Lizards come from eggs too! This Chameleon is the newest reversible toy in my collection, and is made out of more hand-dyed recycled yarns.
Suggested Retail: $16.00. Come see it in person at the Bloomington Handmade Market this weekend!
In addition to all the things I've been knitting from recycled yarns, I also have been sewing some neat projects from felted sweaters. Most of the sweaters that Ive collected have turned into oven mitts, but I made some sewing needle books from a few of the leftover pieces. I love both the way the books and the photos of them turned out, so I'm going to give you lots of looks at these cool little sewing accessories.
Needle books are a good companion to a pincushion because they don't let the needles sink in and get lost the way they would if you kept your needles in your pincushion. But they're not only great for keeping your regular straight needles - they can accommodate skinny beading needles, curved upholstery needles - even safety pins!
The needle books come in a variety of sizes and keep the coolest features of the sweater they came from (texture, embroidery, pattern, etc.). They all close securely with a snap.
Here's a new reversible egg toy! This tropical fish showcases a couple of my hand-dyed recycled yarns, and was a lot of fun to design.
Since fish eggs are transparent, I thought about knitting the egg with fishing line. Deciding that would be difficult and likely to be wonky-shaped, I ended up using a white cotton (recycled) yarn which gives a nice transparent effect. It also keeps the nice soft kid-friendliness of this toy intact.
Swish!
Suggested retail: $16.00
Until a few months ago, I kept most of my knitting tools in a plastic shoe box. This was a little awkward, because the long needles didn't fit inside, and the whole box had a habit of tipping over and spilling everywhere. This summer, I inherited a tool bag and knitting needle roll from my husband's grandmother. The roll was not nearly big enough for all my needles, but gave me the answer to my organizational quandary. Thus, I designed the large needle organizer roll pictured above to suit my needs.
From left to right: An orgainizer roll made from a basmati rice sack, one made from my favorite pair of embroidered blue jeans, and my own roll (not for sale).
Because these are rather a specialty item and take quite a bit of time to create, I only made two of them to sell. But I do love both of these rolls! The first is made from a basmati rice burlap sack, and lined with linen fabric from a pair of men's pants and the red striped hippie shirt.
A close-up of the embroidery on the organizer made from my favorite blue jeans. This roll is slightly longer and heavier-duty than the burlap and linen organizer, and is lined with a pair of my husband's pants. It closes in a similar fashion to the roll above, with a loop made from jeans belt loops and a vintage button.
Each knitting needle organizer comes with a free felted stitch marker.
In the same style as the felted bouncy balls, I knit this bright tomato pincushion from some of my recycled hand-dyed yarns. It's an unique twist on that indispensable accessory of seamstresses: the tomato pincushion.
Suggested Retail: $8 for the small knit pincushion, $10 for the large pincushion.
When I go on a prolonged knitting spree, usually around Christmas time, sometimes I'll wear my fingers raw. I have an old leather thimble that I use on these occasions, and every time I pull it out I'm so thankful to the person who invented them. Leather thimbles are flexible enough to move supplely with your finger, but stiff enough to keep the pokes of knitting and sewing needles from irritating your fingers.
It wasn't until a few days ago that I realized I had the supplies to make some pretty cool upcycled leather thimbles right in my sewing room. These leather thimbles are made from old leather jackets (and the elbow patches of a cast-off sweater), with the ribbing from felted sweaters for elastic. They're extremely comfortable and flexible. Come check out my booth at the Bloomington Handmade Market on Saturday and you can try them out for yourself!
Suggested Retail: $5.00
Here's a really cool item for my fellow knitters: felted bead stitch markers! And for you fun-loving non-knitters, you can also get them as earrings!
These bright marbled balls are solid felt, made from the hand-dyed recycled yarn I've reclaimed from sweaters. To turn them into felt balls I had to tease the spun yarn apart, card it back into a wool roving, and then hand-roll and felt them with soapy water in the sink. I love the contrast of the soft wool beads with the smooth wooden beads.
BHM , earrings , stitch markers , upcycle
Seasonal Arts knitted goods are for sale in a local brick & mortar location! The Paper Crane is a new art gallery, printmaking co-op, and local art store in downtown Bloomington. It's not much to look at from the outside, since it's in the back of a warehouse-like building, but it's shaping into a very cool place inside.
The Paper Crane is entirely volunteer-run, so it has limited hours. You can stop by Wednesday-Sunday, just check their website for hours before planning a trip. Also, you can follow their events on their facebook page. Besides art shows and their very cool gift shop, they'll be offering workshops on topics including sketchbook making (coming up on November 13th) and craft fairs, like the Last Minute Gift Fair (on December 11th). It's definitely worth your while stopping by and keeping an eye on this emerging venue!
Annie shows off her artist angst in honor of the Paper Crane's opening.