Hi everyone! Time flies like an arrow… and we are almost done with 2022. So here’s the RedTeapotAtelier monthly newsletter again!
December’s color inspiration
This month is usually a tight one money-wise, so I’m dedicating the color inspiration to… stash busting! I love triangle-shaped shawls, because the inner rows are perfect for small amounts of yarn, that is… leftovers from other projects :)
So here are a couple of suggestions in case you have run out of color ideas. For the first one I mixed a bit of pink, purple and… yes, yellow!
I think that this might end up being a PuErhTea Shawl :)
And for the second one, I made a transition from dark purple to dark teal:
This one I think will end up into a LoveTea Shawl. I’ve always made it in pink and grayish combinations, and I think it’s time for some blue love :)
People often ask me about the specific numbers I used, but most of the time I don’t even know… I keep improvising and adding/removing yarn until it looks good. My advice in any case is… don’t sweat it! It’s not important to use the exact tone, but rather to mix and match colors that go well together.
My only rule is to make smooth transitions, even if I’m using opposing or contrasting colors. Always remember that if you are transitioning from one color to its opposite, you need to go through gray or nude tones… the idea is to “remove” the color in the middle so that the transition makes sense.
I might make a special edition of the newsletter on color transitioning… would you be interested in that? ;-)
Latest pattern releases
During the past month I was working on my latest pattern, the JasmineTea Shawl! It ended looking totally different to what I was originally planning, but well… crochet seems to have a life of its own :). I released it by the end of November, and though I’m proud of it, I’ve ended up a bit drained. Too many patterns in the past months! So during December and January I’m giving myself a rest and resume designing in February (stay tuned!)
Here’s how it turned out, by the way :)
Also, for those of you who missed it, before starting November I released the DarjeelingTea Blanket pattern. It’s quite recent, but the weather has changed so much that it seems to be ages ago! I really miss the warm autumn afternoons… my wisteria is now totally leaf-less :)
And finally, in a completely different note, I also spent the last weeks of November crocheting my second Asteria. It’s an amazing pattern and I can’t get enough of it. The only problem is that I’m OK with making lots of blankets and shawls (who has enough shawls? Never enough of them!), but wall decorations are a different thing. I don’t have that many walls :D... So I made a wall decoration, then a rug… and I think I’m done. In any case, I think it looks amazing, like a fabric succulent!
What I’m currently working on
So, apart from some more shawl making, I’m spending December making Norvegian Felted Slippers! I always make a bunch of them in winter and give them to friends and family for Christmas. They are warm, cozy, handmade and soooo easy to make! The only trick is to use pure non-treated wool, the one that is suitable for felting, and then to felt them in the washing machine, just super hot cycle and tumble dry… the one thing that you would NEVER do with your woolen garments! :D
You just have to crochet two long “L” shapes, which are really eight squares together (I've marked them in the picture so that you understand what I mean… it’s a bit difficult to imagine how this will make a slipper later):
Then you sew this in a puzzle-like fashion to make something that looks like a giant’s shoe:
It looks… horrible, right? But then your washing machine will do the magic! Long, hot washing cycle (maybe you’ll need to do it twice) and after that… felted slippers!
This looks much better, right? They are perfect for an adult, but when I make them for children I like to add a bit of color and fantasy :). So I’ve taken up a new hobby… needle felting! (yeah, as if I had any free time left… but well :D). I received some time ago a HUGE box of pure wool from a friend, the kind of wool that yarn crafters use for spinning, and it turns out that it’s perfect for needle felting!
So I took some of these amazingly colorful fibers and starting stabbing them with my brand new needle (stress relief guaranteed!). And this is the result:
Cool, huh? If you feel like you REALLY NEED some super warm slippers for this winter, don’t miss this! It’s easier than it looks and they are finished in no time. Here you have a very nice tutorial.
Aaand… this is all! I hope you have a very nice end of the year and that you start the next one even better. See you all in January!
Inés