Fall Preview

My in-laws are coming tomorrow to visit us and to meet the baby (hooray!), so I might not be posting much for the next couple weeks. I wanted to leave you with a preview of finished projects to look forward to in the upcoming weeks as I prepare for the Christmas season. Think of these photos as "teasers" of what's to come.

More T-Yarn

You've already seen the t-yarn market bags and bag caddy, but I'll have some other new completed projects and project kits available soon. Look for T-yarn hair accessories, bracelets, and of course woven potholders! They're just like the ones you used to make with nylon loopies, except these don't melt when exposed to heat AND come from recycled materials. Win-win!

I'll also be offering make-your-own market bag kits from the t-yarn pictured above. They'll have approximately five balls of t-yarn in coordinating colors, and knitting instructions and tips for how to work with the t-yarn. Since each t-shirt only offers a small amount of yardage, selling kits makes more sense than offering individual balls of yarn.

Pop Tabs
Several friends have been saving pop tabs for me, and I've got some really cool projects lined up for them. Combined with plarn and/or t-yarn they're going to turn into cute flowered hair clips, get worked into those t-yarn bracelets, and hopefully many of them will end up as part of a plarn tote. This one by Cindy from MyRecycledBags has inspired me to try designing my own.

Spool Knitters
As a fiber artist, I'm always making new tools and gadgets for myself. I know lots of other crafty-type people also like nice handmade tools, so this year I'll be offering some really cool spool knitters. These are still in progress, but nearing completion. I can't wait to do a full post on them soon!

More Woven Straps
I'll be showcasing more items woven on my inkle loom, including this guitar strap made with tie-dyed cotton yarn and cassette tape. Look for card-woven pet collars soon too!

Hand-painted wool yarn
I have lots of recycled wool yarn already dyed and ready to be knit or sold as yarn, but I still have a basket full of undyed wool sweaters. Some of them will end up in the warm earthy tones of kool-aid dyes (like the yarn in the center of this photo), and others will be brighter colors from commercial dyes like the yarn I used for the polka-dotted alien hat.

Returning Favorites
Of course, I'll be bringing back many of the most popular items that I made last year, including felted bouncy balls made with my hand-dyed recycled wool yarns. All the balls pictured above are going to turn beautiful squishy colors and still keep their bounciness. Woohoo!

Handwoven Purse
This black purse is a collaboration between me and my sister. She wove the body of the bag on her treadle loom, and I will be weaving the other pieces on my inkle loom. It's going to be really gorgeous.

Tie-dyed Cotton Market Bags
Thanks to a tie-dying party my sister hosted this summer, I was able to dye five sweaters-worth of cotton yarn in brilliant self-striping colors. These yarns have worked their way into several projects, including these beautiful market bags.

So there you go. Lots of projects to look forward to, whether you are looking for inspiration for your own projects, looking to buy a great Christmas present, or just like looking at all the pictures. I know I'm looking forward to finishing and sharing these projects with you!

Seasonal Arts at the Paper Crane

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.

My beautiful new yarn swift

For my birthday last week, my amazing husband built me a gorgeous yarn swift. Basically, the purpose of this very cool tool is to wind a big skein of yarn, either hand-spun or recovered from a sweater, so that it will be large and loose and ready for dye. Then, after the skein is dyed, I can put it back on the swift and wind it into a ball without ending up with a massive tangle. Want to see it in action? Check it out!

The Childbirth Expo and What's Next

This Saturday was my first show, at the Indiana Christian Childbirth Expo, conveniently located at our church. It was a good first show, small enough to keep the pressure low, but big enough that I got a good idea of what it would take to set up a booth at a larger arts fair.

This was a very good experience. It pushed me to create nicer business cards, write special order forms and receipts, design a new line of pacifier clips, and come up with creative display ideas. Do you like the hats stuffed with skeins of yarn perched atop curvy drinking glasses?

Plus, doing the ladybug giveaway was way fun. The clip was won by Michelle, a mom of two beautiful baby girls who survived TTTTS last spring. Right now I'm working on making a second so the twins can match :-).

So what's coming up next? In the next few days I'll be publishing a free pattern so you can make that ladybug clip yourself! I'm going to start publishing patterns from time to time on Ravelry, so if you're a knitter there's something to look forward to. By the way, if you are on Ravelry, you should friend me (MrsCollinHobbs) because I currently have no friends and it makes me look kind of lonely.

Also, I'm hoping to get the Scarborough Fair Collection (colorful, hand-painted window herb garden kits) finished soon because my little herb seedlings are going to be ready for potting soon. If you live in the Bloomington area and are interested in growing herbs, let me know. These will be very reasonably priced because I really love to share fresh food with people. You can't get fresher than clipping parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme and throwing them into your supper! (Not to mention cilantro, dill and basil.)

So much to look forward to. Hope you'll stay tuned!

Introduction

She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands. Proverbs 31:13

As a young mother of one baby hobbit, I love spending my days crafting beautiful items out of varied materials. As the seasons change, I find my desires for medium change as well. In the winter, nothing is more soothing than sitting in a rocking chair, watching the snow or freezing rain fall out my window, while knitting bright hats, booties or mittens. As the spring comes, however, I am itching to drop the needles, pack up my baby and head out with my biologist husband to pick and preserve the fresh wildflowers. In the summer I still love to run through the fields like a kid with my butterfly net, catching, spreading, and displaying insects for their beauty rather than classification. Come fall, not only do the autumn leaves offer new artisanal allures, but our garden is bursting with produce begging not only to be eaten, but preserved and crafted as well. And then it starts to get cold and the cycle starts all over again.

When my husband suggested that I start an etsy shop to sell some of my creations, I had trouble deciding on which craft to single out and specialize on. I loved so many – knitting, spinning, painting, papermaking, jewelry making, soap making, herb lore – which to choose? And were there any on which I could spend an entire year without burning out?

The concept of Seasonal Arts made my decision for me. Rather than pick one specialty, I would create collections of seasonally themed, nature inspired items. For example, my first collection consists of hand-dyed knitwear with a bright sunshine motif, perfect for brightening up the late winter doldrums. In the spring and summer, look for items such as pressed flower homemade paper note card sets. If I visit the beach, you can expect to find a collection of sand dollar and shark tooth jewelry. In the fall, there will definitely be a large supply of lovely exfoliating loofah soaps, fresh from our garden. Each season brings fresh possibilities and new joy in bringing the beauty God has created into our homes.

On this blog I will post photos both of things for sale on my etsy shop and of projects I make for my family and friends, along with a suggested retail price. If you see something which catches your eye, feel free to send me an e-mail at:

mama.hobbit.arts[at]gmail.com

I would love to make something for you!

Thank you for visiting. I hope you will be inspired, intrigued, and will check back often!

Warm regards,

Kara Hobbs