Tour of the Western Slope with Ysolda!

Ysolda Teague was just in town visiting us again and this time it was for a vacation! Amber and I took a few days off to give her a proper tour of our lovely state and we have lots to report. She arrived just in time for our epic blizzard last Thursday so we just spent the first couple of days sewing and working in the shop. On Sunday we dug ourselves out and drove to the western slope for some animal-cuddling, nature-loving adventures.

Ysolda, Jaime, and Amber showing their Icelandic pride!

First stop was up in Norwood Colorado where we visited Peg and Woody of Pinon Wood Ranch. The cold weather was a perfect opportunity for us to wear our Icelandic sweater and test their warmth (which totally worked, btw.) 

Flower is showing us her smile.

Peg and Woody raise Shetland sheep and alpacas for fiber. Their Shetland sheep have won tons of awards for their beautiful fiber and we think they are the nicest sheep around! Peg's sheep love to cuddle us and stare into our eyes with long, loving gazes.

Ralphie and Cheddar are about to get real famous

Amber and I were so excited to discover an interesting genetic mutation that we think could be a goldmine - miniature sheep! Last year there were four sheep (Ralphie, Cheddar, Swissy and Lauren) born at Pinon Woods that did not grow. These two rams are a year old and still the size of a 2 month old sheep! We really think that they should use them to create a new breed of miniature sheep that we can keep as pets in the city. They are perfect!

Shetland sheep are known for their hardy yet soft wool and they come in 11 different colors. There are many different colors of Shetlands at Pinon Wood Ranch - they are all so beautiful!

Of course we couldn't resist getting our hands on some fluffy alpacas. Their fiber is soo soft--and look at that crimp! Amazing!

Since we last visited, Peg has opened her handspun yarn and fiber shop in an adorable trailer. She is able to take the whole shop easily from one event to the next when she is on the road selling her wares. Look forward to more of Peg's handspun yarns coming to Fancy Tiger this spring!

We were able to bring back some of their Shetland roving with us to sell at Fancy Tiger. We picked out seven natural colors provided by Mary Jane, Flower, Abigail, Butch Cassidy, Mercedes, Belle Star, and Gracie. If you want to try spinning or felting some of this lovely local fiber, just come on in!

Ysolda, Jaime, and Amber frolic in nature. Lots of knitwear going on.

Amber and I wouldn't be good tour guides if we didn't show Ysolda some of Colorado's natural beauty. Amber's parents, Neal and Suzan, took us on an epic snowshoe hike near Ouray. Fresh snow the day before made for a beautiful and pristine landscape. We finished off the day with some local beers at a pub and a soak at the Wiesbaden hot springs - it was the perfect day!

Our drive home lent an unexpected surprise. As we drove through Hotchkiss, a group of shepherds were moving a herd of 2000 sheep from one pasture to another, causing a road block on the highway. We were so excited and immediately pulled over for a photo shoot. It worked out pretty well don't you think?

Fun times in Colorado! Ysolda will be back in town next weekend for a lecture and book signing of her two (!) new books! Join us on Friday, February 17th from 7 - 9pm for more fun times.

New Cute Craft Supplies From Around the Globe!

New Japanese felting supplies are here! Most of these so-adorable-they-can-only-be-Japanese crafting kits, books and tools now have instructions translated into English, for more fun and less "say what?".


Felt ball makers are back! These sweet felting tools flew out of here last time we got them in. They make perfect little wet-felted wool balls with ease!


This new felting book is cute as cute can be!


And from Germany, the land where magically self-patterning sock yarn originates, Ambiente yarn is here! These little balls of sock yarns come in the prettiest colors which transform into a faux Fair-Isle pattern of stripes and speckles as you knit. You may know, we are all about making shawls out of our sock yarn around here, so keep your eye out for some Ambiente shawl action!

New Super-Cute Japanese Fabrics!

These pictures speak for themselves! And finally...something for the boys!

New! Megumi Sakakibara Prints!

We are in love with Megumi Sakakibara's fabrics! Simple line drawings of adorable creatures of all kinds are printed in soft hues on linens and cottons.


This adorable little girl is printed on a very large scale, measuring 11.5" from head to toe.



Cute!

New! Cute Baby!

The newest addition to the Fancy Tiger crew: Anna's little Rowan Patrick.


This adorable little dude was born two craft nights ago. Look at those nimble little fingers. I think he'll be crafty!

The Cutest and Most Teeninesiest Buttons of All Time!

I just found the cutest and most teeninesiest buttons of all time. These three little ones were nestled in the bottom of a recent batch of vintage buttons we acquired, huddling together under the big buttons and hiding with the dusty bits of string and mismatched rusty snaps. I almost ate them they are so cute.


Perhaps if you were going to make a winter coat for your pet finch or mouse this fancy button would be perfect!

Is the cuteness killing you?

We just got in patterns and kits to make adorable patchwork owls in various sizes. The cuteness is killing me. Even better than patchwork owls are the new fabrics from Moda's Urban Chicks "1974" collection. In addition to purchasing the fabric by the yard, they have put together handy little charm packs of 4 x 4 squares - perfect for making a whole family of shockingly cute owls.