Happy New Year! This is some gorgeous yarn from Light Brown Hare Yarn on etsy. Beautiful stuff, and the photo is perfect. A lovely orange way to wake up in the new year!
I'm busy cleaning as the new year starts, and thinking up a new design for the blog. I'm also constructing a wool afghan that's helping get me out of my slump and very enjoyable. Yay!
Up early working on the consignment restock I mentioned the other day. Having some fun with leftover wool from other projects creating some woodland creatures. I think I want to make some bugs, too, I'm not sure.
Also, how did I miss Pretty Little Things' (Lori Marie) blog? Her work is just incredibly cool, as is her blog! Reader it! She has all kinds of mushroom/woodland related stuff, amazing sewing and embroidery, and a super cool etsy shop. I'm ordering this:
to add to my collection of plush mushrooms. And I lust after this:
And you thought I had forgotten! Actually, it's just that I'm not often motivated to browse through etsy, searching for people with interesting crochet shops. There are a lot of great etsy crochet shops, but there are also a lot of people just starting out, let's say. Still looking for recommendations.
Back to AnnieDesign.
AnnieDesign does one thing, and she does it well. Her etsy shop specializes in crocheted flower appliques. I am completely smitten. These are stunning flowers, elegantly photographed.
I particularly love the flowers with the hand embroidered centers.
These ones are particularly lovely!
Click on the photos to check out her shop. :)
There's a progression when making amigurumi. For the beginner (and always, always for toys for children under the age of 3) sewn eyes are the perfect eyes for an amigurumi.
The next stage is safety eyes from Joann Fabrics or a similar store. They're big, they're expensive, there's not much variety, but at least they're snap-in safety eyes. For those who aren't familiar with them, these are the kind of eyes used in most commercial plush toys.
When you find yourself wanting more variety in your amigurumi eyes, or something a little different, where do you turn? How do you source safety eyes other than the standard brown and black?
I was lucky when I started out, the lovely andricongirl was nice enough to clue me in to CRs Crafts, which sells wholesale and bulk safety eyes. I was going out of my mind trying to locate enough safety eyes to fill orders. I order from them every few months or so, and they're my main source for standard black 6mm safety eyes since I can purchase them by the 50pr. They have fantastic customer service and ship relatively quickly.
I'm not the only one who orders from CRs. Occasionally, I find that they're backordered, which is when I turn to 6060.etsy.com for my immediate black safety eye fix. I was impressed with 6060's fast service, accurately priced shipping, and free animal nose included with the order (admittedly, I'm a sucker for freebies). 6060 also offers the opportunity to purchase mixed color packages and hand painted eyes.
An aside, here. I've been attempting to make my own hand-painted eyes recently and haven't been terribly impressed with the results. I'm not sure what the major eye retailers are doing differently and can't vouch for it. The colors on the etsy listings are impressive.
For wildly colored safety eyes and good prices, especially for a unique project, I find myself looking to trulyoutrageous. She has a variety of safety eyes that I haven't seen before, and am itching to get my hands on and use. Trulyoutrageous also has the advantage of being a fellow crocheter, and in fact she sells crochet patterns in her etsy shop. I rather like her crochet patterns from the pictures, although I haven't tried them. (ETA: As of this writing, she is on vacation, check out her shop when she comes back). She also has an incredible etsy shop selling cupcake liners and accessories--it's pretty cool, you can check her blog to get the link.
I hope this gives you some alternatives and some help when it comes to your search for plastic safety eyes! Just remember:
Via Futuregirl, amazing plate by Dovetail Shop & Studio. I must have this. In fact, I must have everything they make, it must become my new "good china". Should anyone want to buy me any, take note--this design is my favorite.
Attic24 just completed this incredible afghan. I thing it's really great, and if you're not reading her blog and you're a crocheter, you should be. I love the colors, but I think it might kill the Mr. if I made one.
Heather Ross Mendocino fabric. I just ordered some from Fabricworm, the price was good, so I'm hoping the fabric will be great too. It's sea themed, how cool!
Apologies to modish readers for the repost, but Tracy Melton's tree rings are so incredible that I had to repeat! I can't wait to pick up some of my own!
Stemellina lists herself primarily as a needle felter, but what an incredible combination of needle felting and crochet! Although, granted, the brooch above doesn't contain any needle felting, it is an amazing use of crochet in a really different format. It's refreshing to see someone doing something this individual. Not to mention my major weakness, wonderful photography.
Her photographs are clear and carefully highlight the pieces. I also enjoy the creative use of macro focus on some of the pictures. Stemellina creates pieces with needle felted "beads" wrapped in crochet, which I haven't seen anyone else doing and is certainly lovely.
The level of craftsmanship is clear. Stemellina is doing some amazing work, and you should pay attention.
Thanks, Shadygrove!
Embellishedlife is a fantastically productive crocheter on etsy, selling crocheted accessories. She also sells crochet patterns and kits. Embellishedlife's style is a little more freeform than some of the other crocheters out there-- admittedly, people who write patterns tend to be really into math and repeating patterns--which make her patterns a nice change of pace. She also has a strong streak of experimentation, working crocheted embellishments into all kinds of products.
I'm also impressed with the amount of work it takes to build up such a huge volume of products, since crocheted items can take some time to produce. She's been established on etsy for a little over a year, at least in this shop, and is showing all of the signs of a shop well on its way.
Amigurumi Squid
