updates

It's been far too long between posts. I am sorry. I've been busy with life, and a little bit of knitting. Here is my most recent custom-made toy. I think she turned out especially well. I want to get some proper photos of her, before she heads off to the UK tomorrow.

Now that this one is out of the way, I'm going work on those pesky old patterns of mine, which have been waiting for an update for, oh gosh, years now! First up is the big teddy. I already had a new one knit months ago. I just couldn't find the motivation to get it put together. Today I got everything but the legs stuffed and assembled! I'm very pleased with how it looks. I'm always a bit surprised that my big toys aren't bigger, since they seem to take so much more work. I can only imagine the dedication to knit a really large toy - I'm truly a small project person, with only one adult sweater to my name!

Now I'm off to do a wee bit of yoga, and maybe read a chapter of The Secret Garden, before bed. Good night, my friends!

new toys

I finally got myself organized enough today to get a bunch of toys listed in my Etsy shop. These are mostly toys that have not sold before, or have been waiting around since last winter (when somebody decided to arrive early). This time I decided to list clothes separately, to give my customers more choice in how the toy will look. As well, these will probably be the last toys I knit for sale for a long time. If you want one, you might want to be quick like a bunny, as three of the toys have sold already!

Bianca

alpaca in the sun

Hello, everyone! We're finally back from a fun family visit, and I'm done with 4 days of solo-parenting (while Mr. Mitten was off at a conference). I'd hoped to post before now, but it's a lot of work keeping up with a toddler and all the chores after returning home from vacation. I haven't gone through any of our vacation photos or videos, so those will have to wait for another day.

However, I thought you might like to finally see the new pattern I've been working on! I still don't have a set release date, but I'm hoping it will be before the end of the month. Until then, you can enjoy these photos, and maybe dig through your stash for just the right yarns.*

I still don't have a name for this sweetie, but isn't she rather photogenic?

She has a lacy summer dress that's super easy and quick to knit up.

Plus, a cute bikini for enjoying the summer sun.

*The toy takes 50 g of alpaca or alpaca blend yarn (although wool would work too) plus a small amount of contrasting colour. The clothes take about 25 g of fingering weight yarn.

sneak peek

As promised, a sneak peek at my newest design! I bet you can guess what it is, but I'll keep the complete toy as a surprise for the release date. I'm so excited about this toy, I wish I could have the pattern ready now. But as I wrote in my last post, the test knitting isn't nearly done, and I'm going to be away for a few weeks. I hope you enjoy whatever summer (or winter) knitting you have on your needles, and can wait a little longer for the newest addition to the Fuzzy Mitten clan.

bunnies!

We had a lot of fun with the Spring Knit-Along, over on Ravelry. It's been over for a week or so now, but I thought it was a good time to show off some of the toys that were made. Today is for bunnies!

This is Blackberry Bunny, by froggyster. She looks very cozy in those fluffy pink flowers.

Next is this sweet and fuzzy bunny by stitchingdragon. It reminds me of all that fuzzy yarn in my stash, which is waiting to become fuzzy bunnies.

wrchili knit a pair of Mama bunnies in pink, and they're both so adorable and cuddly, it makes me want to knit the pattern again, in something more interesting than brown or grey.

This little bunny by bluesocks is all ready for Spring in her cherry-blossom pullover.

And the last one for today is this Scraps Chaps bunny by Je55ie, who looks like he got a little too close to the Easter egg dye!

pug pattern

At long last, the Pug pattern is available to you! You can find it on Ravelry, Etsy, or Lulu. This is an intermediate level pattern. Skills required include a variety of increases and decreases, intarsia, and seaming. The anorak can be knit without seams by working the sleeves in the round. If you notice any mistakes, please let me know, and I'll post the corrections here. I hope you all enjoy the pattern!

Now I'll stop hanging around in front of the computer, and go enjoy the sunshine by planting some bulbs. I hope you're all having a lovely weekend!

introducing

Now for the fun! I just couldn't keep these new designs a secret any longer - they were just so cute I had to share them once I had a few photos. If you haven't seen them via Facebook, here they are.


Peanut, a chipmunk with a cable pullover. He's sweet on his own, but in the pullover he looks like the star of a 70's knitting pattern book. His stripes are done with duplicate stitch, so you can follow what I've done or improvise your own stripe pattern based on the chipmunks in your neighbourhood.


Kelby, a smooshy faced pug in a seamless hooded anorak. He's about the same size as the big teddy and bunny, so super cuddly for a little kid. His face is more complicated than most of my patterns, but it was necessary to get him to look just right. Don't forget to check out his tail.

Mr. Mitten will get working on the individual patterns as soon as he has time (work is a bit crazy right now), so you can look forward to them soon! These two patterns will be replacing the Squirrel and Big Teddy in the new edition of Fuzzy Knits, so you can also look forward to them there.

for the fans

I promised over on my Facebook fan page that I would have a give-away here if I made it over 500 fans. I'm a bit past that now, so here we go!

Gilda - also has a yellow knit vest

I've decided that the give-away prizes will be the fabric toys that have been hanging around my Etsy shop forever. I made these critters ages ago, when I was experimenting with fabric toy design. I only sold 2 of those I made, and I feel bad that these others never found a good home (they're just lounging in a box in the basement, poor things).

Callum

So to enter the give-away, just leave a comment on this post, telling me which toy you would like and why. I'll select the winners on Monday, August 3.

Betsy

As with my other give-aways, it works better if you leave a name, and email address if you feel safe doing so. If you don't leave your email address, remember to check back here in a week!

toy trades

I wanted to say thank you for a couple of trades I've done in the last few months. The first was with Alyssa of Penguin and Fish, for a lovely woolly horse for Lev (I traded this bunny for it). It arrived right before we moved, so I never found time to take any photos of it. The second was for a Viking doll from Sandra of Herzensart, for which I sent her this lion. I've adored her toys for ages, and am so thrilled to have one of my own! Both toys are really meant for Lev, and he loves playing with Binky the horse, but he'll have to wait a few years before I'll let him play with Baldrick the Viking (because of the small parts, really). In case you couldn't tell, Mr. Mitten named both toys. I never gives toys silly names.

mini alien pattern

Okay, I decided to post the pattern a day early, since you seem so impatient to knit them!

There are directions for both circular knitting and flat knitting. I've tried both and the aliens look just the same. Knit with sport weight yarn, they turn out about 1.5" tall. You could knit them with other weight yarn, with appropriate needles, but I'm not sure what size they would be. These knit up super fast, so you can make pocketfuls in just an hour or two!

Mini Alien

Materials: small amount of sport weight or DK yarn; pair of 8 mm safety eyes, buttons or yarn to embroider face; stuffing; darning needle.

Knit Circular: 3 mm (US size 2.5) circular needle, knit with magic loop method.

Cast on 20 sts. Join in the round. K 1 round.
Row 2: [ssk, k2, m1, k2, m1, k2, k2tog] twice.
Row 3: K 1 round.
Repeat rows 2-3.
Row 6: [k3, m1, k4, m1, k3] twice. (24 sts)
Row 7: K 1 round.
Row 8: k1, mb, k8, mb, k13.
Knit 3 rounds.
Row 12: [k2, k2tog] 6 times. (18 sts)
Row 13: K 1 round.
Row 14: [k1, k2tog] 6 times. (12 sts)
Row 15: K 1 round.
Row 16: [k2tog] 6 times. (6 sts)

Break off yarn and thread end though remaining sts. Pull tight to gather, then thread yarn end to wrong side.

Finishing
Turn alien inside out and secure this yarn end. Attach safety eyes if you're using them. To make antennae, thread a length of yarn under a couple of sts on the top of the head (on the wrong side) and knot securely in the middle, then thread the yarn ends to the right side. Turn alien right side out. Adjust position of antennae if necessary, then knot yarn and trim to 1". Stuff body. Sew bottom side of body, adding a bit of stuffing to legs before closing the seam. You may need to make a couple small stitches around bobble arms to close any holes. Embroider a face if you like.

Knit Flat: 3 mm (US size 2.5) straight knitting needles

Cast on 22 sts. P 1 row.
Row 2: k2, m1, k2, k2tog, ssk, k2, m1, k2, m1, k2, k2tog, ssk, k2, m1, k2.
Row 3: P 1 row.
Repeat rows 2-3.
Row 6: k3, m1, k6, m1, k4, m1, k6, m1, k3. (26 sts)
Row 7: P 1 row.
Row 8: k8, mb, k8, mb, k8.
Work 3 rows in st st.
Row 12: k1, [k2, k2tog] 6 times, k1. (20 sts)
Row 13: P 1 row.
Row 14: k1, [k1, k2tog] 6 timesm k1. (14 sts)
Row 15: P 1 row..
Row 16: k1, [k2tog] 6 times, k1. (8 sts)

Break off yarn and thread end though remaining sts. Pull tight to gather. Sew back seam, then follow finishing directions given above.

Abbreviations
k = knit
k2tog = knit 2 sts together
m1 = make one by picking up loop between stitch just worked and next stitch, and knit into the back of this loop
mb = make bobble: kfbf, turn, p3, turn, k3, turn p3, turn, k3tog.
kfbf = knit into front of next st, then knit into back of the st, then into front again. Makes 3 sts from 1.
p = purl
ssk = slip 1 st, then slip the next. Insert left needle into the front loops of the slipped sts and knit them together through the back loops
st or sts = stitch or stitches st st = stocking stitch

visitors

A couple of little aliens came to visit today. Shall we see what they got up to?

"Hello there!"

"Mind if we have a look around?"

"What interesting building materials! We must study your hieroglyphs."

"What shall we do next?"

"You have a very colourful spaceship, but I don't think it works."

Come back tomorrow for a free pattern to knit your own little aliens!

<3 the vikings

I ordered this mobile for Lev's bedroom this morning. I've wanted it for a while, since I love all of Herzensart's work, but I had so many other important things to spend money on. But she's having a sale, so I went for it! I really wish I could afford one of her dolls (I <3 Vikings!). I've thought of approaching her about a swap, but don't have the courage yet. She also has a lovely blog, which I enjoy reading whenever Lev gives me a bit of time to myself.

I'm glad you all liked the video! There's another part to why we chose the name Fuzzy Mitten, but I'll have to let him explain it, because it involves puns in Russian. I've watched the video a few more times myself since posting it. The mother's enormous fur hat just kills me. I teased Mr. Mitten by saying I would get one like that for myself, when we visit his family in Russia some day. Really, though, I can't see myself walking around Montreal in a fur hat twice the size of my head :)

Now I must be off, to try getting a few photos of all the toys I've been knitting lately. I just finished a Scraps Chaps kitty last night, destined for my Etsy shop. (to make a kitty, I knit the legs, arms, body, and lion's head, plus the ears and tail from the Tiger pattern).

wee bit tired lately

Between vaccinations last week, the beginning of teething, and rearranging our schedule in preparation for Mr Mitten going back to work, I've been a wee bit tired this past week. I didn't feel much like whining, and I haven't done much work anyway, so there wasn't a whole lot to blog about. Anyway, thanks so much for your lovely comments on the video and photos! It's fun sharing a bit of our lives with you, especially since we don't have many friends with kids with whom to commiserate.


One thing I did manage to get done, after about 2 weeks of squeezing in an hour of knitting here and there, was this big bunny. I wasn't quite sure I liked her when she was done, but she zipped out of my shop so fast, I was clearly mistaken about her cuteness! I know some of you will ask about her dress, so I'll tell you what I can. I've had some thoughts about putting together a bundle of clothes for the bigger toys, so this was a trial at one dress design. It was a bit too complicated, though. The final version will have a simpler skirt, but should be just as cute. The bundle I'm planning will have 3 designs: a dress, a cardigan, and something else. Anyone care to leave a comment about what they'd like? There's no set date for when I'll get it ready, considering how much we have going on the next few weeks.

raggedy bunny

So, while I was knitting my noro socks, I got thinking to myself, what is it about this yarn that makes it so popular? Or even, what is it about the cute Japanese designs I've seen all over the blogosphere that people love so much? Then, how can I use these design elements in a new toy, that's different from the style of my previous toys?

Big questions to answer, and I didn't answer them fully, but I thought of a couple of things what would be useful to me. What I really like about the Noro Kureyon yarn is the combination of texture and the almost random selection of colour. Somehow the most unlikely colours would look good next to each other, just because the whole sock was so lovely overall. That got me to thinking about the tub-full of left-over yarn I have from all the toys I've made. Most toys take less that a 50g ball, but there usually isn't enough left over for another toy. All those partial balls have been piling up for the last 2 years!

Then I thought, if I'm making a toy from scraps of yarn, maybe it should look like a doll made from scraps of fabric, that is, a rag-doll. So I drew a quick sketch, giving the toy longer arms, legs, and body so it would look different from my other bunnies. I also decided to reshape all the pieces. I made the arms and legs attach in a way that would make them floppy. I redistributed the shaping on the body, and gave it a flat bum so it would sit better. The head got bigger cheeks, and the shaping of the ears is a little different.


The first prototype I decided to make in neutral tones to keep it simpler, and because I had yarns in some great textures that I wanted to use. It took me a few weeks to finish him, which is mostly due to Lev keeping me busy, rather than the design being difficult to work out. In fact, pretty much every part turned out just how I wanted on the first try!

So here he is, as yet without a name. I think he turned out pretty darn cute! Next up is to make a puppy from the same design, since I think it would just be a matter of slightly different nose and ears. Then both would be available in the same pattern.


edit: I'm participating in Fiber Arts Fridays, hosted by Alpaca Farm Girl. For anyone new to my blog, here's some useful links (which can also been found in my right sidebar)
Etsy, Lulu, Ravelry, Flickr

our little house

So, you might have been wondering about the lack of posts the last couple weeks. Sure, having a two month old baby would probably be reason enough, but that's not all. We've been in the process of buying a house! It still seems too crazy to be real (probably until we sign the mortgage paperwork). We knew we had to move this year, since our cozy little apartment became our cramped little apartment when Lev arrived. We had enough saved, and contacted an agent, and were lucky enough that the perfect little house was just waiting for us. Okay, it's not perfect (what ever is?) but it's lovely and well-built, and in the best location with plenty of parks and a good elementary school. So we'll be moving in May, just in time for me to plant the garden!


In other news, I've dug through the piles of toys I had sitting around, and there are now four listed in my Etsy shop. Poor Edward went all the way to Seattle for Plush You, and then was sent home again. I'm hoping someone wants to take him home soon, so he stops feeling so sorry for himself.

Also, I'm still working on the new toy design, and will hopefully have the first one done and ready to share with you later next week. It's very different, but I'm hoping it will be cute when it's all done.

P.S. Happy Valentine's Day! Big hugs to all of you, who have been so encouraging and supportive these last couple of months. I hope you have someone special to spoil today, and if not, spoil yourself, as I'm sure you deserve it!

bunnies!

I think it will be a while until I have anything Fuzzy Mitten related happening, so I hope you don't mind us filling this space with other things for a little while. Of course, most people do enjoy looking at cute babies, and Lev is certainly cute (I've even heard other people say that, so it's not just my biased opinion)!


Anyway, I was over on Flickr and spotted these cuties made by Peta, and just had to share! I wonder how many toys were knitted for this past holiday? I didn't manage any, but then I was a little busy. I should stop over on Ravelry one of these days, and see what's up with the group over there. I've been very lax with that end of things lately, if you've tried to contact me there. Maybe I'll have time to get to that tomorrow.

knitting and goats

For the knitting: I quickly knit up this little cutie over the weekend. It's a special gift for a boy who recently lost his mom. I've been told he already has several of my toys, but really wanted a squirrel to complete the set. The request was made a while ago, and I felt bad for putting it off, but I really only had time (and was feeling well enough) to get it done now. The sweater is one I knit from some of my hand-dyed yarn a while ago, but it never suited any of my toys until now. I'm sure this little squirrel will find lots of love where it's going.


And the goats :) Goat's milk actually. Cow's milk and associated products were giving me lots of trouble with indigestion (on top of morning sickness), despite the fact that I've been eating and enjoying them all my life. But pregnancy does weird things to your body. So I thought I would try switching to goat's milk, and see how that went. The cheese I like, and the taste is far more appetizing that cow's cheese right now. Goat's milk... not so much enjoying the aftertaste. I remember trying it as a kid and not liking it, but wanted it to give it another go. I ended up using most of the carton in some raspberry muffins, but still have to stop myself from imaging a faint taste of goat. Oh well, maybe soy milk, or that lactose-free stuff will be better. Anyone have a better suggestion?

Sharing

Mr. Mitten here, filling in for Barbara, who is a bit under the weather. I mean that both literally and figuratively -- our current weather is better suited for North Carolina than for Quebec. I should know -- I spent ten years of my life down there. :) It's been really hot and muggy, and now we're told it's a "movie trailer" for what the weather is going to be like for the rest of the summer. Great.

Anyway, Barbara is looking over my shoulder as I am typing this -- she's too pooped to do it herself (or so she claims). :) I'm going to use this opportunity to make a small announcement, while I have the microphone under my control.

We would both like Fuzzy Mitten to be more open about sharing. It's quite frequent that someone asks if it's okay to sell toys made from the Fuzzy Mitten patterns, and though the answer has always been "yes, of course," we'd like to make it more official. The toys that you make from our patterns are yours -- if you want to sell them or give them away, that's perfectly fine with us! There's only a couple of small caveats, described on our new Sharing and Selling page.

We would also like to encourage everyone to share our patterns among your friends. All of the following is perfectly fine:

• making copies of the pattern for your knitting buddies
• bringing the patterns to your knitting group (and making enough copies for everyone who wants one!)
• emailing the patterns to your knitting friends

Everyone does that already, so please do not feel guilty if you have done it before. ;) Most of that falls under fair use, anyway.

However, we still ask you not to do any of the following:

• please do not put the patterns on a website where anyone can download them (unless it says otherwise in the pattern itself)
• please do not sell copies of the patterns (but if you are interested in selling them, we can easily arrange that, too!)

We discussed this quite a bit before deciding to go ahead with the plan, and we both think it's an excellent idea. All knitters are part of a larger knitting community -- sharing, openness, and willingness to work together is only going to foster it further, bringing in new talent and encouraging creativity.

We've set up the sharing and selling page with all the rules, and the link to it is on the front page of fuzzymitten.com. We'll be slowly going through the patterns to add a note about sharing there, too, so look out for that in the future (might take us some time).

Let us know if you have any comments!

Cheers,
-Konstantin and Barbara

hazy day

It's warm and hazy here, and I'm working on the new pattern in between being lazy and reading blogs. The new toy is coming along so well, much easier than I thought it might. I really hope you guys like this one, because I'm so happy with it! Maybe I'll drag out the camera and take a few photos once the second toy is done, to tease you a little.

Just one photo to share today, so I don't use them all up too soon. I see tons of great toy photos on Ravelry, but I guess most of those people don't know about my flickr group. Anyhoo...


I believe he is saying, "Hugs anyone?" One very lovely lamb made by Sarah.

shop update

I spent all day taking photos and listing everything in my Etsy shop. I didn't think it would take so much time! I didn't get to do anything else today, except run by the post office so I have packing stuff to mail the kits, once people buy them. I wonder if they will sell as quickly as the last ones? I even gave up some of the yarn I dyed for myself for a few of the kits. One of the kits has some lovely green/blue/lavender variegated yarn that turned out so pretty. I've already knit one little sweater from it (which is waiting for a toy now), so someone gets the rest.

I wrote some stuff in my shop announcement, but I don't know if anyone reads it. So, if you really like one of the kits, but don't want the book and/or yarn, please send me an email. I'll refund the difference to you, and just stick the left-over book or yarn into another kit. If I sell a few kits over the weekend, I'll sew some bags next week and list a few more. The awesome green bag with the giant trees on it sold super fast, but luckily I have more of that fabric.

I'm interested to see how my fabric toys will sell. Comparing them to similar toys on Etsy, I think they're just as cute and well-made, and a reasonable price. I'd really like to make more, because they're so fun. Plus, I have more ideas on changes I want to make. I'll just have to be patient :)

I swear, tomorrow I'll post about something totally not Etsy related! I think I should post a bunch more of your toy photos, since I've skipped a couple weeks.