Category: Knitted Beasties

Come dive with me…

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Info, Knitted Beasties

Diver Beastie

Every now and again, Beastie development takes a bigger-than-usual leap forward – often when I take on a commission, which pushes me out of my comfort zone and gets me thinking of new methods and accessories. And this was definitely the case with Diver Beastie! He taught me a lot about diving equipment, and encouraged me to experiment with some new materials in my quest to shrink human-sized tanks, regulators and dive masks to Beastie proportions. So, without further ado, I’m delighted to introduce Diver Beastie! Let’s take a look at all the cool stuff he has…
Wetsuit, Line Cutter, Dive Knife and Watch

Diver Beastie lives in his wetsuit. You can just about see the snazzy yellow flashes down the side of his legs in this picture! The red thing hanging from his belt is a line cutter –  although he’s also carrying a dive knife (inspired by every James Bond film I’ve ever seen), knives aren’t permitted in some diving sites. The line cutter is a safer tool, which can be used to cut through tangled or snagged lines. It’s always best to be prepared! Diver Beastie is also very proud of his watch/dive computer, which you can see on his left wrist. He also has…
Diver Beastie Flippers

… Felt flippers…
Diver Beastie Tank

… An air tank…
Diver Beastie Mask and Regulator

… A dive mask and a regulator! Put all that together and you get…

Finished Diver Beastie!

One Diver Beastie, ready for action!

Then it was time to send him off to his new home… in Texas! He was very keen to swim there himself, but I managed to talk him out of it… the last thing I wanted was for him to end up as a shark’s lunch. Also, going by plane is a lot quicker. And it looks like he arrived safely! He now lives with two fellow diving enthusiasts, and enjoys borrowing their equipment…
Diver Beastie in Texas

…Marvelling at their enormous human-sized dive tanks…
Diver Beastie with Tank
… And scooting around in a conveniently Beastie-sized Landrover, which also came over from Ireland!
Diver Beastie with Landrover

Thanks to Tracy for sharing photos of Diver Beastie in his new home! And to everyone else for keeping up with the Beasties and their adventures – talk to you again soon!

Exciting News!

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Info, Knitted Beasties

Beastie Group

Oh dear! I have been a rather lazy blogger these last couple of months! But there has been a lot going on behind the scenes, and now I have news aplenty to share!

First of all, a while back I selected an elite Beastie crew, which included most of the monsters you can see in the picture above, and sent them off on a top-secret mission. After bundling them up in bubble wrap to protect them from the whims of the Irish weather (and also to keep them entertained on their journey)…
Goth Beastie, ready to wrap!

…and tucking them in with plenty of colourful tissue paper…
Beasties away!

…we were ready to take a trip on the Dart!
Box of Beasties!

The team was dropped off at a strategic location, and then all I could do was sit back and wait to hear whether or not their mission had been successful. There were tense moments, sleepless nights… but hurrah! On Friday I received word that all has gone according to plan.

And what was this top-secret mission, you ask?
Beasties go online!

Only a move into the world of high street and online retail! The lovely people at Opening Minds are now selling Beasties on their website, and will be introducing them into their Dun Laoghaire store in the next couple of days! I could not be more proud of my little monsters!

Meanwhile, all has not been quiet on the home front either. Because Beastie Towers has relocated! Beasties, Boyfriend and I have been settling into our new home in a surprisingly quiet part of Dublin’s city centre. We are now enjoying an unprecedented amount of natural light (excellent for making fiddly Beastie accessories), greenery and – SHOCK – birdsong instead of traffic noise! I’ve also finally been able to liberate the rest of my crafty supplies from storage, giving me so much more fabric and yarn to play with. I can’t wait to get started!

Speaking of which, my knitting needles are calling… I should have a heap of new Beasties to share with you soon!

More New Beasties…

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Knitted Beasties

Rugby Beastie

Holy moly! It’s been another busy week… this summer is just zipping by! At least I’ve been able to find a couple of spare minutes to finish off a few new Beastie friends. Yesterday, I sent a top secret Beastie commission to his new home – I’ll share pictures once he reaches his destination successfully!

I also thought that the Creative Collective shop in Dalkey could use a bigger Beastie turnout. Beasties are naturally gregarious creatures, and they’re happiest when they’re hanging out in a big bunch. So I used that as an excuse to add the final touches to some monsters who have been living in my “In Progress” box for a while.

First of all, meet our cover star… Rugby Beastie!
Rugby Beastie side view

Rugby Beastie is the newest addition to the Irish squad. He’s shown up for training this morning with his own rugby ball and old-school rugby jersey, and he’s taped up his ears to prevent long-term damage…

Cauliflower Ear!

Uh-oh! Looks like he’s a little too late on that one. And because he’s my first Rugby Beastie, it was obvious which number he should get…
Rugby Beastie back view

Cheering him on from the sidelines is a lady who usually prefers to stay at home with a good book – Book Club Beastie!
Book Club Beastie

With her mop of blonde hair and natty print skirt, she can easily be spotted lugging another huge bag of purchases out of her local bookshop or enjoying a good read in her favourite cafe. What’s she reading right now, you ask?
The Great Knitsby

“The Great Knitsby”, of course!

Thanks for stopping by… have a monster weekend, everyone!

Been a while…

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Info, Knitted Beasties

New Big BeastieHoly moly! Where has the last month gone?!

Well, for starters, I’ve been taking a few steps towards making my largely sofa-based cottage (or, more accurately, apartment) industry into a more business-shaped concern. I’ve started keeping proper accounts, declared myself to the taxman and put together a Beastie information leaflet, so I can share their stories with even more people without having to leave the house!

Unfortunately, while these things are significant, they don’t make for particularly interesting reading. I’m also reasonably confident that my readers would soon tire of photos of me sitting in front of my computer. So, that takes care of the first couple of weeks of my absence.

The OTHER reason I’ve been away is…
Creative Collective Shop…We have a new shop!

This beautiful, quirky little gallery space in Dalkey, South Dublin was offered to Creative Collective Ireland in the middle of this month. They very kindly invited the Beasties to take up residence there, alongside an all-star cast of gorgeous jewellery, fashion and homewares. Of course, we all jumped at the opportunity! After a  hectic few days of painting, furniture moving and shelf installation, we opened our doors to the public at the weekend. And the best part is that we’re here for the summer! The shop will be open every weekend (Friday-Sunday) until the end of August. So if you happen to find yourself in Dublin, drop in and pay us a visit! Even if you can’t make it, you can still find out more about Creative Collective and the shop on our Facebook page.

Of course, a new shop means new Beasties! I decided to put together a couple more All-Irish Beasties to get the ball rolling…
All-Irish Beastie - PintPint Beastie Close-Up

I couldn’t resist making one with a pint! And I also took the opportunity to break out some classic book-based puns…
All-Irish Beastie - Wool-lyssesWool-lysses Close-Up
All-Irish Beastie - Woolly-ver's TravelsWoolly-ver's Travels Close-Up

I also brought along one of my super-cuddly Big Beasties, just to look after the smaller ones…
Big Beastie

I’ll be sending more Beasties down to Dalkey to join these guys soon! Stay tuned for pictures…

Oooh! New Beasties!

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Ideas, Knitted Beasties

All-Irish Beastie

For some time now, I’ve been wanting to make a range of Irish Beasties. Of course, my Beasties are already pretty Irish – they are born here, after all. But it always surprises me how little of the yarn we get in this country actually comes from here. And when you have a whole world of beautiful fibres to choose from – South American alpaca, merino wool from Down Under – it’s very easy to take what you have at home for granted.

Fortunately, I recently got a couple of timely wake-up calls. A while ago, some of my knitting friends and I started taking “Knit Days” – we’d hop on a train, or form a convoy of cars, and travel to another town or city to enjoy a crafty day out, usually fuelled by copious quantities of tea and cake. One of these Knit Days took us to the village of Graignamanagh in Co. Kilkenny, which is the home of Cushendale Woollen Mills. This family-owned mill has been producing yarn and finished woollen goods since the mid-1800s, and we were lucky enough to get a full tour during our visit. Since then, I’ve been looking out for a project that would allow me to use some of their products… even more so after I helped my friend with the annual stocktake at her wool shop, and I couldn’t stop admiring the beautiful colours of the Cushendale yarns. I realised that they reminded me of the countryside out in Roscommon, which is where my boyfriend comes from, and somewhere I never get tired of visiting…

Lake, RoscommonRoad, RoscommonForest, RoscommonAbandoned Car, RoscommonPeat Bog, Roscommon

Gate, RoscommonBlackthorn Blossom, RoscommonMoss, RoscommonPeat Bog on a Cloudy Day

So, I picked out the four colours which I thought best summed up the peat-bog palette, and got knitting! Having completed my first full All-Irish Beastie, I had to give him an accessory… something really IRISH. I could have gone the obvious route – shamrock, leprechaun outfit – but I wanted something a little different, that still reflected everyday life in this part of the world. So he got…
Irish Beastie full lengthIrish Beastie Tea Mug

A BIG MUG OF TEA!

Bet you didn’t see that coming… but, no matter who you consult, we Irish always make the top 3  in the world tea-drinking charts.

Our only challengers for the title are Morocco and Turkey, where people must be making cuppas 24-7 to hold us off the top spot. Truly “Irish” tea is made in a teapot, then put back on the range to stew into a viscous tar-like substance, before being thinned out with liberal doses of milk and sugar. But most of us settle for throwing a bag of Lyons or Barrys into a mug and just stirring it around a bit!

More All-Irish Beasties will be landing soon! Let me know in the comments if there are any you’d particularly like to see!

Chef Beastie Revisited

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Info, Knitted Beasties

New Chef Beastie

At the last market I did, one of the Beasties who attracted the most attention was my Chef Beastie. Oh look, here he is:

Chef Beastie

So when I was deciding which monsters to include in my line-up for the Pop Up Shop I’m doing at the minute, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to revisit a classic Beastie and make a few changes. All my Beasties are unique, after all! As you can see from the main picture, New Chef Beastie has a more fitted apron to protect his stylish red trousers, and he’s clearly not going to the same dentist as my first one. I also thought I’d update his accessories…

Carrot and Knife for Chef Beastie

Well, only a little bit. The felt carrot was such a hit last time that I just had to give him one of those. But since I have spent the last while honing my weapon-making skills, I thought I could probably trust him with a felt kitchen knife.

Et voila! Beastie is served!

It’s Showtime!

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Info, Knitted Beasties

Pop Up Shop

Taaa-daaaah! Today I was out in Dun Laoghaire setting up Creative Collective Ireland’s Pop Up Shop. After a whole lot of shelf hauling, bemused studying of empty spaces and incremental tweaking of the displays, I think we’re ready to go!

And of course I got a little bit of extra help…
Hipster Girl Beastie
Well, sort of. Hipster Girl Beastie was too busy checking out the jewellery.

Beastie with Jewellery
Fortunately my rhubarb-and-custard-coloured Beastie was on hand to tidy up after her!

Beastie with Box
He also took a shine to this hand-turned gift box, then…

Beastie with Scarf
… found a soft silky scarf, and settled down for a bit of a snooze. At least Ninja Beastie was working hard – he’s in charge of security.
State-of-the art Security System

Others were happy just to pose for a couple of publicity shots! I’d like to introduce you to one of my Big Beasties – this is the first time I’ve had them up for sale, so I’m interested to see how people react. They’re twice the size of regular Beasties… and at least twice as huggable!
Big Beastie and Rose Beastie

Opening day is tomorrow, so wish us luck! I wonder who our first customer will be…
Victorian Explorer Beastie with Soap

A Grand Day Out… With Victorian Explorer Beastie

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Knitted Beasties

Victorian Explorer Beastie With Hippo

I had to go out and pick up a few last-minute display bits for the Pop Up Shop over the weekend, and I thought I would treat myself to a quick wander around one of my favourite places in Dublin – the Natural History Museum!Natural History Museum

I love this place. It’s like a museum of a museum – a real old-fashioned collection of interesting things in hardwood and glass cases, uncluttered by the beeping interactive displays and looping videos that infest most modern museums. Most of the animals are labelled with only their name (in English and Latin), where they came from and when they were added to the collection. If you want to know more about them, you have everything you need to do the rest of the legwork yourself at home. This frees you up to actually look at the animals while you’re in the museum, and appreciate their size, their colouring, the crazier features of their bodies that help them to survive… it’s also a great place to do some people-watching!

I figured Victorian Explorer Beastie would feel right at home here, so I brought him along for the ride.
Outside the Natural History Museum
The ground floor of the building houses Irish fauna. These giant Irish elk skeletons greet you as you walk in!

Irish Elk Skeleton

Even the smallest animals get a look-in – there are cases at the back containing all kinds of minibeasts, from beetles to slugs. Understandably, perhaps, the butterflies and moths are the most popular!
Butterfly Case

Upstairs is the “Animals of the World” exhibition, where Victorian Explorer Beastie came face-to-face with a monkey…
Explorer Beastie with Capuchin Monkey
… Met a record-breaking Irish wolfhound…
Explorer Beastie with Irish Wolfhound

…And realised he is much, much smaller than an elephant.
Victorian Explorer Beastie with Elephant
He also nearly got into a spot of bother – LOOK BEHIND YOU!
He's behind you...

Turned out the hippo was only having a bit of a yawn, so we left unscathed. But we’ll be back! Hope you enjoyed visiting with us!

Victorian Explorer Beastie

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Info, Knitted Beasties, Uncategorized

Victorian Explorer Beastie Close-Up

Regular visitors to the BeastieBlog will remember this dashing chap from our visit to Bray in Co. Wicklow a couple of months ago.
Bray Head

However, he was so busy strolling along the promenade, climbing the hill and picking up interesting pebbles on the beach that he didn’t get a chance to show off all his tip-top explorer kit. So I’ve invited him back!Victorian Explorer Beastie

No gentleman explorer should leave home without his pith helmet, belt pouch for assorted sundries, and knapsack. I wonder what he’s taking with him?
Map and Hipflask

Oh, of course! A map of a distant land and a hipflask of finest gin. Nice!

Victorian Explorer Beastie’s next port of call will be Dun Laoghaire in South Dublin, for Creative Collective Ireland’s annual Pop Up Shop… but who knows where he’ll go after that?

Beasties Don’t Cry…

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Knitted Beasties

Robert Smith Beastie

My first encounter with The Cure didn’t go so well. It was 1990, they’d just released the remixed version of “Close to Me”, and the video for the song was played over the closing credits of Top of the Pops that week. And it FREAKED ME OUT. The wobbly camera work, the whole band trapped in a wardrobe that’s just fallen off a cliff into the sea, the over-friendly trumpet-playing octopus with the human face… GAAAAAH! Horror! Anyone with nerves steelier than my 8-year-old self can check out the video here, if they dare.

I’m not sure what changed my mind about them, but somewhere along the way The Cure ended up being one of my favourite bands. I’ve whiled away many long bus journeys listening to “Disintegration”, and danced like a loon to “The Lovecats” more times than I’d care to think about. And who could forget Robert Smith stepping in to save the small town of South Park from total destruction by a rampaging Barbra Streisand? I figured it was high time I paid tribute to one of the most recognisable faces in rock, Beastie-style.

Robert Smith Beastie 2
After I’d finished his trademark dark eyes and red lips, I added a mop of curly hair and a tailor-made black shirt, and then…
Robert Smith Guitar

… a hand-stitched guitar, based on one Robert Smith actually plays!

Has anyone any ideas for other musicians who deserve to be immortalised in wool and felt? Let me know in the comments!