Why do I choose natural fibers? Why?

Ok, both in my knitting and upcycling, 99.99% of the fibers I use are natural fibers.

Icelandic Wool!  Alpaca!  Angora!  Cotton!  Cashmere!  Hemp! Linen! Merino Wool!  Silk!

Why do I look down my nose at acrylics and their other unnatural fiendish accomplices?

Several reasons. 

1.  First and foremost, I am a hippy.  A true, "dyed in the wool" (pun intended) crunchy granola, Henry David Thoreau luddite.  Natural fibers are renewable.  We can get more of them.  There is a very small carbon footprint associated with "growing" them.  (Other than the famed methane releasing farts that are supposedly causing all this global warming-a ridiculous premise, btw.)  These fibers come from animals, plants, or in the case of silk, caterpillars.  These fibers do not come to us as the by products of petroleum refinement or some dude in a lab manipulating chemical polymers for maximum stretch, and then producing them by superheating stuff with a coal fired factory.  No, we cut it off of animals or plants, spin it into thread, and then knit or weave it into something beautiful.

Sheep Grazing.  Just had their wool sheered off.  Not scary at all.

Refining Crude oil, using leftovers to make acrylic fibers.  Scary.

2.  Ok, now onto more marketable reasons for enjoying natural over man-made fibers.  Warmth.  Wool, Alpaca, Cashmere, Merino?  All super warm.  Even when soaking wet- warm.  Even when wind is howling around you- warm.  Acrylics?  Not warm.  They are not made to have the natural loft and density of natural fibers.  They have not evolved over millions of years to keep an animal warm in the snow.  Warmth is why we stole the damn fibers off of the animals in the first place.  Cold?  Then wear natural fibers.

Wool=Warm.  Just look at me!  It's 20 degrees outside.  Do I look cold?

Acrylic= not warm.  I did a google search for images of acrylic sweaters outside.  Couldn't find one.  It was too cold.

3.  Safety.  You got a beautiful acrylic blanket you say?  Well, don't go to sleep with it on.  Acrylics are flammable.  They are made from fossil fuels you know.  It will melt and adhere to your skin.  Scary.  Sleepwear has to have a label in it if it contains acrylic go here to read about them, warning you NOT to sleep in it.  No such warnings on silk, cotton or wool jammies and blankets. 

Pilots and soldiers (I was a soldier for seven years, so I know from experience) can't wear acrylics while flying or in the battlefield, because the melted acyrlic would be almost impossible to remove from the wound.  I'll save you the details.  Bad news bears.

4.  Comfort.  Natural fibers breathe!  They were grown NOT to make an animal sweat.  They were grown NOT to stick to your skin.  They were grown NOT to hold every smell of every room you've ever been in.  Test this.  Go outside in an acrylic shirt in the summer and run around.  Change into a cotton or silk shirt.  Do the same thing.  I'm right, and you know it.


Those are the most important reasons.  Consider the ecological impact.  Consider safety, warmth, and comfort.  It's really a no brainer. 

And a bonus!

VIRGIN Acrylic!  VIRGIN ORLON Acrylic!  Like the Spray paint!  Won't fade!

This tag is everywhere when I go thrift shopping.  What the hell is virgin acrylic?  Some marketing punk decided that Virgin wool needed some competition.  Do you know what virgin acrylic means?  I found this here. 

"What you don’t seem to understand is that “Virgin Acrylic” refers to the fact that the acrylic sweater was never worn before. Once you bring it home and wear it for more than 20 minutes (unlike mattress tags), you are required by law to remove the “Virgin Acrylic” label. This also applies to stores when they accept virgin acrylic sweater returns. They can loose their license to sell virgin acrylic if it is discovered that they have not pulled the tags or scribbled out the word “virgin” on returned sweater labels. As to the frustrated male acrylics; wrongo, sweater breath! The acrylic is an assexual, self-reproducing organism. Duh!"

HILARIOUS!

Now you know, and as GI Joe would say; knowing is half the battle.

I owe you a rant....

 I am currently drudging through semester grades, and midterm exams. 

I promise to slam everything acrylic soon! 

And I decided on the tutorial I'll be posting this week:

Double Breasted Cowl, Fully Lined Cowl!

It's so easy, a 7 year old can do it!

I was moping around the house yesterday, because my husband was out again during daylight hours working.  I really wanted to list some new items in my shop, but they needed great pictures to show them in their best light.  *pun intended*

Enter Odin, my seven year old.  "Mom, I can take your pictures!"

I decided I would humor him, and let him give it a shot.

THIS is what he did!

Super Warm Trendy Cowl

Funky Buttons and Cashmere

Fully Lined Reversible Beret

Tweedy Floppy Beret

Funky Buttons Cowl

So there you have it.  He was so excited when I showed him that his "work" was uploaded on the internet.  That his photos were soo good, that I needed all of them in my showcase.

He was tickled pink.

The Sunday Six

I've been busily crafting my heart out over here, but I always have time with my coffee in the morning to peruse the many, many wonderful blogs in the blogosphere.  Without the inspiration I have found online, I don't think I ever would have started crafting in the first place!

I wanted to be just like them.  Heck, I wanted to BE them.  That included emulating these super sewers/knitters/chefs/photographers/artists in words.  I'm not there yet- it's a journey that I am enjoying every day, and SOMEDAY I will be the one to inspire someone else.  Let us hope they have a better camera than me though. 

I started this blog at the beginning of December to showcase my thoughts, work, and to promote my new Etsy store.  But on Sundays, I share with you some of the bloggers who still inspire me every morning with my 2 *cough* or 4 cups of joe.

Here we go- people who inspired me this week....

1.  33 Shades of Green- Roman shades have always confused me.  I'm the type of sewer who has to stare at things for three hours before I click and figure out how to make it.  But Alissa has broken it down in an amazing tutorial.  She also knows how to cook, work with paper, knit, decorate, and sew.  You want to hate her, but you can't.  Just give her credit.  This chick rules!!!!!

2.  Ysolda- I just found out this week (thanks Dawn at A Few Good Yarns for the heads up) one of my favorite knitting designers has a blog.  So I've been lurking over there each morning this week, going through the archives and awaiting a new post, as if that means she is talking directly to me.  To ME!  I've knitted many of her patterns over the years, and I might be pretending that I am a cool knitwear designer from Scotland while I'm knitting.  Don't tell anyone, I'd be embarrassed.

3.  I was featured on One Pretty Thing with my fingerless gloves tutorial this week, for the second time!  My first was my apron from a skirt tutorial.   Each time I was featured, I just about peed my pants.  Rachel has two posts each day, collecting all the amazing tutorials and inspiration from the blogosphere.  Not only do the projects amaze me, her diligence in browsing all of the available tutorials out there and organizing them into intelligable posts TWICE each day flabbergasts me!  Go over there, whatever craft you do, and get inspired.

4.  I graduated with this girl.  Erin and I haven't spoken for years, as we both had kids, I joined the Army and moved out of town, etc....  But I recently discovered that we've taken parallel paths, and she is a crafter/blogger!  On Crafty Bits n Pieces, Erin does the crafting; her husband does the art design!  So cool, and I'm glad to be linking an old friend.  She recently posted an upcycled pillow tutorial!  Just how parallel are our paths?  Crazy!

5.  Aly&Ash.  I might die of cuteness overload.   THE PHOTOS!  Not only are her fabric flowers and hats adorable, but Jax can take a photo to die for.  Frame-worthy.  I aspire to someday take photos like this.

6.  Need more than just six in one day?  Go over to Today's Creative Blog, where they try to list a new blog every day to inspire and amaze you.  So that one day, you too will open up your blog!

Go.  Be free.  Get inspired.  I do, every morning.  And someday... I may have a following... But until then, I'll keep writing, crafting, and posting.  Drop me a line letting me know who to peruse and feature next week!

*smooches*

Working hard!

from xkcd.com

I'm working today on some new berets, scarves, gloves and such!

Coming up this week:

Sunday- The Sunday Six

A rant on the use of natural fibers over acrylics.. 

Photoshoot of all the new goodies!

I hope to put together a new tutorial as well, hopefully by Friday...

In the meantime, I will be stitchin' my little fingers off!

Happy Crafting!

-rose

My Etsy Friends... And a challenge...

So I joined this group of like-minded crafters in the Etsy community this week:

Shopper's Paradise Forum

I've had so much fun getting to know everyone, and this week they offered up a creating "challenge."

The rules?  Create an item inspired by a song.  The "Lyrics" challenge.

My entry?  It doesn't compare to some of the artistic greatness that is found on paradise.  But at least I tried.  I was inspired by "Yellow Submarine" by the Beatles.  A cowl in ocean cruising shades of cashmere with funky polka dots for the goofiness of the song.

Shop for it in my shop.

  Oceanic Colors, Funky Polka dots.  Cowl in Cashmere.  Fun, yes?

Here are some of the other entries from the group that are awesome.  See the caption for the inspiration.

nhquiltarts

Eve of Destruction

classyandsassy

Blackbird

beadandbeautyboutique

Goin' to the Chapel

creationcarteatout

Now and Forever

jerise

Cup of Peace

You Can Sparkle

Volcano

kippyssomature

The Song your Heart Learned to Sing

Thanks to all my Etsy Paradise Peeps!  You rule!  These are just a sampling.  Run over the forum thread linked at the top to see them all.

Catching up at work...

As a teacher, sometimes many, many, many times, you bring your work home with you.  I've been trying to avoid this this year, but it seems I've gotten behind.

And, lucky me, as a non-tenured teacher, I get to be observed this week.  Always nerve-wracking.

So this week, I may be here less than I would like.  I have tests, essays, and projects to grade, lesson plans to work on, and a 2 midterms to write.


This is not including my boy scout pack meeting tonight, as well as my meetings I need to go to.

Wish me luck!

Working my tail off... Back to work tomorrow

I've got to go back to teaching tomorrow, and while I do love my job, I love crafting just a bit more.  I was so worried that creating for my Etsy store would take the joy away from making all these wonderful things, but the feedback I've gotten just adds fuel to the fire.  I've been pushing myself to come up with new designs today, and I pulled out a few stops...

It's really amazing what we can create with the things we have at home.  Upcycling.   I once read that upcycling is "turning useless crap into even more useless crap."  I have to disagree.  All of these items were upcycled from tossed sweaters- cashmere, merino, wool.  Those natural fibers are never worthless.  So, I've been upcycling my butt off all week.  Do any of these look like useless crap?  I hope not.

100% Cashmere Scarf with Ruffle

Wool Cowl with Vintage buttons

Silk Fingerless Gloves

Cashmere Opera Length Fingerless Gloves

I've finished alot more, but I'm waiting for my dearest hubby to get home and take some decent pictures.  I hate taking pics alone.  No fun at all! 

So, what inspires you to create?  I just love natural fibers.  I love color.  I love creating something out of something else. 

What do you love to do?  Share!

The Sunday Six

After I hit 1000 hits this Saturday, I did a dance.  Stitches in my foot and all.  1000 hits in just a little over a month.  Where's my Fresca! 

I really can't believe it.  Thanks so much to all my readers out there who've made this venture a success.  And thank you so much to Rachel over at One Pretty Thing.  You've really got me rolling by featuring my tutorials, and I'm so grateful. 

Since I won't be around much tomorrow, I've decided to post the Sunday Six on a Saturday.  I know, I'm a wild and crazy kid.  I'm breaking out my rebel card.

So, what are you going to be reading this year?  I, for one, have found quite a few blogs this week:

First:  Elizabeth Abernathy.  How did I not find this wonderful blog before this?  I am usually tireless in my searches.  So many cool things to make, so little time...

Second:  Cluck, Cluck, Sew.  If you are into quilting, or are like me, and wish you had the stamina to produce the most beautiful works of art, then cluck, I mean click,  on over. 

Third:  Little Birdie Secrets... I made a few of her lovely rosettes as freebies for my Etsy orders, and was so pleased.  Not frustrating at all, like some flower tutorials..  She has a million ideas, all of them A-dor-able.

Fourth:  The Purl Bee...  The blog of Purl Soho- there is always, always, always beautiful eye candy over there.  Seriously.  Go.  They have the best of 2010 listed today, and the felt barrettes for little ones isn't even on it.

Fifth:  Sew, Mama, Sew.  I've got a couple of projects I want to make from this excellent seamstress.  Highest on the list is her Yoga Skirt, which I don't think I can make it through the spring without.

And, last but never least:  Centsational Girl.  With a tagline like "fabulous for less", how could you resist?  She has the decorating eye of Martha Stewart on my budget.  Love it!

So, stay busy this year.  There are things out there for you to make.  You just need to drink enough coffee, find the supplies, and ignore your family for at least three hours per day.  Really.  They can survive on PB&J.  I've tested that hypothesis recently. 

Embellished Fingerless Gloves- Tutorial!!!!!!

I make a lot of fingerless gloves for my Etsy store, and I've gotten some excellent feedback about them.  I use them at the computer, or while texting or driving. *not at the same time, of course.. ;P*  They do come in handy!  One of the pairs that I hear alot about are embellished with ribbon, like these:

I pleated the ribbon on these..

We'll be making some like this...

So, I've put together a tutorial, from start to finish!  Go find an old sweater that mysteriously shrank.  (Because our waistlines don't grow, our clothing just gets smaller every time we wash it.)  That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

So, what you'll need:

1.  One old sweater, with long sleeves.  I like Merino or Cashmere for mine, as these are the softest.  For more warmth for outdoor wear, go with lambswool.  Or just choose whatever you've got.  We'll not be felting these (though you could), and hemming them to avoid any pesky unraveling.

2.  About 17" of ribbon.  Any old ribbon will do.  I like the fancy-pancy ribbon.  But grosgrain or any lacy trim would be cute too!

3.  Your sewing stuff.  Scissors/rotary cutter, sewing machine, thread.

4.  Two buttons.  These are optional, but recommended, as the hem at the forearm tends to be a bit too baggy to stay up in an unfelted set of fingerless gloves. 

Step 1: Cut off the sleeves at the underarm.  Pull the sleeve out so it is straight, and you don't get a triangle shape at the top.  Put the rest of the sweater aside for future upcycling into things like dread bands, cowls, or scarves...

Step 2:  Roll the top of the arm portion down twice to hide the raw edges.  Pin.

 Step 3:  Using the arm of your sewing machine, sew around the top of the arm- I used a zigzag stitch this time.

Step 4:  Cut two strips of ribbon of 8.5".  Add fray check to the edges of the ribbon.

Step 5:  Pin the strips of ribbon to each glove, beginning at the wrist and folding the edges under, making sure to keep it straight.

Step 6: I hand sew my ribbon down.  I still can't seem to figure out how to shove that sleeve into the feed dogs of the sewing machine, and keep it perfectly straight.

Step 7: I usually add buttons at the forearm by making a pleat pointing to the outside of the arm, securing it with the button.

Step 8: Put on, and type away.  Hands stay warm and fashionable!

Please send me a link if you make some of these!  I'd love to see how everyone else uses their creative half of their brain!

rose.

ETA: Please, make these for gifts, not for sale.  That's just plain rude. :P