Natural Dyes

Here's a couple of lists of natural dyes, and how they're used:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_dye

http://www.georgeweil.com/fact_file/fibrecrafts_natural_dyes.aspx

http://www.countrylovers.co.uk/hort/plntdyes.htm

http://www.elaineduncan.com/natural-dye-days/

How To:

http://www.prairiefibers.com/Dyeing%20Techniques.htm

http://polycrafty.wordpress.com/2009/06/22/dye-day/

Felting Ideas

Need idea's for felting?


Springtree Road Blog

Christmas Online Listings- Postage Dates

Things to remember when listing items before Christmas:

- Add christmas posting dates VERY early on! For items that need a week or 2 to make up, they'll need to be ordered before 25th November for some countries! From October onwards, all listings should have Christmas postage dates

- Save a word document with all postage dates on, then copy and paste every time I list an item, to save the last minute inconvenience of having to go through the whole lot!

- Remember that Australia and New Zealand are HOT at Christmas!

Approx Posting Dates:

New Zealand, Australia, Far East: 5th Dec
USA, Canada, Eastern Europe: 10th Dec
Europe: 12th Dec
UK 2nd Class: 18th Dec
UK 1st Class: 20th Dec

Baby Hats

My current design isn't long enough for slightly older babies: they need to measure approx 15-18cm wide, and 18cm tall

Newborns: 40sts, 15cm tall
1-2 years: 45sts. 18cm tall
3-5 years: 50sts, 18cm tall

Market De-Briefing

Summary of Christmas Markets:

Tobacco Factory 18th Nov:
Pitch cost: £20
Total sales: £61
1x mug cosy
1 pair trousers I'd made for myself, selling off cheap
2x knickers kit
1x hood

Tobacco Factory 24th Nov:
Pitch cost: £20
Total sales: £25
1x bunting
1x rose hairband
1x mens tshirt

Magpies & I @ Spiegeltent 2nd Dec:
Pitch cost: £25
Total sales: £34
1x bunting kit
6x blossom clips
2x keyrings
1x scented star

Colston Hall Sunday 8th Dec:
Pitch cost:
Total Sales: £140 (+ 1 order to be picked up and paid for @ £20)
1x baby hat, brown teddy
3x butterfly magnets
2x friendship bracelets
2x keyrings
5x blossom clips
1x knickers kit
3x embroidered laces
1x double-lilly hair grip
1x ski hat (red)
1x panda hat (brown)
1x knit kit
1x knitted hairband, red (made from what was going to be a leg-warmer)
(order for 1 pair boot-tops in browns)

Tobacco Factory 9th Dec:
Pitch Fee: £18.30
Total sales: £46 (+ one order to be picked up and paid for next week @ £15)
1x knitted snood in teal with white fur
6x blossom clips
(order for 1x baby hat- froggy)

IMPORTANTS NOTES:

- Arrive Colston Hall before 8.15am to get a spot, before that seems to be fine, people don't arrive till after, and can't even get in before 8am)
- Most interest seems to be in baby hats, snoods, flowers, mug cosies, knickers kits, bunting
- Keep in touch with David @ Tobacco Factory, remind him I'm coming- he hadn't put me down for today, I booked it a while back!
- Make sure I have order forms with me at Christmas time

Felt Boots (still), Back to Town for More Fleeces and Fur

ACHIEVED TODAY:

- Managed to get up and get on with work despite feeling ill AND having PMT, that in itself is an achievement! Note for the future: thinking about how shite it's going to be having to work when you're feeling under the weather is SO much worse than actually doing it!

- Felted the boots, which must have taken in all around 1 hour, maybe 1 1/2 taking into account the time it takes to get it all set up, and clean up afterwards... maybe even 2... will have to time myself next time I make a pair

- Back into town again, put market profits into bank, bought more micro-fibre blankets for hoodies, and plenty of the expensive faux fur for ski hats and boot linings, so I shouldn't have to go back for more in a few months!

THINGS TO REMEMBER:

- Primark now out of cream micro fibre blankets, and seems to be running low on black too. Will check next time I'm in town but I may not be able to always get them from Primark

- Pound Stretcher shop in the Mall sells lovely fluffy microfibre blankets for £6 (need to check size) which are a thicker pile than the Primark ones, but still good

- Things really do get pushed back when I'm ill! Must keep up to date with 'to do' lists because it feels chaotic right now!

TO DO:

- Need to get tidied and sorted again in the next couple of days: sort out cupboard spaces and do my laundry!

- Must pack van tomorrow- need to put in extra rail, table and tablecloth for Sunday, and need to sort out all the stuff I brought into the house after the last market, including money belt and tool box

- Read market details for Saturday, check set up times

- Rent!!!

- Finish and post boots tomorrow if possible (if they're not dry, I can do it Friday morning, so it's not panic-stations)

- Find out what colour Etsy customer wants her Foxy hat and finish that asap... hopefully during markets this wkend

- Contact Ben about next Wednesday and see if I can do my stall at the Lansdown

- Photos of green hoodie for Charles

- Relist foxy ears hat

- Put all 'to do' things onto my wall chart (sit down for 15mins and get it all straight first thing, then I can attack the day knowing where I am!)

- Reeeeaaallly want a 'fancy pants' day next week... can I manage to fit it in though? Not sure I can, still have ski hats to finish, and hoods, and the fluffy kids hats... as well as another pair of felt boots, another hoodie, the foxy ears hat I've sold on Etsy... hmmm

North Street Christmas Market

Website link here

Remember this one for next year too!!!

Finished Hoodies, Packed Van, Started Felt Boots, Started Carding Orange Wool

ACHIEVED TODAY:

- Did stitching and added buttons and labels on 3 hoodies. This took around 1 1/2 hours per hoodie- so they take a lot longer than I thought to make, I'd estimate 2 1/2 to 3 hours

- Packed van up for market on Saturday. Have LOST the bloody sign! Need to make sure I put it in one place and always leave it there- suggest hallway behind A Board. Apart from that I think I have everything except one box which is ready to go in the sittingroom, and my packed lunch which I will get tomorrow night

- Tidied whole house (def need to organise work draws and cupboard spaces after Christmas)

- Layed out felt boots, soaking ready to be felted

- Started carding orange wools for waistcoat

THINGS TO REMEMBER:

- Remember to unpack mirror when I unpack van Sat morning!

- When I find the sign, move it to hallway

- Making felt boots: 100g Ryeland, 100g Merino, 100g Herdwick


TO DO:

- Need to leave broken side of gazebo out to fix after Sat market

- Text Vicky and ask if she can bring fairy lights

- Buy packed lunch tomorrow

- Organise storage spaces after Christmas

How to Instagram and Photo in Photoshop

 

Hipster Instagram Photo Effect Photoshop CS5

Simple (but not so good) tutorial

Primark for Microfibre Blankets, Hoodies, Snood, List of Things to Make

ACHIEVED TODAY:

- visited Primark and found incredible soft microfibre blankets for £5 (125cm x 150cm) need 2 to line a hoody, with around 150cm x 60-70cm left over. They have these in many colours, and also in Christmas patterns- MIGHT BE A GOOD IDEA TO VISIT PRIMARK AFTER CHRISTMAS AND BUY CHRISTMAS PRINT BLANKETS IN THE SALE TO MAKE ONSIES FOR NEXT YEAR!

- Made 2 more hoodies, will be keeping one for myself to wear at markets. 3 to finish off now.

- Finished snood- much happier with it today!

- Finished black and white panda hat, but the eyes need lining (white eyes on white wool don't stand out enough)

- Bought enough elastic and lace to bosh out a load of fancy pants

- Bought fur to line hoods

- Started putting elastic and lace onto spools. They're giving them out free in Fabricland- will go back for more and put all my long lengths of lace and elastic onto spools. I'd like to have a whole shelf of spools eventually! Would be good to hang a pole and have the spools threaded along it.

THINGS TO REMEMBER:

- Primark for microfibre fleece blankets... go back after Christmas!

- Always need to check what I have before I go fabric shopping- I keep buying things I already have! Don't buy any more cream fleece- I have LOADS now!

TO DO:

I HAVE MATERIALS NOW TO MAKE:

- fancy pants and fancy pants kits- need to go through fabric bags and pick out fabrics. Also need to make more packaging labels
- hoods
- snoods
- hoodies
- ski hats
- foxy hats
- I have eyes for 2 more large panda hats

TO DO TOMORROW:

- pack van
-finish hoodies
-make tissue paper pom poms in christmas colours
-buy packed lunch

Picton St Christmas Market Reminder!!!

Next year I MUST remember the Picton Street Christmas Market... this year it's Sat 15th Dec

Ikea, Hoodies, Attempted Snood, New Scissors

ACHIEVED TODAY:

- carding wool for slipper boots
- visited Ikea, Asda Homebase, Tesco
- made red hoody with dark brown lining (still needs finishing)
- started purple snood/snug
- bought new scissors today

THINGS TO REMEMBER:

- Ikea fleece blankets available in cream, light blue, muted-deep-purple. Measuring 130cm x 170cm for £3 each. One of these will line a pixie-hoodie
- Gorgeous woolen bobbly blankets for £20 each, measuring 120cm x 180cm, in purples and browns+light blues
- No black fleece blankets anywhere- seems that fleece blankets are going out of fashion!
- Go back to Asda Homebase for microfibre blankets for £5, in red, cream. Also have them in Tesco for £12 in more colours
- when making snoods/snugs they need to be much longer than you think!!!! I made it 120cm, needs to be more like 180cm.

TO DO:
- go to Fabricland for furs and fleeces, eyes for panda hats, clasps for snood
- will need to order black fleece online if they still don't have any in Fabricland
- finish snood when I'm not so fed up with it!
- need to finish stitching and button on red hoody
- get all stall stuff in van before friday (must find fabricate sign, put in an extra chair, leg weights, fabricate wall banner, gazebo, fairy lights, extra table, extra rail)
- buy packed lunch for sat
- get wools together for slipper boots, can knit them up on sat
-