Oh ya, a giveaway...

 You thought I forgot, didn't you?  Well, I didn't!

This is week five in my Thanksgiving to Thanksgiving Giveaway, and this week I am giving away a set of three wool balls. I don't have a picture, because I haven't made them yet, for I will personalize them for you if you want!  That's right, you will never have to worry about your balls being stolen, because I will felt your name (or your child's name, if you so wish) right on them.  Or I can just make some beautiful generic ones, if you want.  Pretty much, your wish is my command!

So, who will it be this week???

Here's the rules:

Madatory entry:

1. Be a follower and comment on this post.

Extra entries:
2. You will get one extra entry for every post you comment on this week (including the tutorial post).

This giveaway will be open until Sunday November 14th, at whatever time I choose to make the draw - probably in the evening sometime.  Anyone can enter, no matter where on this fine planet you live.

Wool Balls - a Tutorial!

Little known fact about ME: I know sheep.  That's right, I know enough about sheep to know how to feed them, shear them, even castrate them.  I've worked on two different farms where sheep were one of my responsibilities.  I don't just know sheep, I like sheep. One day I dream of having a little lamb of my own that I will treat nice, and hopefully she will grow beautiful fluffy wool for me to make beautiful things out of.  We will be a good team. 

Until then I have to trust other people to take good care of their sheep so that I can enjoy the fruits of their labours, because I love wool as much as I love sheep. One good thing to do with wool, even if you are not a knitter or a crocheter, is to felt.  Felting is easy, fast, and the products are oh so beautiful.

This week we made wool balls out of wool yarn and roving (carded raw wool, not spun yet.)  We made them to be functional, but they are so gorgeous and fun that they have become toys rather than the drier balls they were intended to be.

Here's how:

Material

-wool scraps (optional, if you happen to have old wool sweaters or anything, this is a good way to repurpose them)

- 100% wool yarn - make sure it is NOT machine washable, as it will not felt

- felting needles (optional for decorations)

- wool roving

- an old nylon

- a washing machine and a load of dirty clothes!

One way to make them cheap and easy is to make the core (or the entire ball) out of yarn, as roving can be hard to come by and tends to be on the pricey side.  Start by wrapping the yarn, very tightly, around two fingers.

Remove your fingers from the yarn and continue wrapping, keeping it quite tight, creating a ball. 

I used this brown yarn as the core, and then switched to brighter colours, so I didn't use as much of the colours I liked.  I covered the core colour completely on some balls, and left some showing on others. Don't be afraid to be creative!

 Once you have a ball of a generous size (it will shrink to 1/2-2/3 it's unfelted size) you can decorate! I used felting needles to secure yarn in different designs directly to my balls. I just laid a contrasting yarn on the ball and poked it with the needle until it was secure.  Once the felting process is done, it will not come off.

Alternatively, you can make the center of your ball out of old wool sweater scraps, or completely out of roving.  This is one that I made from roving, wrapping small strips tightly around themselves. 

With the roving, I used the felting needles again just to make sure it was secure before I felted it. You don't need to do this, as long as you wrap it very tight.

See how the needle has started felting the roving to itself. This ball isn't unraveling anytime soon!

Once you have made as many balls as you want, pull out your old nylon and start stuffing!

Tie a knot, or tie off with a piece of yarn, between each ball. 

Take your yarn sausage to your washing machine and throw it it.  Felting occurs when the fibers are shocked (hot to cold and cold to hot) so wash as hot as you can, with a cold rinse. 

I only washed mine on one hot wash with towels, then dried it with the same load.  You may want to throw yours in a few cycles, just to be sure they felt completely. Once you are done, pull them out, cut them out of the nylon (they may slightly felt to the nylon, so be prepared to spend a few minutes pulling them free) and enjoy!

Doilies, and a WINNER!

There is so much I love about the Christmas season, I don't even know where to begin.  This weekend I have learned to love Christmas Craft Fairs, where you can find everything from national brand name scrapbooking supplies to Grandma-made Barbie clothes.  It's probably a good thing I have NO money, because there was a lot of tempting goodness out there, but I resisted quite admirably.  I did, however, find a booth covered in these wonderful Grandma-made (that's right, I coined a new term - better than handmade, because it's made by a grandma) doilies.  She was selling them for a buck a piece.  I couldn't resist!

What will I do with these darling little gems?  I envision an afghan or a quilt appliqued with doilies, or a bouquet of lavender wrapped in one.  I don't know just yet, but now that they have a good home I'm sure they will blossom into something wonderful!



And now what you've all been waiting for, the winner of the Down To Earth Toys giveaway...

Picked by random.org, the winner is...

akathemom

Congratulations Alice, you WON!

For all that entered, please remember this holiday season to keep our generous sponsor, Down To Earth Toys, in mind as you strive to buy responsibly!

Gearing Up

There is something not right about walking around a Christmas fair, in Calgary, in November, in t-shirts!  There is something not right, but completely wonderful!!! 

Yesterday we went to the Millarville Christmas Fair with Ali, Megan, mom and Phoebe, and all the kids!  It was a miracle that we got out of there with all 10 kids, but we somehow managed it, and got some great handmade goodies to boot!

 

Felt Frenzy!

A few months ago Marigold at hideous! dreadful! stinky! called for a craft exchange.  I had just participated in one over at Craftaholics Anonymous that was pretty fun, and so, without reading the fine print very well, signed up.  Turns out it wasn't a big old nameless, faceless exchange, it was a pretty intimate exchange just with Marigold.  She set the rules, picked 5 crafters and let us at it.  Well, it took me a month to just decide what to give her, and I was quite pleased with the results!

First of all, it could only cost $15.  I only spent $1.87, because most everything I had in my stash. It had to fit in a 6x9 bubble mailer.  I didn't want to buy one of those, so in an attempt to reduce and reuse, Eli and I used some of the carpet samples from our flooring shopping and wrapped up the gift.  I think it turned out to be about 6x9. It also had to take less than 3 hours.  Well, I'm pretty sure mine took a bit longer than that, but there was no way of telling since I did 2 minutes here and 5 minutes there over a few weeks.  I ended up sitting down finally and finishing it while I watched a movie, because I couldn't seem to find time to do it during the day.


So, here's what I finally turned up with, and I was quite pleased:

And, because I had it, and because her name is Marigold, I also sent her this, framed in an old frame I found in my storage unit:

In Michigan I found road signs of the names of almost every person I know.  We found this Marigold sign in Lansing, Michigan when we went there for Jared's grad.  I love decorating with names, and with a name as rad as Marigold, how could I resist!


This banner was a labor of love. If I had been allotted more than three hours it would have been a lot more polished, but I still had a hard time sending it off, because it just looked so good slung across the mantle.  I got the inspiration from the felt crown I made for Eli, and I used the idea from the leaf inspired garland for the circles in between the flags. I really loved how it turned out.

In return, from Marigold, I got the cutest package, all wrapped in tissue and everything (made me feel a little dorky for wrapping mine in carpet samples and an old brown paper bag.)  Inside was a great little notebook that she made a personalized cover for, personalized with the silhouette of a horse! Honestly, I love it.  Little did Marigold know, but I carry around a notebook wherever I go.  I always am thinking of things to write down, or see a quote, or think of a good idea, or just need to write down a number.  I love note books. The greatest thing about this, is I can reuse the cover on the same sized little book. I totally love it.


The tissue holder couldn't have come at a better time.  Our whole family was stricken with the worlds worst cold the very week she sent it.  I was getting pretty sick of snotty sleeves! Not I've got this cute little tissue holder in my diaper bag ready for any snot emergency.  I am blessed!


I loved doing these craft exchanges to see what other people come up with, and what talents others have. It was great how Marigold did something so personal to me, with the horse cover.  Maybe after Christmas I'll do something similar.  Until then, I've got a whole lot of knitting, sewing, and other such endeavors to do.

I love working with felt. For other projects I've done with felt, check out these links:
Felt Inspired Garland
Black Apple Dolls
Felt Flowers
Felt Crowns

Crunch Month

With the Halloween hangover now over, let's talk about what's coming: CHRISTMAS!!! 

I love Christmas.  I love everything about it. 

I especially love that this is the first year that we are going to be around for EVERYTHING!  For the past three Christmases we have missed so much, because we have just been in Calgary for a few weeks. But, this year, we are going to make the most of it and do it all!  I can't wait.

I sure am going to miss my family back in Michigan though, and all the traditions we started while we were there.

As it is November now, I actually have to start thinking about the gifts I will give for Christmas.  Every few years we purposefully declare Christmas "homemade."  Last year was one such year, and so all the gifts we gave were handmade.  It is always so much fun.  I generally like to stick to that principle other years as well - although this year we are going for "homemade or secondhand" as our finances are a little limited, to say the least.  So, if you're on my list, don't set your expectations too high...

In an attempt to make sure I get all my crafting done before Christmas, I am making a resolution.  I am going to do a present a week until Christmas. I think that will just about cover everyone I have to give to, and it will keep me focused and on track. I've made a spread sheet, figured out the supplies I need and am ready to go.  Sadly, because of the nature of blogging for all to see, I can't be posting any of the projects. Well, maybe just sneak peaks... we'll see. In any case, I'm excited to get started. The Christmas carols have been made into a playlist on my I-Tunes and I am ready to go!

Down To Earth Toys Review and another Great Giveaway!!!

One of my favourite places in the world is Sandpoint, Idaho, and one of my favourite things about Sandpoint is that when I shop there, for food, fabric, clothes, and canning jars from the local hardware store, I know who I'm buying from.  I buy milk from Rhiannon, I get my fabric at Ben Franklin's and the same ornery old lady has cut it for years, Mr. Merwin, who owns Merwin's True Value, lives two doors down from our cabin, the local grocery store lets me take my groceries home when I forget my credit card because they trust I'll come back the next morning to pay. There is something to be said for small town America!

Not many of us have the pleasure of living in a town of 6000. However, each of us can do our part to support our local shop owners, farmers and small businesses. We can put our money into the homes of real people who provide real service and quality goods, rather than padding the pockets of large corporations with shady business practices and substandard products.

One of my favourite 'local' toy shops is Down To Earth Toys.  I say 'local' because while I lived in Michigan, Down To Earth Toys was local. It is run by my good friend Carrin, from her home, and I can vouch for her being one of the most socially conscious people I know.  She hand picks each of her items, ensuring that they are quality, safe and built through fair labor practices. Her quality control board consists of her sweet four-year old boy and his friends, who do a fine job of making sure each of the toys she supplies is kid worthy!

First of all, let me talk about her baby toys. Last year for Chirstmas we bought Silas this wonderful wooden bell rattle.  Made in Illinois of natural wood, it is absolutely beautiful.  The bell in it provides a simple melodic chime without it being a noise maker.  Silas's tiny fingers could grasp it at four months through the rungs around the bell, and now he can firmly hold the base.  It is an absolute constant in our diaper bag!

For older children Down To Earth Toys has a myriad of natural and organic toys that are not only fun and promote creativity, but will also be around long enough to be played with by your grandchildren.  We purchased this sorting block for Eli last year, and while I knew it would be fun for him, I was blown away by how beautiful it is.  It is one toy I don't feel I have to hide away in a toy chest to have my room look good.

There are millions of toys out there you could choose to buy this season, but why not choose to be responsible in your choices?  Every item from Down To Earth Toys is safe, non-toxic and provided through fair labour practices.  While she could be looking for ways to make the most possible money, regardless of the impact, Carrin instead is looking for ways to improve the future for our children.  Check out her website
and read about the choices she is making and decide what choices you can make this year for your children, your country and your world!

This week marks the middle of my Thanksgiving to Thanksgiving giveaways.  Carrin, from Down To Earth Toys, has generously agreed to sponsor this week's giveaway!  She has offered a great little item from her shop, showing that you don't have to spend a fortune to buy quality, responsible toys this season, a wonderful elastic powered paddle boat.

One lucky follower will win the paddle boat next Sunday night!  The rules are simple:

1. You MUST be a PUBLIC FOLLOWER.
2. You must comment on this post to enter.

And, there are a few things you can do to earn extra entries this week (leave a separate comment for each):
3. Comment on any other posts during the week of the giveaway (Monday to Sunday.)
4. Commenting on this post letting me know that you  "Like" Down To Earth Toys on Facebook
5. Comment on Down To Earth Toys on Facebook thanking Carrin for the giveaway.
6. Visit Down To Earth Toys, and come back here to tell me which item you like best or something about her shop that you LOVE!

Good luck, all, and happy commenting!!!