Better Know A Crafter: Pink Pitcher

Pink is old school Fancy T. She has been coming to our craft night since the beginning of time. She's also one of the fastest knitters we know--always the first to finish knit-alongs, and she won't follow a pattern to save her life. She gets the gist of a pattern and then makes it up as she goes. It always turns out magically awesome. Because of this, we weren't surprised to find out the epic dragon sweater she has been working on is a little of this pattern and a little of that...

Pink Pitcher

How did you learn to knit?
I learned to knit when I was six, but I never really got in to it until I was 16 or so. My mother originally taught me, but everything after basic knit stitch I learned from trial and error. Along the way I also learned to sew, crochet, spin, weave, felt...etc. I am a seamstress, making bags from recycled materials (www.pinkilicious.etsy.com), so I knit to unwind from my other crafting.

Tell us about your project.
This project was inspired by a Ravelry find a friend forwarded to me: Betsala's Valhalla I Am Coming, a much hipper version of the Norwegian pattern, 9 Viking Boat Jacket. I loved the chart and it was nice to see it liberated from the original drop sleeves (I hate drop sleeves!). I found a colorwork yoke pattern 0611-1 Pullover, also entirely in Norwegian, that worked for the fingering weight yarn I used--Imperial Stock Ranch Tracie. 

Fortunately, since I was only using the charts from these two, the language didn't matter. I also used an altered version of the Deathflake chart, a chart from a book I bought in Norway about "Lice-Pattern Sweaters", and then I made a chart of all 24 runes of the Elder Furthark. 

Basically, I stitched together a Frankenstein's Monster of awesome Norwegian designs.

What inspired you to make this?
Plunder. The promise of Plunder. (There may have been some drunken boasting as well, I don't recall clearly.)

Does your sweater transport you to other lands/dimensions when you wear it?
I transport this sweater to other lands and times when *I* wear it! (But it keeps me mighty warm while I'm there.)

Did you put any protection spells on your sweater?
I asked my homegirl Frigga to do me a solid and keep and eye on it. She's a spinner, she understands.

What is your favorite viking weapon?
My fist.

OMG Pink, we love it. Thank you and happy knitting!

Better Know A Crafter: Amanda Parkhurst-Strout

Amanda recently joined us for our most recent Lost Crafts series installment, Naalbinding. This ancient Nordic craft is a method of making yarn into a warm, woolly fabric. It was the craft of the Vikings and pre-dates both knitting and crochet! Amanda is helping to keep this lost craft alive in a big way. She went home after being introduced to basic naalbinding and came back the following week with a hat she had made by figuring our how to do shaping on her own! We are pretty impressed with her craft prowess.

Amanda Parkhurst-Strout

 

Tell us about yourself and what makes you craft.

I enjoy quilting, embroidery and just recently started naalbinding. I love the texture of materials working with my hands and seeing an image in my head come to fruition.

How did you create your naalbinded hat?
This is my first hat ever--made from naalbinding. I just used the techniques I learned in class and my head as a pattern. I used Malabrigo worsted wool, which is a single ply, and a naalbinding needle.

I learned the craft in October at Fancy Tiger Crafts from Emily, who was fabulous and super patient with all my questions!

What is your favorite animal?
Butterflies and pigs.

Thanks Amanda! Happy naalbinding!

Crafty Gift Guide: For the Crafty Knitter!

Welcome to the Fancy Tiger Crafts Holiday Gift Guide! It's time to get a little something special for the crafty folks in your life, so all week we will feature some of our favorite things--some of the coveted craft supplies in the store that we dream about every day.

Today is all about the knitters!


Fancy Tiger Project Bags are great for the knitter on the go. Made from some of the cute fabrics that we carry on the sewing side of the store, they are ready to keep a work in progress tidy and portable. Clip it to a belt loop and a very coordinated knitter can even work on their project while on their morning walk. Just make sure to look both ways before crossing the street.

Fancy Tiger Wool Wash is made in small batches right here in Denver by our favorite herbalist, Tonja Reichley of Moondance Botanicals. Our wool wash is made with all natural ingredients and essential oils and is gentle enough for the most delicate handknits. Fancy Blend is sweet and floral, with essential oils of lavender, sweet orange and tea tree. Tiger Blend is spicy and citrusy, with essential oils of coriander, ylang ylang, amyris and lemon.

Letterpress gift tags with sheep and yarn are an adorable addition to your gift!

The Addi Clicks interchangeable needle set is perhaps the knitter's most wanted item in the store. Smooth and reliable joins, flexible cords and the classic sleek Addi Turbo needles make this the hottest interchangeable set around.


Made exclusively for Fancy Tiger Crafts, these hand forged copper penannulars are made from reclaimed copper wire. It makes a simple and beautiful pin for a hand knit shawl. The penannular, also known as a cloak pin or kilt pin, is one of history's oldest fastening devices!

Wagtail Mohair is one of our most special yarns. The mohair comes from a single herd of angora goats on a family-run farm in Queensland, Australia. The mohair is sheared, washed, dyed, and spun into the most lustrous yarn we've ever seen by Kevin, Betty and Gaylene.

Check back soon for more gift ideas!