Winter wooly day.....

Hello! 

How is your week going? 

  

Mine is good, lots of fun wooly things happening, I'm busy but in a good energising way, lots of new, interesting ideas swirling around, and some exciting plans coming together.  

It has been good planning weather, sooooo cold and dreary, perfect for rugging up and getting some serious hooky time in front of the fire and heater.  I'm trying a couple of winter markets this year, so I'm making things to stock my stall. I'll have to show you soon what I've made so far! 

Wool seems to be all around me these days, my little shop is slowly growing, it is so much fun deciding what new yarns to get in and what other crafty goodies to stock, my customer numbers are growing slowly but surely, (thank you so much!!) and I am able to spend a lot more time doing 'shopkeeping' and crochet type work these days, it feels like a 'real' job! :) 

Anyway, I had a little wander around my studio this afternoon, 

and noticed lots of colourful woolly goodness, 

so thought it might be nice to have a little colour hit on a Winter's day. :) 

.......piles of pastels for hats .......

....and  I have been pompoming like a mad thing!  

What's your opinion, pompoms on beanies or no pompom?  

I like a pompom, but not everyone does.....

.......new brights in the shop, tomorrow I've got to upload them onto the online shop, lovely Sportwool from Filatura di Crosa......

... a colourful corner with washers waiting for edgings and blankets layered up......

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That's about all I have now, just a little snippet of my wooly day, I hope you have a great day too!

Talk soon! 

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Some things this week

1. Mum and I had another lovely day at Emu Plains Market last weekend, I had lots of dangling things in my stall this time,  I thought it looked pretty all flapping in the breeze. 

2. I made some crochet flower trim, I think I will try this in a finer thread next time as this one has turned out fairly chunky, I wonder if it will fall apart if I cut it into smaller lengths.

3. Pom-poms were being made the other night to decorate a creative swap I am taking part in over on Instagram.  I love how this variegated wool made them look all speckled, a little bit like fireworks.  I think I will make some big ones of these to decorate my shop :) 

4.....And here are my swap presents all wrapped and ready to send, I have felt a little bit of pressure to make my parcels look pretty as there is a very high standard of wrapping going on in this swap!! I don't want to be the one who disappoints her recipient!  

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My new wool studio is coming along nicely, the plaster walls are going up tomorrow I think, so I will do a post on the weekend and show you all the progress, it is exciting!  I have just placed an order for some new yarns for the shop in anticipation of all the extra space, I have over 50 colours of Cascade 220 Superwash coming next week and some lovely painted cottons too,  looking forward to setting everything up!  Next on the wishlist are some Noro yarns and some new Debbie Bliss too, hope the bank balance stretches that far! :) 

And I have finally conquered my newsletter fear, I wasn't happy with my first go at making my newsletter, so ditched it and redid the tutorials and had another go, and I think this one is a lot better, so will be sending it out soon!  :) 

What have you been up to this week? 

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A crafty bee in my bonnet. A wooly pompom tree.

Hello.  How is your week going? Good I hope! :)

Well, I have been quite busy with a little idea that just had to be made before everything else I have on my to do list.  

Do you ever get ideas like that?  

Where you just have to make something and see if it turns out how you are imagining?   

I certainly had a bee in my bonnet, and I couldn't concentrate on any of my other makings until it was out of my system!

The idea I had was for a wooly pompom branch that could be used as a whimsical Christmas tree and adorned with decorations like my flowers and stars. I like something a bit quirky for my Christmas trees and I like the spindly nature of branches, this was just taking it a bit further down the cute road with the addition of pompoms!

So I got out my wire and masking tape and bent and stuck that wire into shape, then I got out my wool and wrapped the wire in lots of greens and reds ( a little bit Christmassy).  Next I made a heap of pompoms and then sewed them onto the wire frame, and tadah, all finished and out of my head!

........here is the start of my pompom collection......

....and here is how my wooly pompom branch has finished up, a bit of a folly, a whimsical twiggy branch with pompom fruits at the end of each twig, it is very hard to photograph as it is so spindly and an awkward shape, it looks much better in real life, but you get the idea.  It is actually making my happy just thinking about it!  I think it will look very over the top hung with flowers and stars and maybe some crocheted leafy vine........ :)

While I was making the wire bits I had envisioned making up about a dozen branches in different colours all covered with a rainbow of pompoms and selling them at my market stall, like a forest of pompom trees, I think 3 stems would make a lovely Christmas tree alternative don't you?   

But by the time I had actually got one to the finished stage ( many, many, hours later) I was thinking that this will just be a home project for our Christmas, they just take so long to make and are quite fiddley, I don't think it's a viable item to sell, (maybe just for special people if I am asked). 

So I am going  to make up the other stems at my leisure and just keep them at home for a crazy display.  It is looking a bit sad just with pompoms, must get out some other things to add to it! 

So now I can get back to making things on my to do list!  It is alway good to have a little crafty interlude with a side project!  I am inspired to keep making pompoms, and am thinking some pompom garlands would be a nice addition to my stall instead! :)

Have you made anything completely just for fun, to try out an idea that won't leave your head?

Have a great day, talk soon! 

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