Crocheted Little Black Clutch

I started designing this purse on the plane on my way home from my sister's wedding. There are times when an outfit or occasion just calls for a Little Black Clutch, so finally, I've made one! This 12" by 6" bag is elegant enough for a special evening, but the loops keep it a little playful. The black fiber has just a little sparkle to it as well as the crystals and glass that make up the embellishment at the top. It zips shut with an invisible zipper and the inside is lined with a lighter fabric to save you from searching through a dark purse. There are also two built in pockets for those items that you want to keep separate or handy. The purse is crocheted and I've used a fusible webbing to maintain the shape. This is one well finished clutch and ready for a night out!

From Batt to Roving to Skein

When I opened Wind Rose Fiber Studio, I had a large collection of fiber. Annual trips to the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival contributed greatly to this stock, most of which I had already dyed and teased out. So when I opened my store, I spent about a week at my drum carder. Well first I covered my studio floor with every fiber I owned, then I put them into groups that I thought would make pretty or fun yarns. Next they were weighed and put into bags containing three ounces each. After that was accomplished, I carded my heart out and until my arm was sore from turning the crank.

At first I just listed the wool batts, but then it occurred to me that maybe not everyone wanted to take on an entire wool batt. I took one batt of each design and separated it out into one ounce portions. Then I pulled the fiber into a ready to spin roving. Now I'm starting to spin some of the roving so people can see how it will make up. When I was thinking about what to blog today, I thought you might like to see one of my most popular creations, "Wacky Pumpkin" go from batt to roving to skein.

Baby Cozy - A New Crocheted Design with Newborns in Mind

The pictures above are of the prototype of my latest design for newborn babies. I've had babies on my mind lately because I'm about to be an Aunt again this fall. I've been thinking about the first days and weeks of a baby's life and in particular the way the nurses take new parents aside and show them how to wrap up their baby nice and snug in their blanket. The nurse with our first born called this the baby burrito wrap. So the baby burrito was my first influence. The second part of my inspiration comes from an old neighbor and current friend. She's a few years younger and though I barely put my babies down their first year, she had a more thought out philosophy of 9 months in and 9 months out. This translated in her wearing her baby on her belly in a wonderful carrier she made herself. I never saw her without her baby on her belly. As her babies got closer to a year in age, my back ached just looking at the big, healthy baby strapped to her middle.

I have to say, I'm not sure I could have committed to having my babies tied to me for the first nine months, but I do like the idea of a newborn feeling snug and secure the way they felt in the womb. I started to picture a baby blanket that was like a ready made baby wrap. From there the Baby Cozy was created. It has a built in pocket for the baby to be tucked in and then two flaps that cross over and tie. The flaps have been shaped at angles to gently frame the baby's face and for added warmth. The angles also allow the different colors to show through which is mostly an aesthetic element of the design. I debated in my mind for some time about whether or not to have some kind of button or tie. I decided it should have some kind of closure so I went with the tie rather than a button which could be a choking hazard.

So this one is just the prototype. I think it's actually a little small. The next step will be to add a few inches in the length and a couple in the width. Otherwise, I'm feeling pretty good about the design. Within a couple weeks, I should have one or two at Wind Rose for sale. I'd love to hear feedback from the new mom's or mommies-to-be. Is this a product that appeals to you? Do you have sizing suggestions? I hope overall you like the Baby Cozy. Now I just need a baby to try it out!

Rainbow Beaded Yarn (226 yards)

Brand new at Wind Rose today is this incredible skein of Rainbow Beaded Yarn. Not long ago I blogged about a great bead shop I found in Scottsdale, AZ. Well, while I was shopping at Razzle-Dazzle, I picked out these eye catching glass beads from Africa. The beads have every color of the rainbow in them and I decided to go for it and combine them with a rainbow colored merino roving. The result is an unthinkably vibrant skein of yarn. I also just couldn't stop spinning once I got started. I spun and spun until I ended up with 8 whole ounces of yarn! The yarn is between a worsted and bulky weight and measures 226 yards. So often I see beautiful art yarns that only measure 40 to 75 yards and as much as I admire them, I can't help but think that there simply is not enough yardage there to make anything. At Wind Rose I'm striving to give you a little more yardage with which to create your masterpieces.

Skin Tone Merino Roving Sampler Pack (.5 oz each of 8 different colors)

It didn't take long for my skin tones to become my biggest sellers. Now I'm happy to offer a sampler of these popular shades. You get .5oz of each of the eight colors in the line. The names of the colors starting with the top middle and working around clockwise are: South Pacific, Mediterranean, Peach Glow, Deeper Brown, Golden Brown, Sun Touched, Chestnut, and in the middle, Porcelain Fair.

The Portable Pocket - Crocheted from Handspun Yarn

This is one of my personal favorites. It's a handy little pocket that can go everywhere with you. It has a drum cord lock to securely hold your keys, cell phone, iPod, you name it. The snap hook allows you to attach it to a belt loop, a purse or tote bag, or even your backpack. The pocket measures 6" to 6.5" tall and 4 to 4.5" wide. These are made from yarn spun in my studio. Each one is Unique. To see more colors of the Portable Pocket, visit Wind Rose Fiber Studio.

Light Boxes, They Make All The Difference!

I opened Wind Rose Fiber Studio about eight months ago. As anyone knows who either runs an on line store or likes to shop on line, pictures are everything. They have the ability to make or break a sale. So as a seller, I've worked hard on improving my images. When I look at shots I took in the beginning versus how they look now, I know I've improved, but there were still some things with which I struggled. Jewelry in particular. Maybe because it's more detailed, but for whatever reason, my jewelry pictures were my worst. I started to think about making my own light box, but I was hesitant to put the time and energy into such a project not knowing if it would make a difference. Then one day my husband told me about a light box kit he saw on line. It included everthing: lights, light bulbs, back drops, camera stand; and it all came in an convenient carry bag. Even better, the price was right. It was on sale for $50. I jumped on it. I've only had it for a day, but I can already tell that it's going to make a big difference. One thing I like about it, is that I'm no longer a slave to the sun and the time of day I take my pictures. I love that added flexibility to my work. Most of all, the photos just look better. They are not washed out or too dark and you can see all of the detail. I know the longer I work with my new light box, the better my pictures will get.

Turquoise and Brown Felted Bead Earrings

I have a handful of felted bead earrings at Wind Rose, but these are my favorite. They feature felted beads in a soft shade of brown with hints of light blue and green. The accent beads are Turquoise and Tigereye. The earrings have sterling silver hooks and are 2" long. The felted bead is .75" long and .25" wide. I love the texture of the felted wool juxtaposed by the smooth, round turquoise. They were definitely inspired by my new love for the southwest and my new home here in Arizona.

Wacky Pumpkin Handpun Yarn

This is a short skein (40 yards) of 1ply, worsted weight, handspun yarn. Wacky Pumpkin is full of fun fibers including green and turquoise Merino, natural soy silk, sparkling orange Romeldale, and natural brown Leicester with a generous portion of gold angelina for lots of sparkle!

If you like this fiber, you may also want to visit the section at Wind Rose Fiber Studio called Wool Batts and Mixed Roving where you'll find 3oz wool batts of Wacky Pumpkin. In that same section this fiber is also sold as a Designer Single. A Designer Single is 1oz of fiber that has already been pulled and is ready to spin.

More Colors of Alpaca Roving with Matching Firestar

I've been very busy dyeing Alpaca this week. I thought you might like to see the latest colors.

Great Gifts for Fiber Lovers at Wind Rose Fiber Studio

Wind Rose Fiber Studio is now offering Dye Your Own roving kits for both Merino and Soy Silk. You can also buy ready to spin or felt fiber by choosing a Pick Three Gift Set. These collections allow you to pick your three favorites from the Merino, Soy Silk, Alpaca or Bamboo that the store has in stock. Both the Dye Your Own and the Pick Three Gift Sets come with everything you need to wrap them up. For more details, visit the Wind Rose Fiber Studio.

Here Comes the Alpaca ...Roving That Is!

I just started listing Alpaca roving today at Wind Rose Fiber Studio. The first four colors are Russet, Golden Ochre, Princely Purple and Spruce. I'll be listing four new colors a day for the next four days for a total of 20 gorgeous shades. My focus will be earth tones and fall colors, but I'll probably throw in a couple unexpected shades. I can't resist fun colors.

So what is an Alpaca?? Here's what Wikipedia has to say:

"The Alpaca (Vicugna pacos) is a domesticated species of South American camelid. It resembles a small llama in superficial appearance.

Alpacas are kept in herds that graze on the level heights of the Andes of Ecuador, southern Peru, northern Bolivia, and northern Chile at an altitude of 3500 to 5000 meters above sea-level, throughout the year.^{[citation needed]} Alpacas are considerably smaller than llamas, and unlike them are not used as beasts of burden but are valued only for their fiber. Alpaca fiber is used for making knitted and woven items, much as sheep's wool is. These items include blankets, sweaters, hats, gloves, scarves, a wide variety of textiles and ponchos in South America, and sweaters, socks, coats and bedding in other parts of the world. The fiber comes in more than 52 natural colors as classified in Peru, 12 as classified in Australia and 16 as classified in the United States. ^[1] Alpacas and llamas differ in that alpacas have straight ears and llamas have banana-shaped ears. Aside from these differences, llamas are on average 1-2 feet taller and proportionally bigger than alpacas.

In the textile industry, "alpaca" primarily refers to the hair of Peruvian alpacas, but more broadly it refers to a style of fabric originally made from alpaca hair but now often made from similar fibers, such as mohair, Icelandic sheep wool, or even high-quality English wool.^{[citation needed]} In trade, distinctions are made between alpacas and the several styles of mohair and luster."

The Alpaca I'm using is imported from Peru. It's a fine, 21 micron white Alpaca. It's very soft and lovely to spin. Felters seem to like working with Alpaca too. If you've never tried Alpaca, maybe it's time!