They're All the Rage

I recently got a request for infinity scarves, so I thought why not?  I've knitted up these cozy, fluffy scarves in various colors.  Each has a great color variation and great color range.  At $25 each, they're also a great less expensive option for a handmade scarf.  I made them 55" in circumference so they're nice and long to go around twice, but stay close to the neck to keep you warm.

When I was done with those, I decided to try something different too.  I had this soft, fuzzy white yarn and some shiny red yarn that I love, so I knitted them together into a loooooooooong infinity scarf (about 84" long... or around, depending on how you look at it), and came up with this scarf that looks, as Eric pointed out, like a boa.  It's so comfy!  And it's really pretty, too.

Fun, right?  They're all in the accessories section of Fabric of my Mind.  I don't know about you, but these scarves kind of cheer me up in the face of all the snow we've been having... and will apparently keep having.  Now... who wants to help me come shovel?

Meet Harmony the Hippo!

Harmony is 100% designed and knitted by me, so you won't find her anywhere else in the world!  This is my second animal scarf, the first was Daffy the Dinosaur, of course.  For both, I started the design with an idea in my head and some graph paper, choosing the type of pattern I'd want for the "skin," and deciding on features.

Where Daffy got pointed teeth, a spiny back, and brow ridges, Harmony's got square teeth, a tongue, and ears.

Both of these personality-filled accessories are made of 100% soft washable wool that won't felt, so it's completely OK if the children who own them get them a bit grubby on occasion.  In a beautiful grey, Harmony's a great neutral to go with any coat and keep someone warm.

I design my animal scarves with a bottom jaw so they've got potential to become a toy and companion as well as a scarf.  Bet you wouldn't have to convince a kid to bundle up the way my mom had to do with me if Harmony's around.

Both animal scarves can be found in Fabric of my Mind's "Imagination Safari."

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I've Been Knitting, Too

As I said in my cupcake post, I was cast as the Evil Queen's assistant in Snew White and was therefore on a poison apple kick.  I tend to like to give a little gift as a "break a leg" token with every show, so for this one, poison apples it was!

I did 21 of these little suckers, which measure about 2.5" across the body of the apple, and by then my hands were so sore and tired, I didn't even do one for myself!  Yet.  I'll have one at some point.  They're too cute not to have one for myself.

To give my hands a break after this, I went back and finished a cool green hat I'd started previously.  This one's now listed in Fabric of my Mind here.

Getting Ready for the Cold - in June?

It's 90-zillion degrees out and humid.  But now that I'm making and selling things like scarves and hats, I've resigned myself to the concept that the retail season is different from the actual season in which these things are worn.  So... I've added the first hat, a real, knitted skullcap-style hat... to Fabric of my Mind.  It's a soft, cozy tan acrylic in small/medium, so it's good for women, teens, and tweens.  The tan is a great neutral that goes with everything, and acrylic is warm and soft, washable, and perfect for anyone who's allergic to wool or straight up vegan.

Backing Up

Wow, there has been so, so, so much going on.  So I'll start sort of at the beginning.

This was not a winning summer.  June was pretty awful, in fact, with a bad car accident, a sick dog, and a sick cat that ended up leaving us too soon and too suddenly.

Neptune

We also found out that we had to move, since our landlord wanted to move back "home"... which meant our house.  Yeah.  So the remainder of our summer, for the most part, when the dog wasn't falling down the back deck steps (or I wasn't falling down the back deck steps, for that matter, and smashing the face of my phone in the process), was spent house hunting.  And packing.  And packing.  Did I mention packing?

Did I mention I hate moving?

Well, we lived through the summer (Though not injury-free, since not only did I fall down the stairs but also over a file at my day job, smacking my head good and hard into the corner of a wall, creating a nice big gash right in my brow.  It was awesome.).  Barely.  And we've come out the other side after a move during which so many things went wrong it became comical, ready for our fresh start in our new house... which is currently still something of a maze of boxes and bags, but definitely coming along.

And it's a seriously awesome house.  We moved a whole 17 miles north into a more mountainous town where so far we've seen not just the typical grey squirrels, but also a plethora of black squirrels and chipmunks, several deer, and one bear crossing the road.  Yes, a real bear.  And no, not a zoo escapee.  A wild bear.  Awesome!

So, see, this post isn't about whining, but it is definitely about catching up.  Like how for my birthday we went to the Bronx Zoo and saw some terrific animals.

Like this rabbit.

Let me explain the rabbit and why it was so terrific by zooming out just a bit...

Can you read that sign?  Read the sign.  Look at the rabbit.  Laugh your head off.  'Cause... well... yeah.

I got some pretty cool gifts, too.  The most notable for purposes of this blog are the gift card to JoAnn's mom got me, the cool gifts Eric got me,

and this gorgeous handmade bird's nest necklace from Kimberly Kitchen of MakintheBestofIt.

Unfortunately, my jewelry-making friends are not kidding when they say it's hard to photograph jewelry.  And also I took this pic with my phone.  So if you want to see good shots of her stuff, go to her site.

Also in July, I did another Farmer's Market in Carlstadt.

Did it again in September too, and this time I brought scarves since it's getting a bit cooler.  Photos are here. Speaking of scarves, I've been knitting a bunch.  For starters, more washcloths, a couple in this great trinity stitch...

And a couple in blue cotton bamboo.  This one is available at Fabric of my Mind.

And this one that Eric has appropriated.

But I mentioned scarves, so I'll show you one and save the rest for another day.  It's a great Celtic knot pattern in deep blue, available in the shop.

Until another day...

Another Market

Today was the September episode of the Carlstadt Fresh Air Market, and Reef Botanicals was there, together with a bit of Fabric of my Mind.

It was a beautiful, sunny day to be outside!