first sale!

A huge thanks to my bonus mom ... my very first Etsy customer. She purchased the 4 Corners hat, seen here modeled by little sis.

Her most excellent reason for buying it? As she said,

"It looks good on curly red hair.  I'm making it mine."

Enjoy wearing it, stepmom of mine. I hope it gets cold enough in the desert to make the purchase worthwhile.

etsy ho!

I finally posted my first items on Etsy.com. I had wanted to put at least six items up for sale to start with, but I only have four I'm comfortable selling right now. And they're all wintery items, and as there are only a few more weeks of winter ...

Yep, it made sense to go live with just the four.

i wouldn't buy these gloves, would you?

I am truly at a loss. I'm really happy with these fingerless gloves in person. Really. But in the photos ... blech. I'm not even sure what I can do to photograph them better. I'm pretty sure if I saw these gloves online I would pass them by for the gloves in the cuter, livelier picture. Image really is everything. Where's Annie Liebovitz when I need her?

look ma, no pins! (almost)

I'm a Johnny-Come-Lately to the wonderful world of blocking wires. My first set arrived in the mail a couple of days ago, just in time for me to block my Gaugin neck warmer. (I decided "Woven Stitch Neck Warmer" was not an evocative enough name.)

What an epiphany!

It took me a little while to figure out how to thread those skinny, skinny wires through the edges of my piece, but once I did ... Wow! It was a breeze to block, a task I usually hate. Four wires, a few T-pins, a spritz of water, and the next morning I've got the most perfectly flat, squared off piece of knitting. I am definitely a convert.

The piece is actually finished - buttons sewn on and everything. One more piece checked off of my Etsy list. No photos of the finished piece yet, 'cause I'm hoping my sister will drive over today so I can rope her into modeling it for me.

etsy bound

I'm trying to complete some knit and crochet projects to sell on Etsy. I'd like to have 6-10 objects to start, since common wisdom on the site is that a larger inventory is better for business. So far I've got 2 items completed and 2 in progress:

1. Four Corners Hat. I made this one as an experiment with a yarn I hadn't tried before - Paton's Soy Wool Stripes. It's a very cool self-striping yarn, made out of 70% wool and 30% soy.
2. The Mistake-Rib Neck Warmer. I know I said I would give it to Ian, but last night I found it lying on the living room floor in a heap of stuffed animals and Legos. I decided that it would benefit my family far more if it paid its own way, instead of joining the rest of the ubiquitous clutter.
3. A Woven-Stitch Neck Warmer. Yes, I'm really into neck warmers these days. Shorter than scarves, yet every bit as hard working in the warmth department.
4. Crocheted Basket. The crocheting is done. All I've got to do is sew in a lining. Boy-oh-boy, do I hate sewing.