normal lives

I'm sorry for the lack of information regarding the new Alpaca pattern. We had some water in our basement while we were away, which meant pulling apart a chunk of wall and flooring - right in the middle of my work space. We still haven't been able to get everything back together, so I'm unable to take the photos for the pattern. Plus, Mr. Mitten's regular day job has been requiring an awful lot of his energy. In summary, we have pretty normal lives, where annoying things get in the way of us being productive!

However, we hope to fix the basement this weekend (fingers crossed)! We're also trying to figure out a way for me to have more time for Fuzzy Mitten work. The last few months I only get 10-15 minutes at a time, while Lev is not demanding my attention. Adding up to about 4 hours a week, that's not really enough to keep Fuzzy Mitten going long-term. It's awful, feeling torn between my desire to be the good Mama that Lev deserves, but also wanting to continue doing work I love. Hopefully we can come up with a plan that lets me do the work I need and want to do, and also lets Lev and his Dada have some guy-time together.

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.

pug nose tutorial

When I wrote the Pug pattern, I couldn't think of a better way to describe how to shape the nose, other than "fold it up between the eyes and stitch in place." I'm really a hands-on type of teacher, so I find it much easier to show how to do something, rather than write down how I did it. I think most people who make this toy don't even bother with this step, and their pugs look just fine. But in case any of you are wondering what the heck I meant, here's a video tutorial that will hopefully clear things up.



If you don't have this pattern, you can purchase it on Etsy or Ravelry. It's also included in the new edition of Fuzzy Knits (Rav link).

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.

summer plans

Spring has quickly become summer here, and my free time seems to have disappeared! (I suspect this happens to most parents)  I hope you don't mind if my writing here is more sparse, while we enjoy the warm weather.

Lev wants to spend most of his time outside, which is good because I have a garden to look after. I've finally discovered what will grow in the clay soil here. We've been eating salads from the garden for a couple of weeks now, and it's so satisfying! We eat a lot of salad in the summer, and I love running around back for 10 min, and coming in with a basket of fresh greens. Now my tomatoes and peas just need to get in on the action.

We've also been making weekly trips to the library, now that I know it's only a 20 minute walk away (can't believe it took me a year to figure that out). Lev is far more interested in the toys, but I enjoy all the free books! I might just have to steal a bit of my knitting time to make room for a bunch of summer reading. I've heard librarians and knitting go hand in hand, but I can't seem to find the craft section at our library. I will need to ask one day, since they could be hoarding all the good books.

Even with the warm, humid weather, I've managed to fit in a bit of knitting. I'm slowly working away on a new pattern for you! I have a huge list of ideas, but nothing was quite inspiring to me - I think because many had already been done by others. I wanted something I could really make my own. Finally, while chatting with a friend one day, the perfect idea struck! The toy is finished, and just as cute as can be. Now I'm working on a set of summery clothes to go with it. I will try to get some sneak peeks up here for you soon!

I'd hoped to finish it soon, but realized that I'll be away for nearly a month starting at the end of June. Releasing a new pattern and then not being available for sales and support would be terribly bad planning. However, the extra few weeks will give my test knitters some breathing space, and you'll get a much better pattern.

mod for scraps chaps

I recently knit another Scraps Chaps bunny (Ravelry, Etsy) and decided to try something a little different for the bum. I don't usually mind sewing up that part of the toy, but I know some of you hate seaming. So I redesigned the nether bit of the toy, so it's easier to knit in the round, and there's no seam. The first photo below shows the original version, and the second photo shows the redesigned bum. The knitting instructions follow, and the abbreviations are the same as you will find at the end of your pattern.

original

as per instructions given below

Work the body as written until Row 35. Then finish the body as follows:

Row 36: k3, [skpo] x 3, k6, skpo, k4, k2tog, k6, [k2tog] x 3, k3. (30 sts)
Row 37: p1, k9, p10, k9, p1.
Row 38: [k3, k2tog] x 6. (24 sts)
Row 39: P 1 row.
Row 40: [k2, k2tog] x 6. (18 sts)
Row 41: P 1 row.
Row 42: [k2tog] x 9. (9 sts)
Cut the yarn, thread the end through the remaining sts, and pull tight to gather. Then sew up the back seam and stuff the body. (If you knit the body in the round, secure the yarn ends and stuff the body)

mama day give-away winners

Thanks so much to everyone who left a comment for my Mama Day give-away! I decided to draw one name for every 10 comments. Because many people left comments on Facebook instead of the actual blog post, I've added those names at the end of the list from the previous post. I've just drawn 5 random numbers:

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

28
2
14
45
33

Timestamp: 2010-05-09 16:05:05 UTC

And the names of those commenters are the following:

Natalie Goulden (from FB)
Schmath
Kelly-Ann
Patricia Small (from FB)
Tipsy Cassaday (from FB) (sorry I had to edit this from my first posting - I copied the wrong name)

You each win a PDF copy of the toy pattern of your choice (the pattern books are not included). You can look on Ravelry or Etsy if you're not sure which one you'd like. I'll need your email address to send you the pattern, but I'll try contacting you directly once this is posted. If you don't hear from me soon, please contact me (barbara at fuzzymitten dot com).

Happy Mama's Day everyone!