Friday, May 20, 2011

'Shroomin

I just sent off my first non-Craftster swap package. I know, I know, I said I was taking a hiatus, but then I found this yahoo group that is for Waldorf moms to swap crafts. There was some attempt at getting a Waldorf swap started on Craftster, but it never really got off the ground. I thought it would be fun to get some things made from natural materials made with our lifestyle in mind.

The theme was Mushrooms, Hedgehogs, and Gnomes... Oh My! I love my little peg doll gnomes, but they are all over the internet and I wanted to try something different. I thought about needle felting mushrooms, then, while browsing around Ravelry, I found this pattern for five different mushrooms to knit and felt!


Aren't they cute? After I knit all of the pieces, I wet felted them in hot soapy water. They didn't felt as tightly as I thought they would. I don't have a ton of experience with wet felting - I've usually done it with roving. I've never attempted to felt anything I've knit myself even though I consider myself a pro at fulling wool sweaters! After the 'shrooms dried, I needle felted the spots with white roving, then I stuffed the stems with wool batting and stitched them together. Voila! I really hope they go over well with the other swappers. This is a different swap than I am used to. I LOVE the community and friends I have over at Craftster, and I love the way the swaps there are organized, the banter and the camaraderie that grows as you discuss your progress on your package Mad Lib style. This swap is a bit strange to me - you send all of your items to one organizer, who then repackages them and mails them out to the participants. There is no discussion, no getting to know a single partner.

Anyway, as I said before, I am definitely on swap hiatus for the summer. I will be crafting for M and myself, and I have been planning lots of fun activities for us to do this summer. Stay tuned!

1 comment:

  1. Love the mushrooms!! I can't knit well enough to make these but OMG so cute! (I too am banning myself from swapping until we move)

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