends.

Skillful hands working.

Needle felting in action!

Completed hummingbird, sparkly and beautiful.

Tree of hummingbirds.

Loopy Who?

Way back when Kevin and I first started making and selling kits, we were introduced via Yarn Pirate to Sheri Berger, the owner of a shop called The Loopy Ewe. Or, was it that Sheri found me on Etsy and we both know Yarn Pirate? Ok, the details escape me. At any rate, Sheri asked me to make a needle felted sheep in the likeness of her Loopy logo. She was so tickled with the results that she asked if Kevin and I would be willing to design a custom kit for her to sell through her shop (you can find it here). Sheri has a huge following of Loopy Groupies and assured us that she would keep us busy with Loopy Kit orders. Sure enough, she's kept us busy! She carries the rest of our kits in her shop as well.

This Monday, Sheri will be featuring an interview with me on her blog in a section called The Limelight. If you're like me, you enjoy reading about how other artists and craftspeople have gotten to where they are today, what inspires them, etc. When people share their similar experiences, I feel more closely connected to them. So hopefully some of you will be inspired by reading my interview.

There is another section on Sheri's website where people have posted photos of their Loopy Woolpets.
I love seeing all the different adaptations of the same pattern. It shows how unique everyone's vision of the Loopy can be.

Thank you, Sheri, for giving me the opportunity to share about myself and Woolpets.