Helloooo! It's been a while....

Well that 4 months just disappeared!  I really don't know why my poor blog has been so neglected, and have no excuses other than time has just been flying by and my "I'll get to my blog tomorrow" mantra never really stuck!  

Oh well, I have lots of things to share with you anyway, so at least that is something! :) 

Today I have to let you know that I am running a Winter Yarny Love Club,  and there are only a few days left to sign up!  Sorry about the short notice! :)  It costs the same as the Autumn Club, and there is more info in my shop over here.

So what has been filling all my time away from my beloved blog?  

I have been crocheting (of course), and have been making some amigurumi animals, and a new blanket, plus lots of little things!
I've been doing the Markets, although the season has finished now so I'm technically restocking over winter with lots of new products!

I've held quite a few workshops in my studio which has been fun, (I will post the ones for June on here tomorrow to let everyone know what's going on). 

I have been adding new yarns to my shop and dreaming about new projects to make with them.

I have learnt to hand dye wool!  So much fun and definitely worthy of a separate post !

I am knitting socks with my handdyed wool, so great to see how the colours knit up. :) 

I am having a stall at the Australian Sheep and Wool Show in Bendigo in July, so am starting to plan what I'm taking, putting kits together and dyeing up some of my own wool as well as some gorgeous yarns from around the world. 

And I have some exciting plans in the works for my little wool shop, fingers crossed I can share them with you all soon! 

Thanks to everyone who has left comments over the last few months, I have just logged on to find them all sitting there waiting to be approved!  :)
Have a great day lovelies, hope you're doing something fun!

it's been a while.......

Hello there! 

How are you all? Good I hope! 

I thought it was about time I blew the cobwebs off my poor neglected blog and stuck something up here.  It does feel like a long time since I last posted, life has been rather busy and each day has just run into the next and before you know it months are passing! 

So here's a little catch up post, and then hopefully I will get back into some form of regular posting. 

I have been doing lots of making; washers and flowers feature heavily, as well as finishing off my Sunburst granny square blanket, it deserves it's own post I think, it is pretty cute! 

My wool shop has been keeping me occupied with lots of lovely new stock arriving for the winter months ahead.  I still have lots of yarns on my wish list, but I'm slowly getting a great range of beautiful yarns in stock, so that is making me very happy.  I really need to spend more time on promotion and marketing, but I guess we all have our strengths and weaknesses when it comes to business.  Everything seems to take a lot more time than I anticipate! 

......recent heart washer on the hook, I like this colour combo, but then again I love so many of the colours in the Cascade Ultra Pima, it is hard to choose which combo to try next.........

.....the couch had become a bit of a yarny dumping spot, I really need to try and keep things tidier in here! ........

....I seem to have these little piles of colourful makings all over the shop, it does make me feel good catching glimpses of them all day long.......

This is a squishy pile of Misti Alpaca Handpainted Chunky, so many beautiful shades in there, And some new ones coming later in the month. I can't wait!  

So what have you lovely peeps been up to recently? 

I'm sure you've all been keeping busy, hopefully getting some creative time as well! 

I'll be back tomorrow with an Etsy Finds post, it's been ages since I did one of those and I have lots of new shops that I've spotted.  I'm trying to leap back into blogging after my unintentional absence, so if I write it here, I might actually achieve it ! 

Have a great day! 

Talk soon! 

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5 Friday Finds #28

this post contains affiliate links

Hello! I am running behind with my Friday Etsy finds this week, I know it is already Sunday, I don't know where the last few days have gone!! I figure it's better late than never, so here's a few lovely shops that have caught my eye this week! :) 

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1.I love the work found in beccastadtlander, the shop of talented illustrator Becca Stadtlander, lots of lovely cards and prints available here.

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2. Leah from the ThePaperFinchCompany sells lots of beautiful wool rovings for felting and spinning. I couldn't help but include the photo of all the gorgeous colour!  Needle felting is something I'd like to try ( not that I need anymore crafty hobbies!! :) ), a little starting kit like this might be just the thing to get me going! 

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3. This cotton towelling bathrobe from loovee really reminds me of granny stripes, I love all the colours!  

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4. BlueRaspberryDesigns is the lovely quirky shop belonging to Valentina Felce, her OOAK tattooed art dolls have such personality, I just love her work! 

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5. Another amazing toymaker, although a very different style, can be found at Pussman, the gorgeous shop belonging to the very talented Danielle Roothooft.  I love her beautiful bears and rabbits, they remind me of the 'Velveteen Rabbit' and have a real timeless quality to them.  She also sells patterns if you'd like to create your own special creature! :)  (and she has a sale on at the minute too!)

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So that's my finds for another week! 

I'll be back tomorrow with a crafty post, I'm trying (again) to get into some sort of blogging routine, so am having a go at using an editorial calendar for a bit of structure, often I have trouble thinking of things to post about so I end up posting nothing, and before you know it 2 weeks have gone by! Hopefully this will give me a bit of structure and I can capture ideas as they come to me and schedule them into the blog.  Hmmm, I don't usually do so great with schedules, but we will se how this goes :)

Do you have any suggestions for blog post topics?  I'd love to hear some new ideas, after doing this for a few years, I feel like I might be getting just a tad boring!! :) 

Have a fabulous day, talk soon! 

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Creativity Blog Hop...

Hello!

I am taking part in a Blog Hop today, and talking about creativity.  I was tagged by the lovely Kate from Just Pootling, hi Kate!

There are four questions to answer, and hopefully they will shed some light on my creative process! So here goes.

1. What am I working on?

Crochet in general, and more specifically at the moment I am working on a tapestry crochet washcloth in a new pattern. And I am also making little knitted hearts for a new dangly thing for our bedroom. I am finding that these small projects that I can complete in a few days are giving me a lot of pleasure.  Not to say I don't like a big time consuming project, but I was having trouble deciding what to make next , so small projects are great for the interim.

2. How does my work differ from others of its genre?

Um, this is a hard question, I am not sure my work is all that different from others in the crochet world!  Maybe I have a distinctive colour palette?  I love to play with colour and pattern, and am drawn to stripes and things that have the potential for lots of layering of colour.  I also like 'solid' crochet, I am not into lacy, gappy patterns, so I think there is chunkiness to my work that might be a little different to others, maybe it feels more contemporary than traditional?   I like making big slabs of crocheted fabric in lovely wools and calling them blankets!  But then I like making little pretty frivolous things too!  I also like the tapestry crochet technique at the moment, and I don't see too many people using that in a big way, so maybe that's a little different too.

3. Why do I write/create what I do?

I crochet because it brings me enjoyment and I like to see my ideas come to life.  I love making things, and find I am never bored or wondering what to do, as there is always another idea to try out.  I also like making things just to prove that I can!  I get a lot of satisfaction out of making something to the best of my current abilities, and there is still so much to learn!  I am also quite surprised how good it feels to see someone else appreciate something I have made with my own hands, it gets a bit addictive this making caper!  I love crochet because there are so many creative possibilities with this craft.

4. How does my writing/creating process work?

I seem to always be doodling or writing little ideas.  My creative process seems to start with an idea, or a technique, stitch or colour combination, and then I will do a bit of drawing to see if I can sketch out how it might look in the end, and then I really just have a go!  I love trying new things out and learning new techniques to broaden my creative choices. I tend to figure out the details as I work, this means an idea can change as it  grows and becomes a real thing.  Something that looks good on paper might not actually work in reality, so I am always open to changing things when I am crocheting.  Or I might have an idea for something and do a little drawing, but not have the skills to bring it to life yet, so I like to revisit old ideas every once in a while as my skill base grows, I often have moments of ' oh I do know how I can make that now' when my skills have caught up to my ideas!  One of the best things about crochet,  it is very easy to pull stitches out and try again! 

So there you have it, a little insight into me and what makes me tick creatively speaking.

Here are 3 other lovely bloggers to pass the baton onto and continue the hop for next week -

*Heike over at Made with Loops

*Butterfly Sparkles over at Butterfly Sparkles Designs

*Emm over at Crochet.Reading.Travels.Stories.Life.Love.Me

So what are you up to today, creative wise?  

Crafty heart(s)

Hello!  I'd like to thank you all for the lovely comments on  my last post with the blue/green harlequin blanket, it really is so nice being part of this bloggy world, even if Facebook and Twitter and Instagram have moved in and changed things up a bit, blogging is still the way I like to communicate best and is still my first love!  I fear my stint at responding to each comment on my blog didn't last long, sorry about that,  I will keep trying to improve on this side of things, and to comment more on all your lovely blogs too, I am trying to fight my reclusive tendencies and get interacting!

I thought these little knitted hearts were kind of appropriate for sharing the love back to everyone who reads this blog, aren't they kind of cute?

When we were in the city last weekend I visited one of my favourite book shops and bought a couple of new crafty books, one of them was 'The Ultimate Book Of Baby Knits" by Debbie Bliss, and these little hearts were one of the patterns in it.  ( lots of lovely patterns in this book!) 

 They are supposed to become parts of a mobile, but I am planning to make quite a few of them and make a dangly heart garland thingy for my bedroom wall.

I have a picture in my head, so we will see if it turns out how I imagine.

I love how I can practice my very basic fairisle skills on these little hearts.  There is also a pattern for some gorgeous fairisle hangers that I am working up to having a go at.  They are really pretty!

It was nice to pick up the knitting needles for a change, I am quite inspired to knit at the moment, it is really cold here and the fire is going, and knitting just finishes off the picture of cosiness. 

I think a tiny knitted heart with little spots of colour would be pretty cute 

for a homespun brooch, don't you?  Just have to find my tiny knitting needles....maybe 2mm? 

Anyway, I'd better go and help with the dishes, talk soon!  

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Skinny stripes and a winner!

Hello everyone!

I have a bit of a colour overload here, but it has been very dreary and cold here today, so I was in need of a little brightening. :) 

This is the thing I am working on at the moment, I call it the Skinny Stripe Blanket, just rows of sc in a lovely random patterning of colours.  So simple, but I love the effect.

I am trying to do 10-20 rows a day, but I am falling behind a bit this week. :(  Must keep plugging away, the rows are very soothing, just sc over and over again! ( they are soothing until they are boring, then I stop and do something else!)

Anyway, what else has been happening around here...hmmm, well I received a new yarn delivery for the shop today, something lovely and chunky and warm and wintery and interesting.  It was too dull to photograph it, but I can't wait to get it in the shop and show you all.  I've never made anything in chunky or super chunky yarn, I'll have to go and immerse myself in Ravelry for a while and find some new projects!  Hopefully I will be able to show you tomorrow!

Oh, and I have a winner for the April giveaway! Yay! 

Max chose a number between 1 and 189, and I counted down to that comment, and guess what?

Kate Eastwood the 5 balls of cotton are all yours! 

Thank you to everyone who took the time to enter, I wish I could send a prize to you all!

(......and yes, I do have to deal with all these ends!  I know I should have crocheted over them as I went, but I started doing that and I didn't like how one end of the stripe was thicker than the other! So I will weave them in at the end, surely it won't take that long..... :)  )

Well, that's about all for now, not much too report really, hopefully I'll have more interesting posts for you all soon, I think I've been lacking a bit of posting inspiration recently, so I apologise for the slightly boring sameness to my posting, I guess that can happen when life follows a gentle rhythm, and patterns and routines repeat themselves over the months.  I think it is called contentment, or something similar, just a happy life really. :)

How is life treating you at the moment?

Have a great day!

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Some housekeeping and a giveaway!!

Hello everyone!

How has your week been going?  The weeks are flying by here, is that happening to you too?

I think I have mentioned that I have been doing a little e-course 

about blogging called 'Blog with Pip'.

It has been great, and has pretty much finished now, so I am trying to implement a few things on this blog that I have been thinking about during the course.  

One thing we were encouraged to think about was why we blog, the reason for our blogging.  

For me, this blog started as a way to record my crafty makes and my new found love of crochet, and bits of our family life,  it was pretty much just for me.  

I never imagined that I would still be doing it 4 years later, and that other people would enjoy reading about the things I post!

So the 'why' I blog has changed a little, I now feel like I am writing it not just for me, but also for others, and there is some pressure to make it good!  I know I don't deliver on this all the time!!

I also have more of a need to earn a little income than I did back then, so the wool shop and my blog have become my little business outlet.  I am not very good at that!  

But I am going to persevere, as it is something that I really enjoy and I love working from home and for myself.  I find business things a real challenge, far outside my comfort zone, but I am going to try and get better at them, and put more time into my shop and blog. Yes I am!

So some of the little changes I have made so far:

 - added an 'About Me' page in the top menu, (I can't real imagine why you'd want to know much about me, but apparently readers of blogs like to know about the people who write them! Something I learnt from Pip! I felt completely self conscious writing it, but anyhoo, it's there now!)

- Calling all sponsors!!!

........another thing I feel self conscious about, I have opened up some space in

 my sidebar for a few little sponsor ads.   So if you (or someone you know) has a blog or little crafty business, or maybe an Etsy/Madeit shop and would like to advertise it with a cute 

banner ad on Little Woollie, I would be very happy to help!  

Feel free to check out my sponsors page for more info regarding sponsorship.

I have set things up with Passionfruit Ads so it should be a nice simple 

process to get your ad up and running quickly.  

And if you would like to chat about this further please feel free to email me!

Phew! I'm glad I have got all that out!  

Definite non-comfort zone things there, but pretty exciting just the same!

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I'M HAVING A GIVE AWAY!!

So onto other fun things, I have decided that I don't reward you enough dear readers for visiting me, I appreciate all my crafty peeps out there in the big wide world, and sometimes I think it is nice to give some love back! 

So I am going to run a crafty giveaway once a month for the rest of the year.  

I'm not sure what I'll give away each time, probably things I see that I like and think you might too!  

I have noticed lots of new peeps tuning in here, and I'd like to acknowledge 

and thank you all for your interest!

The giveaway for March is these 6 balls of Merino Magic 8ply in some lovely shades.  Maybe this could be the start of  an Autumn blanket? Or a cute stripy scarf? Or some cute bunting? Or whatever else you can think of!!  I'm sure you could make something lovely with this yarn, it is one of my regular go-to yarns, I really love using it!

So this is just because you are all ace and, once again, I want to say a big thank you for all your wonderful support here at Little Woollie headquarters!  xxxxxxx

If you would like to enter my giveaway, just leave a comment and tell me what your favourite yarn is! ( I am having trouble picking new stock for my shop, (there are just so many different yarns out there) and could do with your opinions! ) 

It would be lovely if you'd like to share this give away on your blogs/facebook, but it is not a requirement for entry! :)  I'll pick a winner next Friday.

Wow, this little blog is growing up!  I don't think it will ever look super slick or very cool, but it is kind of like me, a bit scruffy round the edges and pretty much homemade!

Ok, I think that is all the bloggy business I have to report at the moment, thank you for your attention and please enter my giveaway!  xxxxxxxx

Edited: Give away now closed, thanks for entering!!

I hope you don't think I am 'selling out', the content of my posts won't change, I will still be making it up as I go!!!  xxxx

A little 'taking stock' exercise....

So, as part of the Blog with Pip course I am doing, ( fantastic course, btw), we have been given a little blog assignment to complete, a 'taking stock' list, a snap shot of where we are and what we are thinking at the moment.

So here is mine! Pip has an empty list that you can copy and fill in on your own blog if you'd like to join in too.

Making : an editorial calendar

Cooking : roast chicken

Drinking : fresh orange juice

Reading: Frankie

Wanting: an icy pole

Looking: At a huge mess in my house

Playing: With the kitten, aww, so cute!

Deciding: Which way to take this blog

Wishing: Family violence didn't exist

Enjoying: being with all my boys

Waiting: for our tomatoes to ripen

Liking: Having my eldest son home at the moment, some good one on one chats. 

Wondering: How you would move on from a tragedy

Loving: Being part of an ace family.

Pondering: why some men lose the plot and do terrible things

Considering: Adding some more pages to this blog

Watching: The walking dead. Love a bit of zombie apocalypse horror, go Rick!

Hoping: for some rain.

Marvelling: at the amazing feat of Samuel Johnson, unicycling around Australia for his sister. Fab!

Needing: a diet coke.

Smelling: sweaty, time for a shower!

Wearing: trackies and a singlet, bogan chic.

Following: lots of new blogs thanks to Blog with Pip.

Noticing: how filthy my car is.

Knowing: life is short, make the most of every day.

Thinking: about what I am going to crochet next.

Feeling: so sad for the Batty family.

Admiring: some very profession looking blog set ups!

Sorting: a humungous pile of washing, (well I should be.)

Buying: new magazines.

Getting: organised for more regular blogging.

Bookmarking: some healthy recipes to try out.

Disliking: how many pesky flies are in my house at the moment, I which cats could shut doors!

Opening: a new bottle of soda water, a poor substitute for DC but I am trying to kick the habit.

Giggling: at a very floppy kitten.

Feeling: very unsettled today.

Snacking: on Savoury Shapes, guilty pleasure.

Coveting: some MadelineTosh sock wool, Molly Ringwald please!

Wishing: bad stuff didn't happen to good people.

Helping: convince my youngest son school camp will be fun.

Hearing: Controller by British India, great album.

 Wanna join in too?

How has your week been so far?

Busy? Cruisey? A bit of both like me?

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A finished blanket and other random stuff.

Hello.

Things have been pretty busy around here lately, the days are getting away from me and I feel like I am chasing my tail all the time. 

 I have signed up for an e-course called 'Blog with Pip' of Meet me at Mike's fame, and it has started this week.  It is fabulous, with heaps of great info, but already I feel behind, lots of other students are sharing what they are doing and they are really achieving a lot in a week!  Gotta get my act into gear!!  We are able to interact together through a Facebook page and comments on the course page, but I find myself feeling quite shy and hanging back a bit.  I think I will make myself get more involved, even if it is out of my comfort zone.  

I am hoping to give this blog a bit of a make over, you know, new banner, tidier sidebar, better tags to make it easier to find things, that sort of thing.  I am contemplating offering some form of sponsorship down the side, I have seen a lot of blogs recently that have advertising down the side and it doesn't seem to detract from their blogs, and it would be a way for me to contribute to our family finances while still doing the things I love. ( and I would not have to look for work outside home!) 

Anyhoo, I have lots of thoughts floating around in my skull at the minute, really must try and sort some of them out!

On the crafty front, I have finished my second harlequin cot blanket. Yay! I was trying to work on this exclusively so I could get a fair idea of how much time these take to make, but as usual, a couple of other projects needed attention, so I have a rough idea only.

I am having a lot of fun with this pattern, and I love the tapestry crochet technique, it will probably be boring for you guys, but I think I will make another one of these in a different colour scheme.

I am thinking about writing this pattern up and making 'blanket kits' with all the wool and instructions in them and selling them in my shop. What do you think?

Anyhoo, that's a little catch up from round these parts, have you been doing anything special?

What do you think about advertising on blogs?  

Have you got any on yours?

What are you making at the moment?

Talk soon.

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Things I have noticed this week.....

1. It is lots of fun shopping for little girls.  There are so many seriously cute things around these days, it is hard to choose what they would like best!  

 A new toy shop has opened in our town and it has 

soooo many things that  I would have loved as a child, I bought my niece a super cute marionette puppet ( I loved puppets when I was little) and quite an ornate heart stamping set and a few pretty erasers for her birthday tomorrow, but there were so many things I could have chosen!  

Oh, and I came home with these Russian dolls for me, just because I love their colours and couldn't resist!

2. I think we are going to have plenty of apples this year if the amount of blossom is anything to go by. I can't remember the trees being this laden before, they are really stunning.

3.  The scent of lilac is starting to be noticeable as you walk in the front door, so lovely!  The bushes  are flowering above the roofline, so you don't really notice the flowers until you look for the source of the scent.

4. My craft space is in need of a big clean up again!  I am not really using it to make anything in, just to dump materials and then whinge that I can't find anything!  Must do something about that!

5.  There are lots of interesting swaps around blogland at the moment, many to do with Christmas.  I think I will join up with a couple maybe.  Do you do swaps?

Ok, I could go  on and on with this, but I had better stop there and go and do something constructive, like clean up my craft room!   Might do some more tomorrow....

Have a lovely weekend!

Advent Swap......

hello!

So, it's nearly December and look what  arrived here the other day!

My advent swap parcel full of lovely packages, looking very festive and cheery, and with a whole heap of candy canes too!!  The lovely Vickie from Vickies Crafting was my partner for this swap, and I think she has sent a gorgeous parcel of Christmassy happiness!  Thank you so much!  

I have to say the bloggy community is a pretty great one. When I started blogging, I never dreamed it would be such an inspiring, generous, sharing, and rewarding community of people with similar interests, experiences etc, spread all around the world but joined by the blogging experience. Just amazing!

Thank you once again Vickie!  I will do a few showings through December of things as they get revealed I think!

Christmas crafting post coming soon! (just got to finish it first!)

My creative space...more finished softies

Hello!

You might remember I had a little pile of flat owls sewn together and waiting patiently to be stuffed and finished....well I have got my act into gear and finally got them finished!

This was the bit that was holding me up.. finding the perfect wing...see what I was making those half circles for the other day? I think the lacy wings really finish these birdies off nicely.

Soooo...... what do you think? You like?

They turn out taller and skinnier when they are stuffed and it gives them a different look and personality I think. Their ears are quite shapable and I can make them look quizzical and amusing.....

I still love all these colour combinations........

I have been a busy girl and actually popped this little family in my shop, along with granny porky.... am in 'finishing off'' mode now so you might see some other things going that way too, I have plenty of unfinished projects around here to give my attention!

On another front, my blogging has got a lot easier today, I have discovered how to reduce my photos in size, and voila, all my blogger problems seem to have disappeared! I think my photo files were way too big and taking forever to upload and it was just timing out. So now it takes like 2 seconds to upload 5 photos!! I am a fairly low tech person, probably why it has taken me this long to figure this out. But the good news is now I can put lots more photos in my posts! Yay! I hope the quality of the photos doesn't suffer too much in the reduction, I think they will be alright for blogging purposes.

Anyhoo, playing along over here today, check out the creative types and all their creations!