Tag Archives: yarn

Oct18

Winter Is Coming (But Your Head Doesn’t Have to Be Cold)

Posted on October 18, 2017 by Blaize Sun

Each of these three pink and purple cuties is extra large and has a rolled edge. They cost $15 each, including shipping.

I’ve been on a hat-making kick. I love to see the way colors come together and working with colorful yarn allows me to have such an experience. I like to keep my hands busy when I listen to a podcast or do a Spanish lesson, and making hats is good for that too.

Both of these hats are extra large and have a rolled edge. Either can be yours for only $15, including shipping.

At the end of last winter, I’d said I was out of the hat business. Rolls of yarn seemed too bulky to store in the van, and I had so many hats already in stock. I don’t really get a good financial payoff from selling hats either; because it takes me over an hour to make a hat, I barely make minimum wage on my labor when I sell a hat for 10 or even 15 bucks. Making more hats barely seemed worth it to me.

These three greenies will take you through to St. Patrick’s Day! Each is extra large with a rolled edge. Each will keep your head warm and save you from being pinched for only $15, including shipping.

Then, in the spring, a sweet New Mexico friend cleaned out her craft larder and offered me all the yarn she decided she wouldn’t use after all. I couldn’t turn down her kindness, and I was back in the hat business.

This hat is brown and yellow and pale blue. It’s extra large for a comfy fit for the big of head or hair and has a rolled edge. It can grace your head for only $15, including shipping.

I noticed the last few times I set up my sales table, the extra-large hats were getting all the attention. Very interesting. Most people, it seems, want a loose hat. Personally, I like a snug hat I can keep pulled down over my ears, but as my dad used to say, if everyone liked the same thing, there wouldn’t be enough to go around. Because more people seem to be interested in extra-large hats, lately I’ve concentrated my efforts on making extra-large hats. I’m asking a couple dollars more for the bigger hats because making them requires more of my time and materials.

Red and grey and brightly colored, both of these hats pop! Each is extra large with a rolled edge. Each will cost you only $15, including shipping.

Most of the hats you’ll see in the this post are new, handmade by me in the last few weeks. Each is extra-large and has a rolled edge. Each costs $15, including shipping. (As always, if you buy more and I can consolidate your items into one package going to one address, I’ll give you a break on shipping.)

The money job was slow one day, so I made a purple and blue hat while I was stuck there. It’s extra large, with a rolled edge and was made from yarn my friend sent me. For only $15, including shipping, it can keep your head warm now and into the future.

If none of these hats entice you, have a look at my newly updated Hats for Sale page. All of the hats shown in this post are also shown on that page, as well as plenty of large hats for folks with smaller heads or those who want a snugger fit.

On another slow day at the mercantile, I whipped up this colorful cutie with more yarn sent by my friend. It’s extra large, with a rolled edge. You can wear it on your head for only $15, including shipping.

Winter is coming, yes, but you can keep your head warm with a hat from the heart and hands of the Rubber Tramp Artist.

Jan2

Yarn

Posted on January 2, 2017 by Blaize Sun

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I thought I was done with the business of making hats. That’s what I told the world on December 1.

I’m not making any more hats for a long time…Yarn takes up storage space…The completed hats take up up space too…Yarn cost money…I’m not really selling enough hats to make creating them worth the effort.

(Read all about it here: http://www.rubbertrampartist.com/2016/12/01/the-last-of-the-hats/.)

Less than a month later (less than two weeks later, actually), I went to the Las Vegas Goodwill Clearance Center on what must have been yarn clearance day. I found so much yarn, in many great colors. Yarn doesn’t weigh much, right? So yarn sold by the pound is cheap. I couldn’t pass up cheap yarn in good colors. I threw all the yarn I found into my basket. Some of it was all tangled up in other items, and I had to cut the yarn to get it in my basket. (Good thing I found some scissors being sold off by the pound.)

This photo shows the yarn I got at the Goodwill Clearance Center in Las Vegas, NV.

This photo shows some of the yarn I got at the Goodwill Clearance Center in Las Vegas, NV.

I actually didn’t buy all the yarn I found that day. I went through the yarn before I took my selections to the register for purchase and put back the colors I didn’t like so much. I got rid of a couple skeins of a dark green that made my head hurt. I left behind some dingy looking white. I only kept the yarn I thought would make really nice hats.

Why do I have such a hard time walking away from yarn? I guess I’m going to have to face it: I’m addicted to yarn.

Also, I just like making hats. I like the ways the colors come together…or how they don’t come together when I make poor color combo choices. I like starting from a couple balls of yarn and ending up with a hat. I get great satisfaction from creating.

As soon as I bought the yarn, I could barely wait to start making hats again. I’ve already made several, and yesterday I loaded up my phone with podcasts to listen to while I work with my new yarn.

I guess I’m back in the hat business. Let me know if you want to buy one. I’ve got plenty.

These large hats were made from yarn bought by the pound at the Goodwill Clearance Center. All three have rolled edges and cost $13 each, including postage.

These are two more hats I made from yarn I got at the Goodwill Clearance Center. Both are large, both have a finished edge, both have sparkle white yarn in them, and both cost $13 each, including postage.

This green and grey hat is extra large. It has a rolled edge and costs $13, including shipping. The yarn came from the Goodwill Clearance Center windfall.

I made this hat before I left the forest in October, but it just resurfaced when I cleaned the van. It is an extra large and has a rolled edge. It costs $13, including postage.

I took all the photos in this post.

Nov16

Bigger Hats

Posted on November 16, 2016 by Blaize Sun

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The weather’s getting cooler, and it might be time to think of a warm winter hat.

Before I left the mountain, I took out the largest of the looms I work with and made some bigger hats.

If you think my other hats might be too small for you, or if you have a lot of hair to pull a hat over, any of the hats pictured in this post might be for you.

Any of the hats shown here are available for $13, including shipping. All of the hats are made with my own two hands and have a rolled edge.

If you don’t like these hats or think they might be too big for your head, you can click on “Hats I’ve Made (For Sale)” to see what else is available, or send me an email message.

Oct21

A Summer of Infinity Scarves

Posted on October 21, 2016 by Blaize Sun

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I know summer is no time for infinity scarves. Most people living in the Northern Hemisphere are not going to bundle up anytime

These are four scarves I made for some of my lady friends back at the Bridge.

between June and September. However, summer is when I had to time to make scarves, so after initial hesitation when I wasn’t sure I’d remember how to do the last steps of the infinity scarf process (I remembered!) I went on what I can only call a yarn bender. I didn’t want to go to work. I didn’t want to read. I didn’t want to clean the van. I didn’t want to cook, although I did want to eat. Mostly I just wanted to listen to podcasts and make infinity scarves.

(Read about the first two infinity scarves I made this summer here: http://www.rubbertrampartist.com/2016/08/26/two-new-infinity-scarves/.)

The yarn bender started when the Chile Lady sent me two skeins of yarn. The yarn was thick, the sort of yarn intended to be used with my round looms. (When using the thin yarn that’s more readily available at thrift stores, I use two strands at a time. The thick yarn requires only one strand at a time.) One skein of yarn was a charcoal grey. The other was a deep red, nearly a burgundy.

Esmerelda is modeling the infinity scarf I made for Elsa.

I had missed Elsa’s birthday, so I decided to make her a scarf using the yarn the Chile Lady had sent. I decided instead of using alternating rows of colors, I would keep it simple and use the colors in two blocks. The thick yarn and the large blocks of color made the scarf-making go fast; I had the scarf ready in no time.

I don’t remember which scarf I made next. I just know I made scarves for Mariquita, Dawn, and Rose in quick succession. I remembered how Dawn had most liked the brightly colorful hats I’d had at the Bridge the last time I was there, so I made her a brightly colorful scarf. Mariquita is quiet and somewhat

Esmerelda is modeling the scarf I made for Rose, with a color scheme of rosy pinks and browns.

reserved, so I made her a scarf with a more restrained color scheme of blues and seafoam greens. The color scheme for Rose’s scarf included rosy pinks and browns.

While I made infinity scarves, I listened to podcasts on my phone. One advantage to moving into the current decade where cell phones are concerned is that I can now put music and podcast episodes on my phone. While I made scarves, I listened to Risk, Stuff You Missed in History Class, Stuff You Should Know, and a new favorite Death, Sex, & Money.

Esmerelda is modeling the scarf I made for Mariquita.

I also did Pimsleur Spanish lessons while I made scarves. I’ve been doing Pimsleur Spanish lessons off and on (mostly off) for about two years, since Tea loaned me the Pimsleur CDs her friend burned for her. I put the lessons on my laptop before my disc drive jammed. Before I realized I could transfer the lessons from my laptop onto my phone, it was a big deal to take out my laptop everyday, do my thirty minute Spanish lesson, then quickly turn off the computer to save as much battery power as possible. The charge on the battery in my phone lasts a lot longer than the charge on my laptop battery, and the phone is a lot easier to charge using an inverter and the van’s battery, so having the lessons on my phone has made my Spanish studying much easier.

These four scarves are not the last I made. Oh no! I made five more scarves after these. But I’ll save those for another day.

Sep6

New Hats for Sale

Posted on September 6, 2016 by Blaize Sun

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I’ve been using up small bits of yarn in colors that don’t fit the schemes I have in mind for infinity scarves. In a few days, I made seven hats.

Esmerelda is modeling a large white hat with a finished edge. In this photo, the finished edge is folded up. This hat features a variety of blues and is topped by a pompom. The hat costs $13, including shipping.

Sometimes I get so excited about making hats, I don’t want to do anything else. Who needs to sleep, cook, eat, clean? Not me! The most important thing in my life is making hats!

In this photo, Esmerelda is modeling a large hat with a finished edge. The edge is folded down in this view. It’s a bright hat with lots of shades of oranges and yellow. The hat is topped with a pompom and costs $13, including shipping.

In this view of the same hat, the finished edge is folded up.

Other times, I don’t even want to think about yarn, much less making a hat.

I can’t pinpoint any reasons for why I feel one way or another. Sometimes that hat benders are brief, and sometimes they last for weeks.

In any case, I’ve been making hats, and they’re all for sale. Each one costs $13, including shipping costs.

I know it’s September, and most folks won’t need a warm hat for a couple of months. But as fans of Game of Thrones are reminded, winter is coming. Now is a good time to prepare. Your head will thank you.

This large hat has a finished edge. In this photo, the edge is folded up. The main color of this had is purple, with some yellow, but the purple variegated yarn has some green in it too, so it won't quite make for the straight up LSU fan.

This large hat has a finished edge. In this photo, the edge is folded up. The main color of this hat is purple, with some yellow, but the purple variegated yarn has some green in it too, so it’s probably not for the straight-up LSU fan. The hat costs $13, including shipping.

The large hat Esmerelda is modeling in this photo has an unfinished edge. The color scheme is primarily blue, but it has some orange near the top as well. The cost of this hat is $13, including shipping. (This hat is NO LONGER AVAILABLE.)

This large hat has an unfinished edge. It is primarily yellow and orange, but there are some blue in it as well. The cost is $13, including shipping.

This large hat has an unfinished edge. It is primarily yellow and orange, but there are some blues in it as well. The cost is $13, including shipping.

This large hat features a variety of colors: blue, orange, yellow, purple. It has an unfinished edge and costs $13, including shipping charge.

This large hat features a variety of colors: blue, orange, yellow, green, purple. It has an unfinished edge and costs $13, including shipping charge.

This photo shows another large hat with an unfinished edge featuring a variety of colors. The hat is mostly a light blue, but it also includes orange and yellow. The price is $13, including shipping. (This hat is NO LONGER AVAILABLE.)

Aug26

Two New Infinity Scarves

Posted on August 26, 2016 by Blaize Sun

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In May, I started working on an infinity scarf for a friend. I worked on it sporadically, but I just couldn’t get excited about the task. I was dreading the final step, for which I had used an online video as a guide when I made the first scarf. Would I be able to follow the written instructions I’d printed before I left Babylon? I was unsure of my ability to remember how to do the final step or to follow the written instructions. I didn’t want to mangle my friend’s gift.

But one day I decided I’d procrastinated enough. The time to finish the scarf had arrived.

I got to the final step. I read the directions. I followed them one at a time. I remembered what I’d seen in the video. I finished the scarf. It wasn’t mangled. Yippie!

On the left is the scarf I made for my friend, my second infinity scarf. My friend grew up in New England, so as I made this scarf for her, I thought of the leaves changing colors in that part of the world. I tried to capture the autumn colors to remind her of home.

Quick! Before I could forget what I’d just relearned, I made another infinity scarf for another friend. This one was easier. I finished it quickly, in a couple of day.

My road dog Esmerelda models the infinity scarf I made for a friend.

This friend’s favorite color is purple, so I used a purple and blue color scheme. I think it came out great.

Now I feel confident in my scarf-making abilities. Pretty soon I won’t even have to look at the instructions while I work.

I took the photos in this post.

Jul19

Infinity Scarf

Posted on July 19, 2016 by Blaize Sun

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I’ve been making hats from yarn for almost two years. I bought one of those round loom sets at a thrift store and taught myself to make hats by reading the instructions that came with the kit, making a lot of mistakes, and practicing, practicing, practicing. I sell some of the hats I make and give some of them as gifts. My favorite aspect of making hats is playing with color. I like using bright, especially variegated yarn.

Here are some of the hats I’ve made:

This blue and white hat has a finished edge. The yarn is very thick. This will be a warm, warm hat.

This large blue and white hat has a finished edge. The yarn is very thick and should keep a head very, very warm. It costs $13, including shipping.

This large hat has an unfinished edge. It is quite purple, and costs $13, including postage.

These large green and blue hats cost $13 each, including shipping. The one on the upper right has a finished edge. The other two have rolled edges.

These large hats for are made from 100% wool. They cost $20, including postage. They all have rolled edges.

(You can see all of the hats I have for sale at http://www.rubbertrampartist.com/hats-ive-made-for-sale/.)

When I was on Facebook, someone in a group I was in mentioned making infinity scarves with her round loom. I asked her how she used the loom to make infinity scarves, and she directed me to http://www.instructables.com/id/how-to-knit-an-infinity-scarf-on-a-loom/. Again, I learned how to do the craft project by reading the instructions, making some mistakes, and practicing, practicing, practicing.

The first infinity scarf I made was a birthday present for a friend.

Here’s a photo showing what the scarf looked like shortly after I began work on it.

Here’s another photo showing the scarf a bit later in the process:

It takes a lot of time and yarn to make an infinity scarf. I’d have to charge a lot of money for these scarves if I sold them.

Here’s a photo of the completed project:

I’m in the process of making a second infinity scarf as a gift for another friend, but it’s been slow going. The scarves don’t offer the quick gratification that hats offer and feel more like work than fun, another reason I’ll probably never sell one.

I took all of the photos in this post.