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Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Winter Hat Wreath

The chill is in the air!  First snowfalls of the season are happening!  This is such a great time of year.  Starting with the excitement of Halloween, the family gatherings and wonderful food to share during Thanksgiving, and the gift of giving during the Christmas season.  It's all so special!  One thing that most people will need during all these times is a nice warm hat.  I've been knitting a stack of hats, in an array of colors, sure to go with any coat or jacket.  Made from soft merino wool, in a cabled pattern.  Come and get one today! Happy Holidays to all!

Sunday, October 27, 2013

Sea Glass Baby Blanket

I've always been drawn to ocean colors.  Beautiful turquoise, tranquil aquas and soft greens.  I recently finished a new baby blanket and didn't realize until I was half way through, that I was knitting with the colors of sea glass.  It recalled recent trips to the ocean and the calming effect of the water.

The baby blanket was knit with Madelinetosh Pashmina yarn (75% merino wool, 15% silk and 10% cashmere), super soft and cuddly.  I think this would make a great gift for a special newborn baby, something that would be saved and passed down to new generations of sea-faring babies.  Available now on my website: https://barbswederbarrington.com/p-403-sea-glass-hand-knit-blanket.aspx



Friday, October 11, 2013

Getting Ready for Fall

The weather has started to cool off, the sun, setting earlier.  The humidity is waning and mornings are cool and refreshing.   The A/C is being used less and less and I'm starting to break out the blankets and quilts at night.  This is a nice, cozy time of year. 

I've been busy lately working on fall and winter items: hand-knit sweaters, scarves and hats, blankets and soft quilts.  I'm still working furiously, but wanted to share some pictures of new items soon to be on the website!



Quilted throws

Hand-knit blanket, sweaters and cabled hat.

Cozy up with a quilt for an afternoon nap!

Shades of Fall - Hand-knit Pashmina Scarves

Friday, August 30, 2013

Tutu Alice Video

I have been trying to expand my social thumbprint, through Facebook Pages, Google Maps, this Blog and most recently, You Tube.  I personally don't visit You Tube very frequently, typically only when one of my kids wants to show me something "great".  Well, I've seen more and more product review videos, new clips, etc. that post on YouTube and decided to take the plunge.  Now for the disclaimer:  How I envisioned this video and how it actually turned out is a bit different.  But given my limited experience and equipment, I'm happy with it.  I have to thank my wonderful "Alice", who was more than happy to follow my directions as director.  I also would like to thank my crew: my son, who did the video taping on his iPhone; my youngest daughter and my son's friend, who helped with the props; and my husband, who heard numerous discussions about this video, from its inception to publication.   The point of this video is to showcase my line of tutus.  Every girl should have a tutu to dream, imagine and create a new world of wonder.  So go pop some popcorn and I hope you enjoy the show!  Here's the link if you'd like to watch a larger screen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-xXOo2V5XM


Saturday, August 17, 2013

Shades of Fall


I started knitting the middle sweater, a 4T merino/cashmere blend, during our summer vacation.  I just loved the subtle variations of this yarn, with its greys, taupe and off white.  It's called Whiskers, from Madelinetosh and is just a dream to knit with.  I liked it so much, that upon my return from vacation, I ordered the same colorway in a lace weight to make the infant sweater in the foreground.  Given that these yarns are hand-painted, you never quite get the same look.  Different types of yarn take the dyes differently.  The infant sweater is 100% merino wool and done in a sweet lace pattern.  The sweater on the left, knit in Madelinetosh Candlewick, is one of my favorite.  It's brighter than a wheat color and golden, but not too much.  It really goes well with khakis, jeans, greys and I really love it with navy.  These are such great staples to add to any kid's wardrobe for the fall.  I love the simplicity of the look!  You'll be able to find them on my website here:  https://www.barbswederbarrington.com/c-26-sweaters.aspx

Here's another look at the little boy's sweater:



Monday, June 10, 2013

Mannequin vs. Model



I recently posted this photo of this pretty lightweight, newborn sweater on my Facebook page.  Five colors in all, in an easy wrap style.  Shortly after I posted, I received a message from one of my brothers.   He didn't think the mannequin did justice to my products and looked "pudgy".  Well, the measurements are accurate for an "average" newborn (mine is actually an old babyGap mannequin).  Ironically, my oldest daughter had been watching me take and post photos of other products and commented that I should use more real models.  OK.  So where do I get real models?  My kids are too old to model baby products, I have no family close by and none of my friends have babies!  I also like to take my photos using natural light, if possible.  It's hard to try and schedule a photo shoot, not knowing whether it will rain or not, if the baby is "up" for picture taking, etc.  Thus, I use mannequins-- they are usually quite agreeable.

On the flip-side, I do agree, most products look better being worn by an actual person.  So, in crawls Baby P.  By way of background, my kids school holds a nice service every year for all the newborn babies of families that attend the school.  It's called Baby Chapel.  I was asked several years ago to make something special for the newborns and have been doing it ever since.  This year the school gifted all the newborns with beautiful, double-gauze receiving blankets.  At a different event at the school, I had spotted a really adorable baby, sitting across the aisle from us and a soon-to-be-recipient of a receiving blanket.  Cute, very well natured-- the perfect baby!  I inquired after the family and to make a long story short, the family agreed to being photographed!  Even more incredible, the dad is a photographer in his spare time and offered to take the pictures.   A gift from heaven.  The pictures were much better than I could have hoped for, and 100x better than I could have done myself.  So, without further ado, here is baby P., modeling not only my new generation bib and burp cloth (see last blog post), but her double-gauze receiving blanket as well.  I can't thank the family enough for giving me the chance to have a real model showcasing my products!!  Thank you!  Thank you!

Baby P with quilted bib and burp cloth, double-gauze receiving blanket.

Mom, Baby P and quilted bib and burp cloth set

Burp Cloths - 3rd Generation




I started making burp cloths many years ago, after my second child was born.  I actually began thinking about it while my first was still a baby, lamenting about how the diaper/burp cloth just looked like more laundry for me to do in my exhausted state.  I first used cloth diapers that I had purchased, embellishing the rough ends with nice fabrics and trim (Generation 1). 

These evolved to wider fabric edges and more exciting colors and fabrics.  Still, I wasn't satisfied with the store bought diaper.  After several washings, it would start to pill, never really folded well, etc.  So, along came Generation 2.  I started from scratch, making my own diaper from absorbent Birdseye diaper cloth, lined it with diaper flannel and I was off to the races.  It was very time consuming, but the product quality was much better and more versatile.  I used them extensively after my third baby was born, as a burp cloth, quick car seat blanket, or rolled as a head support in the motorized swing or bouncy seat.  I still make these burp cloths and they are as functional and pretty as ever!  

Given my desire to make something new, I started out making a wrapped voile burp cloth, quilted in a diamond pattern.  The fabrics I use are printed by Spoonflower, a wonderful company that prints any design you want on a variety of fabric options, with thousands of prints submitted by very talented individuals.  Really, quite impressive!  Again, this version is very time consuming, but quite lovely and very functional!  You can find them here on my website!  I currently sell them only in a bib and burp cloth set, but may sell them individually in the future.   Will there be a Gen 4?  Only time will tell!

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Blue-Stripe Intarsia Sweater



When I start working on a new sweater, I usually have a pretty good idea of how I want it to look, sizing, etc.  More often than not though, I usually change something, somewhere along the way.  I don't like to start over, rip out stitches, etc.  So, if I'm not completely happy with my project, I usually tweak it, add something, change or add stitch variations.  I spent a lot of time working on this sweater, with the added work of its intarsia flowers.  Because the colors I used were more soft and muted, I felt that the flowers didn't "pop" enough.  So, I added beads and sequins.  I think it gives it more definition, more "pop", and makes it a special sweater for that special little girl.  What do you think?  This sweater was knit with Madelinetosh merino lace yarn--super soft!

Close-up of beaded flowers

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Indigo Blue Inspiration

Even though we live near the beach and have more shells than we know what to do with, I still enjoy walking new beaches to see different types of shells.  The shells found below are only about 45 miles up the coast, but quite different in color than the shells on our local beach.  Deep, rich indigo blues are a reoccurring theme on Amelia Island, FL.  I love the color and texture of these shells and they inspire me to dig through my yarn stash and find similar colors.  Quite lovely, don't you think!



Friday, January 4, 2013

Quilted Throws - Bright, Warm and Beautiful!

In my previous post, I gushed about my new walking foot (for my sewing machine!).  Well, the quilted beauties above are just the beginning of many more quilts to come!  These are made from 100% cotton voile, with a blend of cotton, silk and bamboo batting.  I can't tell you how soft and lovely these are-- you just have to feel them.  The quilts drape so nicely and make a great addition to a sofa, bed or side chair.