The Woolen Rabbit

Josephine.....

I finally finished my first custom Blythe and am very happy with how she came out.  Is she perfect?  Not by a long shot, but I learned SO much through this process....and I quickly remembered how much I really enjoy dressmaking.

If you remember back when I purchased this doll to customize this is what she looked like (the white haired one).  In their natural state they really are not that pretty...at.all.

But with a little love and a lot of work, she was transformed into a lovely girl...at least I think she is lovely.

 
It gave me a chance to get re-aquainted with dressmaking, which as I mentioned above it's something that I really loved. Knitting such little hats and sweaters makes for instant gratification which makes it very enjoyable.  I've told you before that in real life I am not a "bling" kind of girl, but secretly inside I think I really am because it always makes me smile so.

....and already I have new ideas of couture dancing through my head for the next girl...yes, you read that right....the next one. ;-)

I also managed to squeek out another hand made dress for Autumn. When I was a child, my grandmother used to make the most amazing dresses for my beloved Skipper doll and this hobby brings me right back to the time I spent with her . This makes me smile as I remember how special those times I had with her as a child were.  She taught me how to knit all those years ago and I will always be greatful for that.  Thanks Nana!

Because I know my fiber friends are not really doll people, I am going to start another blog dedicated to Blythe.  It will be called,
"Down The Rabbit Hole of Blythe"

Another year has gone by......

....and it's almost time for yarn club sign-ups.  Wow, this year flew by it seems and it was so much fun!  I really enjoyed the different ideas and interpretations of the Roaring 20's  that each one of our designers brought to the table.

We are going with a Roaring 20's theme again as I know some were sad to have missed out.  We have a new round of amazingly talented designers who will be bringing new ideas and designs for all of our members.  This year's line up of designers is:

June ~ Cecily Glowik MacDonald ~ Opulence

August ~ Suzanna IC~ Lark Lace

October ~  Hunter Hammersen ~ Emma

December ~ Amy Podlesak ~ Essence

February ~ Beth Kling ~ Sporty Kashmir

April ~ Rose Beck ~ Opal

 

Subscriptions will open up as usual on April 1st.  I will continue to offer both the discounted full price option and the bi-monthly option.

You can read more here.......I look forward to having you join along with us this year!

Weekending and a Finished Sweater.....

Yes, yes you can finish a sweater in a weekend...actually in just a few hours if it is doll sized..ha!  When a friend first introduced me to the world of Blythe and she mentioned knitting for them, my response...."I would NEVER have the patience".  Well, not only did I have the patience, I thoroughly enjoyed it, especially given how quick the gratification is.

With the never ending back crap, I rested and spent the day knitting on Saturday and on Sunday Ken and I decided to take a ride to visit Brian and Ashley.  We hadn't been up to their corner of the world in some time and it was such a beautiful day, so off we went.  We traveled through the Kancamagus Highway to get there.  If you have never traveled this road, then you should make it a point to do so when you are in Northern New Hampshire.  The views are amazing!  This picture was taken at one of the scenic viewpoints near the top.  Brrr....it was SO much colder up there then where we left from.

You can see in this picture just how high up we were and how far the view extended.  These are the mountains that make up the White Mountain National Forest....the other side of the National Forest Mountains we see every day here in Conway.

One more.....just because it is so darn beautiful and absolutely breath-taking when you are there.

We finally made our way over the mountains and through the woods to Ashley and Brian's beautiful log cabin.  One of the loveliest ones I have ever been in.  They are so fortunate to have found this little nugget to call home for a few years...and we were so happy to spend a day with them here.

Brian and their large beast of a dog, Makoda, led us on a wandering hike in the woods behind their property.  Such a beautiful pathway that meanders through various woods, streams and fields.  I could have kept going and going, but sadly it was a bit icy due to some melting and re-freezing, so we only did a mile or so..everyone was nervous of me falling on my back, which would not be a good thing, although truth be told, Ken did a lot more slipping than I did..ha!  We will definitely go back again in the late spring when things have hardened over.

One more picture of the couple before we all headed out to The Woodstock Inn Station and Brewery for a few Saint Patty day cocktails and snacks...what a great place!  We had such a wonderful time. (don't you just love Ashley's pouty face..haha)

I know I have told you before, but I really LOVE my adult children. :)
Thank you Ashley and Brian for such an enjoyable afternoon!!

Ah Winter......

What a crazy few weeks of snow we have had here in the mountains.  Two 12 inch storms and one 18 inch storm.  Ey yi yi.  The only blessing is that the temperatures have been fairly mild on the days it hasn't snowed, so it keeps melting fast.

I love how pretty it is right after a snow, but with the fast melting there has been a lot of snowy mud muck.  There is still a good foot on the grass though and the days have been overcast and gray, which makes everyone a wee bit grumpy at times, myself included.  Winters are long up here so we have to find ways to enjoy it, even if it is enjoying the beauty of the mountains in the snow, or sipping yummy ginger/licorice tea while knitting. 
Ah winter!

Over the course of the week, I did finish all of the pieces to Folly Cove.  Tonight I will steam and sew the sleeves in and hopefully finish the neck edge over the weekend.  I loved knitting this sweater!

Have a warm and wonderful weekend!!

Knitting the Doldrums Away......

WOW...Here is a color that will wake you right up and dig you out of the winter doldrums!
An upside to having a cranky back is that I have had a good amount of knitting time when sitting on ice.  Are you wondering what it is?  The colorway is Red Hot Chili Pepper in Woolen Rabbit Frolic and the pattern is...

....Julia's lovely yet simple pattern design called Folly Cove.  Julia and I spent some time chatting at Fiber Revival last summer about sweater designs and I told her that I personally feel people like not only knitting, but wearing sweaters that are simple in design and very wearable. This is what Julia came up with....and I LOVE it!

I love being able to pick up and put down a sweater without leaving myself all kinds of notes as to where I am.  Knitting where I can watch an involved movie and still work on my knitting....miles and miles of mindless knitting.  I personally find it very soothing.

It's knit in the round until you get to the armholes.  From there you split off and do the front and back separately.  I am finished with the back and up to the pattern design element in the front.  I am betting that I am wearing this sweater next week...yay!!

What are you knitting?

 

Doll Time....

The weather here has been a bit frightful.  There has been a lot of snow and this past weekend there were the winds......THE WINDS.  They were a howling for sure.  Ken gets all worked up and worried, but I tend to hunker down and find something to do.  When the winds are a howlin' for some odd reason I enjoy it, as long as I am not living in a house where I am worried about a tree crashing down.  This weekend...no bad trees and some free time before the big yarn club mailing next week, so I took some time to play with dolls.....yes, you read that right.

I talked about my discovery of Blythe dolls a little while back and shared that I had purchased one or two.  One of the dolls named Autumn has lovely red hair, but it was a bit tangly and not smooth, so I spent some time researching how to wash a Blythe's hair and this is what I found.  You do this:
1.  Wet her hair down in hot (boiling hot) water
2.  Shampoo (I used my Aveeda damage control shampoo)
3.  Condition (used Aveeda damage control conditioner) and let it set for a few hours.
4.  Rinse, rinse, rinse
5.  Plunge into an icy cold water bath to bring back any of the natural curl that the hot boil took away.

The end result was silky soft hair and a happy doll (if a doll can be happy...LOL)...and if did you notice...her dress is full of sister bees!  That just makes me smile. :-)

I know....you think I am crazy, but really there is this huge world of Blythe, just like the huge world of fiber....if you look closely at my picture links, you will see a girl who looks just like my Ashley...so crazy weird!  Different things to keep us busy and happy. :-)

~ Happy Valentine's Day ~

Well, it's been a while hasn't it?  Today is the first day in a long time that I was able to plant myself in my office chair and work on the computer...and work I did!

I finally got around to getting the new soaps listed in the shop along with some new rovings.  The roving you see above is a new version of my SPLISH SPLASH roving, which is a superwash roving.  It seemed like SW ran it's course a few years ago and we moved on to other things.  I never really thought much about it until I was going through the mitten box this winter and pulled out the colorful mittens above.  I made those for Courtney, but they hadn't been worn in a long time because they didn't match her new jacket.  They matched my new jacket however so I started wearing them on my walks.  Wow, I was really surprised at how warm they were.  In my mind I thought the SW would somehow have a fake feel to it, but it doesn't at all. I loved them enough to pull out my old recipe book and recreate some of the rovings.

They are not always pretty in the braid, but all of that white and the speckles here and there breath life into the yarns.  I know I tucked a few away for myself. :-)

I hope that you enjoy Valentine's Day in all of it's chocolate goodness!!

Weekending.....

Imagination, song, the soaring spirit.
Separate them to know them as aspects of the whole,
Join them to know the mystery of totality.
Deng Ming~Dao

This weekend was a busy one.  Serious SPA preparation is underway now. 
I did decide to go with "TWR Soap Company" for soap and hand cream labels.  Hopefully no more rabbit questions.  It's been a lot of fun making these soaps and creating the labels.

Anyone who knows me, knows that my brain is always busy and I am not the most organized person. Time management is always a challenge, as I am so easily distracted.  When I am about to embark on a big project however, I need to totally clean my space from top to bottom, so the only clutter is the never ending clutter in my brain..LOL.

The shop both up and down is now sparking clean and everything is ready to be cranked out for SPA.  I love getting ready for a show...I get to play with color and come up with some new ones.  I have a new DK weight yarn I am excited about and some lovely fiber for spinning and of course the soaps/cream, along with some of the usual suspects that I bring to a show.

I did manage to squeeze in a little knitting time this weekend as well.  Of course most of it was during the disappointing football game for those of us who live in New England, but it was still quality knitting time inspite of the loss. 
The purple yarn behind the mitt is going to becomes this shawl....love it! 
I am hoping to finish it for SPA, but you know me...very.slow.knitter.  Who knows, maybe I will get lucky. :-)

I hope you had a wonderful weekend too!

Weekending......

Peacock iridescence in veridical shadows,
Violet blooms spread to noonday sun.
The world's beauty is a swirl of color,
But in the flower's center is bright stillness.
Deng Ming~Dao

Where does the time go?  In the blink of an eye another week has passed by.  I got a lot of work done during the week and had planned to work through the weekend, but my back had different ideas, so I worked on other things and rested it in between.
Soaps......I have SO enjoyed getting back to soaping. 

These lovelies are a pineapple/lime blend (the greenyellow ones) and a soft lavender/rosewood blend.  I had a lot of fun with the purple soap, embedding little rolls of curled soap within the soap base.  The girls though it was just about the coolest thing ever.

 

I also worked on what I have promised myself will just be a hobby (creepy dolls as my daughters always say).  I shared the red haired doll with you a few weeks ago.  The girl with the white hair will be the one that I will customize.  It is amazing to see the transformation from a base Takara Blythe doll to a doll that has a lot of life painted into it's face, especially through the eyes.

I purchased a faceplate a few weeks ago to practice on before opening up Simply Vanilla's head (still a bit nervous about doing that).  Carving these plastic faces is more work than you would think it would be, but I can sit and do it while my dye pots are boiling, which gives my back a break in between batches.  I still have some more carving to do then I will start the painting with pastels.

I do however has some ideas of a clothing line floating around in my head...but it's just floating right now.  I love how all of the crafts that I enjoy seem to all come back around in a different way.  I used to sew all the time when my children were young, then stopped for years until I became interested in quilting and here I am again full circle back to making clothing again. :-)
A friend of mine this weekend made a very kind comment about my energy that sparkles and I had to smile.  There's no doubt about it, I am ADD to the nth, but from now on I will forever refer to it as Sparkling energy.  It sounds so much kinder and definitely more positive. :-)

....and lastly, a brisk walk...
Last week when I visited the doctor for a physical and to discuss my next round of action for my back, he told me that my blood pressure is too high and he wants me to go on a low dose diuretic.  Uggh...I HATE taking meds, so I have made a commitment to myself to get out and walk 2.5 miles a day and to lose 30 more pounds, so that I can stop taking them sooner rather than later.  When I lost the first 40 pounds my cholestrol responded favorably, so I am hoping the same will happen when I lose the remaining 30.

....and that was my weekend....what did you do?

No Rabbits Were Harmed.....

Hey there....I took a little time off from blogging to recover from the holidays and crank out the big yarn club mailing, but now that all of that is behind me, it's a new year and a new year of blogging. 

I have been having a lot of fun getting re-acquainted with soaping.  It's a little easier on my body, than lifting heavy wet wool. I tend to go through cycles of being enthusiastic about the different crafts that I enjoy, as I am sure so many of you do as well.

Ken and I were talking last week and I told him that I was going to label my soap and hand-cream a bit differently.  Instead of using my business name, "The Woolen Rabbit", I thought about using "TWR".  When Ken asked why the change, I shared with him the question I am almost always asked at each show.  "Is there rabbit in this?"  Ewwwww!  If one person asks me that then I am sure that 10 more people think the same thing and really, I would hate for anyone to think that a rabbit may have been harmed to create these products.

I really take extra pains to make my bath and body products very soothing to the skin and pleasant to the senses and truly the thought of anything bunny-like in these items, well...ick, so "TWR" it is, unless any of you have a better idea.
....and I would love to hear your suggestions.....