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Two shops become one

Fluffenstuff is now moved into Fibres Exotica. I’ve just got to take some (far) better pictures of the yarns (I’ve re-sized all the stitchmarker pictures already) and away it all goes!

Uniting the shops is good from the perspective of lowering admin overhead, but sad, simply because Fluffenstuff had its own creative personality and a slightly different mission statement to Fibres Exotica.

However, Exotic is what you make it… and given that I’ve been fooling around with random dyeing techniques on some of my cheap experimentation yarns again (to get myself back into remembering the techniques), and I’m eyeing up at the huge stash of undyed yarn (in all manner of fibres!) and thinking about what I want to do with it, and given the inspirational videos I’ve been watching until far-too-late o’clock at night making me want to be creative, and also given that I’ve got a finished kitchen and dyeing is again a possibility, I generally see uniting the shops as a good thing.

After all, no point dyeing yummy yarns just for me eh? Taking it just to shows is all well and good, but if it’s not in the shop, how is it going to make other people happy and become beautiful things?

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I’ll be teaching at Stitch and Craft 2011!

EEEKK! SQUEEEE!!! and other exclamations of joy.

I’ve been accepted to Teach “Space Dyeing with Kool-Aid” at Stitch and Craft 2011, held at Olympia 2 17th-20th March 2011.

Kool-Aid dyeing is incredibly easy and gives a dyer of any age almost instant gratification. Included in the class will be some colour theory, the technique for microwave space dyeing and a whole heap of fun!

I’ll be in Room 4 every day at 15:30 squirting Kool-Aid at some Wensleydale with a turkey baster (As it takes Kool-Aid Colour really really well!). Do come and join me!

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It’s still all quiet around here…

I know, I promised everyone (including me!) a new workshop, and it just hasn’t happened.

Life got in the way of the DIY, the stock taking and photography and the website updating.

I also found out recently that one of my past Wordpress upgrades “broke” the version of  WP-Commerce I was using.

So, I’ve taken this little bout of  Insomnia to update *everything* to the latest versions, and you may have noticed a while back I put all the pictures back together with the products.

So, no, I haven’t dyed any new stuff recently (and oh-my-gosh am I missing the creativity of colour 🙁 ), but what I do have on show (including about 19Kg of Sari Silk that I shipped over for S’n’B day!) is still very much for sale, but now with a working shopping cart!

Enjoy!

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People have been getting creative!

I went ‘blog stalking the other day…

I found these Lovely Pretties:
Trippin Yarn’s Branching out in a Six Skein Special-Water. She is aiming for 26 repeats

Branching out in SSS-Water

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ginger Lucy knit herself an Ice Cream Hat in 100% Cashmere, dyed as Raspberries & Chocolate,

Cashemere Raspberries and Chocolate

 

 

 

 

 

and is saving her Fluorite purchase until after Xmas

fluorite+Raspberrieschoc

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cliff sent me a picture of the Mega Womb which is made from “Morello Cherries” in 100% Cheviot.

megawomb

 

 

 

 

 

Apparently, this is a cushion for his local pub! Being Cheviot, it is going to be very hardwearing, so just right for his Local… even if they have weird taste in soft furnishing!

My Mum, well, two from her
Parrot mango chutney

 

 

 

 

Mum loved the “Parrot” dyed Wensleydale, and has pretty much all of it into scarves trimmed with Elle Sensual, and then Mango Chutney Boucle as well! This yarn never actually made it to the Shop, because Mum liked it so much! I don’t know, parents eh 😉

It appears also that there is All this Lovelyness I didn’t even know was tagged with “Fluffenstuff”on Flickr!  If you have made stuff, and have a flickr, please do Tag it, and then I will know about it!

Look for this little lot to move to the Customer Gallery soon, and please do keep sending me pics or links to your Fluffenstuff FOs!

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Time to breathe…

Well, it’s all over.

S’n’B day that is!

Fluffenstuff however, is most certainly here to stay!
The show was a resounding, if very very tiring sucess. It was lovely to meet so many enthusiastic knitters, crochetters, spinners felters (As I shared my Stall with Ann, over at FibreLust). Please do keep in touch, and remember to e-mail me which what you make from your Fluffenstuff. 🙂

Look for frantic shelf filling over the next few evening, when I get to take photography of all the yarn I now have to sell!

I have to get dyeing again as well, the Six Skein Specials proved very popular indeed, All of the Water & Aether sold, 4 of Metal and 3 each of Fire and Earth. Only Poor Air didn’t sell any at all, but then, I suspect it is the wrong time of year for Pale blue… Still, I think I’ll have a couple of days rest before I get the dyepot out again.

I so need to dye up some more Cashmere as well… Lots of Lookers and touchers, but obviously my taste for what it told me to dye it didn’t suit everyone elses tastes, so do give me ideas, I just love to custom dye! 🙂

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We’re either brave or stupid…

Why do we say that… and why are we taunting you with new experiments in colour, but not stocking the shelves?

Because… The PurpleKitchen is hard at work, busy dyeing stock for:UK stitch’n’bitch day

So, whilst we build up lots and lots of stock, (and every available surface is yarn obsessed right now!), with a side feeling of enjoying all the marvelous experiments that are coming out of the dyepot, and so the taunting photos are just going to keep on comin’! 😉

I’m sure that photography will get taken at some point soon, however, you’ll definitely be able to see all the lovely yarns in person at the show on 10th November!!!

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I’m glad to announce that…

… the six skein special idea is a rather sound idea, that gives fantastic results! Clickerty click to make it huge!

Six Skein Special - Fire

So, keeping with six’s, there are going to be six different colour groups, the above being “Fire”

So, coming soon: Earth, Water, Air, Aether and Metal.

It’s Elemental, my dear reader…
(ducks at things thrown due to bad punning)

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Don’t you just love inspiration when it hits?

I’ve had a brainwave… I’m sure that you are all aware of the various hand dyed yarn “Sock Clubs” around yes?

Now, as I all know, I just don’t “do” sockyarns, so I was wondering if a 3 month run of “Hat and Scarf Club” would inspire the same sort of YarnLust… 3 skeins, 3 different patterns sets, 3 rather individual and natty snuggly things for the coming months.

I’m also thinking about creating the “Six Skein Special” range… One dye run using colour families rather than a specific colour way for 6 skeins. Enough for a unique jumper, and lovely illiteration to boot… 😉

Thoughts and answers on a comment please!