Easter Egg dyes, a great way to experiment with food-safe, non-toxic dyes, are on sale…everywhere!

Even if you haven’t dyed before, or you think it might be complicated, Easter egg dyes are really the foolproof way to go. I promise, you can’t mess it up.

To get started, check out  video that walks you through all the steps:

If you’re ready to get going and are about to bolt out the door to snatch up the last boxes of dyes, here’s a quick shopping list:

• A box of easter egg dyes
• White or apple cider vinegar
• White yarn or wool (any animal fiber will work, but NOT plant-fibers (cotton, soy, bamboo, banana))

Some tips on buying Easter egg dyes:

• Don’t pay more than a dollar for a box of 5-6 colors. Really. If your store is charging more than a dollar, come back in two days.
• Don’t bother with the sparkly dyes. Or the stickers, wax crayons, etc. All you’re going to need is the little dye tablets.
• That said, check the box to see what colors are included! If you want brights, you can’t go wrong with the basics. But the “neon” kit produces great colors, too (like the hot pink in this yarn). The “camo” is ok, if you’re into dark greens and browns (not for me!).
• Speaking of browns, don’t believe them. Every time I’ve dyed with brown, not matter WHAT I did, it split into purple and gray. Very weird.
• When you get your stash home, split ‘em up by color. I use mason jars (and I attach a small fluff of wool with the color, so I can tell the orange from the yellow) and it saves tons of time.

I’ve gotta tell you, I mean to post this reminder EVERY year, and I always forget until after my local stores are sold out of packets.

Here’s hoping you get to the store in time!

I’d love to hear your own experiences with Easter Egg yarn-dyeing, share them (or your questions) in the comments!

Oh sure, I’m making a sweater in one month…out of laceweight…but that doesn’t mean I can’t still flirt with crochet right?

My newest obsession is Amigurumi. That’s a fancy (er, Japanese) way of saying knit or crochet stuffed toys. And, like most of our fiber crafts it has taken on a life of it’s own.
I found one book at my library (Crobots) and using the Dogbot pattern, I made the above puppy. It’s my first crocheted toy ever and I couldn’t be happier with him!

I made this Pirate Duck for Selma, using this sweet (free!) Simple Bird pattern.

If you find yourself obsessed:

The Craftster community huge pile of Amigurumi (these bunnies will give you an idea of the CUTE that the Craftster community is sharing), and I just keep clicking and clicking.

Ana Paula has designed two overwhelmingly adorable pattern books and her blog is full of inspirational photos. I’ve reserved both books at my library, and I can’t wait for them to come in.

PlanetJune offers both patterns AND those cute little little black eyes. I definitely see those in my future.

Do you Ami?

If so, I’d love to know what you’ve made!
If not, what are you waiting for?

If you missed it then, you can still get a (free) shawl pattern, by purchasing a skein of banana yarn from the Boutique, in the next week. (Offer ends 8/1)

The pattern is mostly the wrap-stitch (did I make this up? I don’t know!) and it’s a little hard to explain verbally, although it’s super-simple to perform.

Here’s how you do it!

And the bind-off is basically a crochet bind-off…but with your knitting needles. Here’s what I mean:

(behind the scenes note: I am wearing the same skirt in the photoshoot for the patterns and in the tutorials. Different days, same skirt.)

If you have any questions or comments (would you like to see more videos?), leave them in the comments!

With A Novel Yarn, I taught a Learn to Purl class, filled with everyone from my Learn to Knit classes. Teaching the class and going over every step of the process, taught me a lot about the stitch.

I watched the students and asked them about their experiences.
I thought about my own purling experience.

And I wondered: Is everyone’s Learn to Purl experience different from their Learn to Knit experience?

So I’d like to hold a little survey and collect Learn to Purl stories.

In the comments, please  share:

• How did you learn to purl?
• How long after learning to knit, did you learn to purl?
• Did you find it more or less difficult?

I’ll analyze your responses and report back next week!
(If you’d rather not share publicly, feel free to email me – blondechickenboutiqueATyahoo)

It’s in her 2nd post in a super helpful series on knitting hats.

approximate hat heights

0-6 mo. – 5 in. (12.7 cm)
6-18 mo. – 6.25 in. (15.9 cm)
18 mo.-4 yr. – 7.25 in. (18.4 cm)
4 yr.-adult s – 8.25 in. (21 cm)
adult m-l – 9 in. (22.9 cm)

Read her whole post here.

If you’ve wanted to start teaching your craft, listen to the conversation here.

Diane mentions that my Learn to Knit kit taught her to knit (squee!), you can find the kits here. Even if you know how to knit, these kits are a great way to teach a family member and avoid frustration that comes from not knowing how to describe when-the-loop-does-this-you-do-this.

Have you taught your craft?
Anything you’d add to our conversation?

In that spirit, the Learn to Knit Kit will have FREE SHIPPING for the next week!

To sweeten the gift, the Kit will include (for the next week ONLY) $10 off your next Blonde Chicken Boutique purchase.

 The kit will have a physical gift certificate in it, so when you give it as a gift, you can sneak it out for yourself (shame!) or leave it in for the recipient!

Wondering if the Kit is right for you? Read Diane’s review here!

Diane from CraftyPod has answered the question thoroughly! In her review she shares some screen shots from the videos and what do you know, she learns to knit! Read her glowing review here and then get your own copy (for a non-knitting cousin!) here.

And just a friendly warning – December 17th is the last day to buy the kit for Christmas delivery!