Thursday 27 November 2008

Jelly Bums Hippo

Sorry to those who have been patiently waiting to find out what the newest animal is, I've been having trouble trying to log in to my blogger account so the pattern has been available for a few days now. SoIi present to you the Jelly Bum hippo


 
This little fellow was in demand as I had a few requests to make him. He gave me a great opportunity to try out double stranded knitting as the grey yarn I used was really thin so I doubled it up (Note to self: do not send hubby yarn shopping again). The method was a lot easier to do than I originally thought so I'd defiantly do it again.
I'm already started on making the latest pattern as I'm hoping to have 2 more animal patterns out by Christmas time, so finger crossed I don't get too distracted by the holiday season.
It's getting so much more difficult to photograph my toys in the natural light these days as the winter weather draws ever closer. We even had a blast on snow here on Sunday so it was really dark and chilly, so we have to wrap up warm every time we are out and about. looks like it's going to be a really cold winter in Scotland this year, i just wish I knew how to knit gloves and beautiful cowls, although a girl can dream by window shopping on Etsy!
Take care
♥ Raynor

Thursday 13 November 2008

Jelly Bums Sheep

Ok ok I confess I've been procrastinating again this week! However I have not been slacking and as promised I've eventually finished the pattern with my fuzzy wuzzy yarn. So here is a new little sheep pattern for you all.



 
The yarn used was sirdar snuggly snowflake, and it was perfect for creating a fleecy fur look. Although it was the first time I have ever worked with novelty yarn and it was strange but in a learning curve sort of way.
The finished toy reminds me of a Lamb toy my dad bought in Amsterdam when I was small. We affectionately named him Lambsy and he had a 'baa-er'* inside him. Lambsy was the star of many of a nativity shows at our primary school. He is still round today looking a bit scruffy and weary after one too many rough play times from my siblings and now our children. Sadly now his baa no longer works but he always leaves me feeling sweetly nostalgic.
I'm now planning to get started on a particular animal which I've had a few requests for since I've started creating the animal patterns. I promise I'll get it out as soon as possible as I know a few people are knitting furiously to pop a few little critters into their loved one's Xmas stocking this year (yes it is that time of year already!).
Happy Knitting
♥ Raynor


* A 'baa-er' is my own made up word used to describe the device inside Lambsy which made him 'baa' when rocked backwards, similar to a teddy bear 'growler'.

Sunday 9 November 2008

Pattern updates

Hey everyone, hope your all having a nice relaxing Sunday. Just thought I would pop on to give you a few updates from the world of Jelly Bums.
I recently updated all the pattern in the collection so they are now available with 3 different body shapes to make a stuffed toy, an egg cosy and a finger puppet. I was always being asked if the toys were finger puppets and my answer was always that the body was too wide for finger puppets but would make good egg cosies. So instead of confusing everyone I thought it would be a lot easier to give the option to make both an egg cosy and a finger puppet as well as the original toy pattern.
Also this week I got my Ravlery shop set up, so my patterns are now available to buy as downloads from there aswell (the link to my store is in the sidebar --->). If you purchase my patterns this way not only will you be supporting a great community but they are also downloaded directly to your computer, so no waiting for me to check my etsy orders.
Are you wondering what 'Ravelry' is? Well it's a fantastic knitting and crochet community which is currently only accessible by being sent an invite. If you want in to this little secret club then get your name on the list here www.ravelry.com . It make take a while for you to get the invite through but the wait is worth it, the community is a godsend for knitters and crocheters (is that a word?). So if you get an invite remember to add me as a friend my username is jellybum.
Ok my lovelies I'm off for now, but I'll be back mid-week with a new pattern, so be good in the mean-time.
♥Raynor

Tuesday 4 November 2008

Jelly Bums Penguin

Hey all I hope your all having a lovely start to your week. As promised I have another new pattern, this time its for a sweet little penguin.
 
This little sweetheart is the first bird to be added to the Jelly Bum collection. I think he's rather adorable and reminds me of pingu. He's the perfect little toy to knit up for the up and coming winter months.
As usual I'm going to get started on the next pattern either tonight or tomorrow, and it means I'm going to get using my new snowflake yarn, so if you know what this yarn looks like you might already have a little hint as to what animal is coming next, and if you don't then I'm leaving you in suspense.
♥Raynor
P.S sorry about all the extra spacing, blogger has gone a bit crazy over the last few weeks and it keeps putting lots of extra spacing into my posts and I can't fix it.

Saturday 1 November 2008

Knitting heaven

Hi all, just a little end of the week update to let you all know the new pattern is coming along nicely, and should hopefully be available by the start of next week.
Yesterday was hubby's day off work so we went for a little run in the car with the girls. We ended up going to a little village called Letham which has a fantastic little craft shop. I think I could easily spend all my hours (and money!) in there and never get bored. In their little yarn corner they only really stock high quality yarn like cotton, wool, mohair, angora...... so different to the normal acrylic I usually use for my toys. It's safe to say I was in knitters heaven surrounded by all those beautiful textures and colours, thank you Debbie Bliss.
Anyway I got my paws on a nice little ball of Sirdar Snowflake yarn for a future pattern, it really is the perfect yarn for the job and I'm more than sure the finished toy will look perfect.
OK I'll stop being a yarn bore for today, have a lovely weekend all and I'll see you all next week.
♥ Raynor