7 years!

November 6 will mark the seventh anniversary of Fuzzy Mitten! I'm not sure how it's all lasted this long, but I'm so grateful that so many people enjoy my patterns - enough to keep me going longer than I ever expected, and hopefully for a few more years to come!

Did I ever explain how Fuzzy Mitten got started? I used to work as a gardener, at a garden center. However, being in Canada, I had a few months off over the winter. I was bored, so I started knitting little toys just for fun, and to use up bits of yarn I'd found. Each toy had it's own character, and it was very satisfying to see how many variations I could make on one basic shape. The clothes were a big part of the fun too. I'd only been knitting for a couple years, and hadn't tackled anything like clothes for myself. Tiny toy outfits were a great way to experiment with garment shapes, stitches, and yarn types.

A friend suggested I try selling the toys on Etsy, since they were just sitting around my apartment. It seemed like an interesting idea, and setting everything up, while challenging for someone who wasn't really internet savvy, was also a good use of spare time. (If you're curious about my shop name, you can read about it here). Within a couple weeks of listing my toys, knitters found them, and started asking for patterns. I was quite hesitant at first, because I didn't consider myself an experienced knitter, and certainly not qualified to be a designer.

But the interest was clear, and growing, so I thought I would try. I wrote out the instructions for all those first toys I had made: a polar bear, a squirrel, a tabby cat, a puppy, a lamb, and many others. The patterns were rough, and I needed help with a lot of things, but they were popular! By the middle of the next summer, I was so busy designing and running my Etsy shop, I realized I would have to cut back the hours at my regular gardening job if I wanted to keep Fuzzy Mitten going.

It hasn't always been an easy or smooth journey since that day, but I don't regret giving my business the chance to grow, and giving myself the chance to grow and change along with it. I've been given some great opportunities, met a lot of lovely knitters, and overall had a wonderful time designing cute toys for others to knit.

Now, as a treat for reading all of that, here is some lovely news: I'm having a sale in my Etsy shop and my Ravelry shop to celebrate it's 7th anniversary!

EDIT: The coupon code I'd posted earlier for Etsy was causing problems, so I've simply reduced the prices of all the items. I hope you enjoy trying some new patterns, or giving them as gifts to fellow knitters!
In my Ravlery shop, you'll get 20% off when you check-out.

kyr's panda

I only vaguely remember how Kyr happened to claim his Panda toy. It was the sample I knit for the second edition of Fuzzy Knits, and was never intended to be played with. But somehow Kyr found it, and the toy spent several months on his bed before it became anything special to him. Since that day, Kyr and Panda have been the best of friends. It's often the first thing he asks for when he gets home from preschool, he carries it all over the house with him, he talks to Panda, and he gets us to interact with the toy as well. (Thankfully, if we can't find it at bedtime, he'll happily accept that Panda went camping).

You can tell just how much Panda is loved in these photos I took yesterday. Kyr told me that Panda had a boo-boo on his head, and needed a band-aid. He specifically asked for a Pinkie-Pie band-aid, since a plush Pinkie-Pie is Kyr's second favourite toy. However, Panda was okay with getting a Cookie Monster band-aid instead. Then Panda got some hugs and kisses to make him feel better.

I'm hoping this toy will last as long as Kyr's affection for it does. It's showing a bit of wear, and has needed a few baths. One of these days I re-attach it's arms and legs, as they've become rather loose from being swung around. Panda could do with a little more stuffing too, if I can manage to get his back-seam undone. I'll try to get some photos of the whole process, as I'm sure some of you know of toys who could use a little care.

pinterest

I've been wandering around over on Pinterest for a few months now. I was a little late to the party, because I wasn't sure if I had time to spend on a site like that. However, I've found it a useful place to collect items of interest, and to see what's popular out on the internet. I do try to limit my browsing to about 15 minutes a day, otherwise you could lose hours there. If you're curious, you can find me here. I've started a board of tutorials for knitted toys, which mostly has my own at the moment, plus a few others I've come across. I'll try to add more, if you find it useful too.