I just thought I’d share Speedy with you today……..another critter for the menagerie yaaaaaay.  Of course He will be in the shop soon if you want to check him out there.

I’m still busy with commissions……. just got another couple of cool ones that I can’t wait to get started on and share with you,  so I guess I should get on with it huh?

I just wanted to share my delight with you

  

He has made an instant friend in Yankee Doodle the piggy bank.

Funnily enough Martha Stewart is doing a segment on sock monkeys right now……..so I really want to try and make my own asap!!!

Oh and check out my crafting friend Ekra’s blog……..she has started making gorgeous glass vases (I want one sooooo bad) and she purchased one of my roses to display them when she does shows……..how cool is that?  thanks Ekra

So I sat in the sun all day and made Dexter the Daschund…..

 

I think spending so much time outside had a real effect on Dexter though, he’s not so very happy about being cooped up indoors…..he’s muttering about travelling and adventures. Poor Dexter the furthest he is going to travel today is the shop.

Well it was for me at least which was very nice as I made Doug

 

It wasn’t a lazy weekend for my hubby as he raced in all the mud at Rock cut……..I swear he’s nutty

However his nuttiness did give me the whole day to organise and craft in peace, so finally I got a package of critters together for White Rabbit. The critters that are making their way to Iowa City are Monty, Stanley and Cyrano……….I think they are very excited to be heading out.

Oh and seeing as how you are here I figuered I’d show you my latest Etsy purchase that I can’t wait to receive

His name is Chuck and he is a sock chicken………how awesome is that!!!!  I’ve wanted him for ages and now he is mine……yaaaaay He’s made by etsy seller Sian Hughes and you should check out her etsy store for other brilliant sock monkeys.   I guess it’s a little odd that I live in Rockford home of the traditional red heeled sock monkey and I’m buying sock monkeys from someone in ther UK……..but hers are just so much better than any other ones I’ve seen………so I guess it all makes sense really,  if you think about it.

I just wanted to share a new critter with you guys before the weekend………..here she is

 

Her name is Lena, and she of course is going to be available in the shop.

Apparently last night there was an earthquake in Illinois that was felt in Chicago and as far away as St. Louis,  we didn’t feel it in Rockford …..so phew I can still officially say that nothing exciting ever happens here.  Anyway I am still trying to put together a package of critters for White Rabbit Gallery I can’t seem to work out who would be a good fit for Iowa city……although they all want to go. I’m thinking Monty and Cyranno and maybe the love imp……..but this is subject to change at any moment as Jonesie keeps squeeking his displeasure at not being one of the chosen. Anyway have a good weekend………I’m of to ponder some more.

So what would you make if you had a whole load of llama roving? It’s probably not something most people have to spend a long time thinking about and neither did I as it seemed kinda obvious to me to make a llama….

   

I’ve called him Abe in honour of his donor (this is the local llama roving I bought from Unique yarns) and I’m thinking his story is going to be something along the lines of being an artist’s muse or at least a fiber artist’s muse.

Not much else going on here in critter world. We are attending a wedding this weekend so will not be able to go to Madison this weekend………this is so unfair as this Saturday is the first weekend of the outdoor farmers market around the capitol and Ekra and orangeyporangey are going to be doing the street vending on State Street and I was so looking forward to harrassing them………errrr I mean showing them my support……. ahem.

Yesterday was brilliant,  Unique yarns was even better than I had hoped…….I got some brilliant roving and as I told the lady in the store it was the first time I have ever bought roving from a store.  Which was actually really odd as I had no idea what I was supposed to do.  They had a whole load of loose roving to buy by the ounce and I found myself going errrrrrr about a bag full?  how much is that?  I’m sure my I.Q dropped about a hundred points or at least didn’t appear to be very high in the first place to the women in the store.

My favourite purchase  from them was llama roving donated by Lily and Abe (It’s the dark and light brown stuff – I think Lily was the lighter one)

How brilliant is it to know the name of your “supplier” and I’ve never used llama so I’m excited to try that out.  I also found out about a spray to protect the critters from moths and other icky bugs it’s called Kookaburra woolwash and from now on all the critters will have a spritz of it before heading off to their new homes.

And now let me introduce you to Jonesie……..

 

He will be heading of to White Rabbit gallery in Iowa in a few days time…………..and he can’t wait.

I finally made this guy huh?

    

You guys all know how much I love Snoopy,  and Woodstock has been a critter I’ve wanted to make for a really long time.  But  finally thanks to Kathleen I finally devoted the time to make the yellow chirper.  He was more challenging to make than you might think as he really is only a series of black lines in drawing form……but as you know I love a challenge and I think he turned out pretty well although I guess I am kinda biased.

I have plans today to head on out to Unique Yarns…Unique Yarns is a wool store in Rockford and apparently they offer fiber classes.  I  am keeping my fingers crossed that they will have roving to buy in the store as I always seem to run out of one particular colour (that I had a ton of at time of order) after I already put my internet order in………why does that always happen?  anyway it would be nice to be able to have a source of emergancy roving or maybe just a new source of roving,   but I don’t want to get my hopes up to high.  Logically I think if you have a place with classes you must sell the equipment right?  right?   Oh well I guess you never know unless you go….. I’ll let you know how it turns out.

I’m in one of those blah moods today………you know those days when you really can’t be arsed doing anything but you’ve got a ton of stuff to do so you do it but really slowly? well that’s how my day is going.

It probably doesn’t help my mood much that for the last couple of days it has heaved it down rain, with no sunshine in sight. I’m starting to get really p’eed off with the weather in the Midwest, especially since I know that it’s just gonna go boom…. straight into summer with no warning…..sigh hello humidity. Anyway I don’t mean to moan (honest) I just thought I’d share how my other hanging fruits and vegs turned out

  

I even listed them in the shop just in case anyone is looking for some hanging fruit and veg on Etsy I have them covered. Alright back to work

Yes I know you have been sitting on the edge of your seat………wondering what the heck I am making next…….and the farmer’s market hint  in my last post was so cryptic right?   Well take that bit from your mouth today is the big reveal…………

  

So does it make sense now?  These little wooly treats will have an acrlic loop attached to them and hopefully will be hanging up around Anthology in Madison by this weekend.  I know the carrots must be cute as my husband wants one (gasp) to hang on the rear view mirror of the car (double gasp) which is shocking as he hates stuff hanging of mirrors in cars…..so  that is what I am working on right now…….well that and critter boxes.  I still haven’t properly played with my sewing machine (so little time) but I am hoping to devote more time to mastering it……perhaps next week