‘Materials Spotlight’ Archives
Adorable sheep pouches for notions!
If you like yarn, you're more than likely to like sheep... and here are some adorable ones! I just spotted these super-cute sheep notion bags from Frabjous Fibers at my LYS. They come in two different sizes, three colors, and are handmade. They're lined and have a zipper closure- perfect for storing all of your tiny little notions that tend to [...]
An erasable highlighter!
So, yesterday, I told you that I was going to the Pilot Pen Tennis Tournament... and I picked up a great tool that I wanted to share- an erasable highlighter! I use highlighters all the time... I highlight items on my to-do list when they've been completed (I think it's much more exciting to have all of the things I've done pop off the page, [...]
Suncatcher Eyes
I just stumbled on a great source for safety eyes & noses for amigurumi: Suncatcher Eyes. And... we have an interview with the designer/owner- so scroll down! When making amigurumi, plastic eyes give your animal a really nice 'finished' look. However, finding a good selection of eyes can be difficult. Most craft stores don't carry a very big [...]
Banana and Recycled Silk Yarns!
I love yarns from unique fibers... and I just stumbled upon a couple great ones! Frabjous Fibers makes yarns from lots of incredible fibers, such as nettles, sari silk (a by-product from making Saris) and banana fibers! Above, you'll see photos of two colors of Banana Silk yarn, celery and turquoise. It's handspun by women in Nepal, so not [...]
Adorable Snail tape measure!
I'm very excited to share my new snail tape measure! I love snails... and my previous tape measure was non-retractable, which meant that I needed to re-coil it every time after measuring a piece of knitting/crochet (you can see a photo of it in this previous post, where I commented on how I wished for a retractable one someday...). I had a gift [...]
Paper Yarn: interview with PaperPhine
You may remember the paper bag that I knitted from 100% cellulose yarn... it felt like paper, but wasn't actually yarn made from paper (despite the yarn being called 'paper'). But, after a little bit of poking around, I've found some beautiful yarn made from actual paper! To delve into this topic a little further, I contacted Linda - the woman [...]
Spring yarns made with unique fibers
It's that time of year when new spring yarns are hitting the shelves... and I'm always surprised at what I find! We all know about the popular summer fibers: cotton, linen, bamboo and soy. Last spring, I saw yarns made from milk protein and sugar cane for the first time! (working with the sugar cane was fantastic... I made a wonderful slouchy [...]
Great yarns for Felting
As you may have read in previous posts, I really like felting. I've designed patterns that felt knitting and that felt crocheting. And, I've written a post with my tips for felting. In this post, I'm going to talk about some yarns that I've felted with that are really great. That doesn't mean that these are the only yarns that felt- these are [...]
Small Balls: little bits of yarn
Okay, we've all had this thought: I want to make (fill in the blank), which uses about 20 yards of (fill in the color)... do I seriously have to buy a whole skein of yarn? Not anymore! I've stumbled across 'small balls' made by Pick Up Sticks. Small Balls are 65 yards of 100% wool worsted weight yarn, perfect for when you just need a little [...]
Try a bent tip tapestry needle!
Most amigurumi patterns call for a tapestry needle, which is used for joining pieces together. There are lots of different needle choices available, but we recommend a bent tip needle. What is a bent tip needle? As the name suggests, it's a tapestry needle (with an eye large enough to accomodate yarn) with a bent tip. This bent tip makes [...]
