a cheesy felting tool

cheese grater

I just have to tote the wonders of my handy-dandy cheese grater! I recommend this trick all the time to my felting classes, but I highly recommend it now!

Yesterday I was felting in my Wonder Washer an all-cream sheep for a customer, and I wasn't liking how it was felting. I had felted it, stuffed it with fiberfill and as it dried the stitch definition returned. I knew this yarn was capable of felting better (by past experience). Normally I would pull out the stuffing and throw the piece back into the wash for another cycle or two, but I was concerned about the sheep's leg holes felting shut making it difficult to insert the leg wires afterwards.

back and forth against the grates

In a panic, I pulled out my ordinary cheese grater, hoping for a miracle. I wet the sheep with soap and water and rubbed the stuffed body vigorously back and forth against the smallest grates (bumpy-side up), and it felted beautifully! No stitch definition what so ever! I was relieved and so pleased.

Using the cheese grater gave me precise control over particular areas as well as broader ones as well. Great for those items that just need a little extra felting help. I encourage you to try it, if you haven't already. You'll love the results!

Happy knitting!

just a bit loopy - the next day!

woolly sheep

Remember the 'before' photo of this woolly sheep? that scrawny-little thing just waiting to be washed and felted? Well, here is the final result . . . I am so pleased with this little guy!

The pattern is my Woolly Sheep using Cascade 220 worsted weight yarn, #8010 cream, and adding the loopy stitch throughout the body. For further details see earlier post 'just a bit loopy'.

After felting the sheep and once it was completely dried, I brushed the body vigorously with a nap riser brush to create extra softness and fuzziness. Even though Cascade 220 worsted does not contain any mohair or alpaca, it still brushes the fibers enough to create a softness to the wool. I brush EVERYTHING these days. You can never be too sure.

In addition, I created a black sheep version too, below. On this sheep I trimmed the wild-looking ends that emerged from brushing (didn't do this on the cream version), and thus created a more nubby-look to the overall body. It really is personal preference which version you prefer.

And to finish it off, a sheep in or two! A perfect pin cushion for the Just Pins 'Sheep' pins, wouldn't you agree?









Happy knitting!

a new kind of spider!

embellished harvest pumpkins

Notice the spider in the left-hand corner? I am not a huge spider-fan in my everyday life but I do LOVE beaded spiders like the one above.

This spider came from a kit I bought at my local bead store several years back. But I recently found a tutorial on how to make your own beaded spiders that looks easy to follow so I thought I would share the link with you. It comes from the blog, Shawkl Designs, and the author gives great step-by-step instructions with photos to help.

beaded spider tutorial

Once I get my son off to college, I will be attempting these eight-legged little guys myself. I have so many beads around here I probably don't need to even go out to buy more!

The spiders look so 'pretty' (if that is even possible) and natural on my harvest pumpkins as well as the woolly pumpkins too. They add dimension and texture to the wool which I just love! Hope you have fun making a spider or two yourself! Make them in Halloween colors (orange and black) to get you in the harvest mood. Enjoy!

Happy knitting!

Free Shipping Today

To celebrate the beginning of this year's holiday shopping, I am offering FREE shipping on all orders of patterns and kits today only, Friday, November 23rd, 2012!

Place an order before midnight (Central Time) on my Etsy Shoppe. When ready for check out, it will prompt you 'to apply coupon', enter: MAYHEW23.

Let me know if you have troubles. I will make sure you receive the free shipping.

Thanks again for your interest and support of my woolly patterns!

Happy knitting!

Varying Yarn Weights & Needle Sizes

Woolly Bird pattern

I have been teaching several workshops this fall on creating various ornaments using my patterns, such as the above pattern, Woolly Birds. The pattern calls for worsted weight yarn and size 10.5 needles.

What gets fun is if you change out the yarn weights and use the appropriate size needles for that weight, you get a whole other size bird without any changes to the pattern, such as a smaller bird--perfect ornament size!

When felting, the rule of thumb with needle sizes is go up about 2-3 sizes from what the yarn brand suggests. Below is a chart with the yarn weights and the needle sizes. So if you don't like the original size that my pattern creates, try something new!

Just remember though, if you change the finished size it will effect the embellishing instructions with the pattern. That is, if you make a smaller bird, that new size will need a smaller beak and so forth. But those changes can be very minor.

Don't be afraid to experiment! Let me know if you have any further questions. I am here to help!

Happy knitting!

woolly beehive skep

The third newest pattern! They are all at the printers and will be available September 1st, 2012. I am excited to share them all with you.

This little beehive has so many possibilities. I will be showing more samples in the next few weeks after the patterns are released. Stay tuned!

The beehive pattern comes in two sizes: small and large. The small felted beehive measures about 3-1/2 inches tall and the large, about 5-inches tall.

In the olden days, beehive skeps were baskets made of grass or straw. They were used for housing a colony of bees as they produced their honeycomb. Now you can knit and felt a whimsical small or large beehive as a tribute to the hardest - the honey bee!

Speaking of honey bees, I am going to be selling the bee pins and buttons, as shown above, on my Etsy shoppe. I love these bee pins! They come from Just Another Button Company. Each pin and button is made from polymer clay with whimsical detailing. Stay tuned!

Happy knitting & felting!

a 'before' & 'after' bunny

I got this great idea to show the 'before' and 'after' photos of my little brushed bunny. Yes, that little nap riser brush makes all the difference. Who would know such a small brush can create such hairiness?

The brush fits nicely on your finger and gives you lots of control while brushing, to get into those delicate spots like around the face. The nap riser brush works great on alpaca or mohair yarns, pulling out the fibers especially after felting.

The bunny screams "touch me" again and again. And if you do and the fibers become flattened, simply brush again! That simple.

The yarn used on this little Woolly Bunny was Frog Tree's alpaca sport grey, two strands carried together. I love Frog Tree yarns! A great yarn for knitting and felting with. 

Happy knitting!