Tag: Irish Craft

I don’t know about you, but February has just zipped by for me and the Beasties!

A lot of this was down to the fact that I’ve been focussing on just being a Maker of Monsters this past month. I took the plunge, and booked time off from Other Work to take care of some Beastie business that’s been sitting on my to-do list for far too long. So, I’ve already shared my new improved workspace and spruced-up home on the internet… But what else have I been up to?

Well, for starters, I’ve been collaborating with a spinner! I met Diarmuid from S Twist Wool at one of my pre-Christmas markets, and I jumped at the chance to create a very special Beastie for him using his own range of yarns. Of course, Explorer Beastie was on hand to help me choose which wool to use for the project…
… And now here’s the newest member of the Beastie family, hot off the needles!
Diarmuid dyed the chunky 2-ply yarn in blue and purple especially for this Beastie, and I used S Twist’s sock yarn in Tiger for his lovely red hair, and Juniper for his traditional Aran-style sweater.
I was also able to use natural sheep’s fleece as stuffing instead of my usual polyfill! And since S Twist Beastie has been recruited to help out with the business, it seemed only fair to get him started with the spinning straight away… so I made him a Beastie-sized drop spindle!
And now he’s ready to get to work!
But wait… There’s more to this Beastie than meets the eye!
No, your mind isn’t playing tricks on you! Beastie-volution has taken another leap forward… And this little monster has BONES! That means he can wave, dance a jig, or sit down to do his spinning!

And believe me, this extra flexibility is going to come in handy in his new job. Because Diarmuid sources his wool locally (it all comes from farms in Kilkenny and Tipperary), and prepares, spins and dyes it himself, there’s always plenty of work to do!

I’m really looking forward to seeing how S Twist Beastie gets on in his new career as a master spinner! They also have plans to attend several shows across Ireland and the UK over the coming months… If you get a chance, why not pop along and say hello? You can keep up with all the latest news from S Twist on Facebook or Twitter!

It’s always exciting to try out new methods and materials, so this collaboration couldn’t have come at a better time. And we’re not done yet with the Beastie R&D either!
February was the month where I finally broke the ice with my sewing machine, and now we’re working together on some exciting new projects. But they’re not quite ready yet, so you’ll have to stay tuned to find out what monster-making mayhem we have in the pipeline… In the meantime, there will be Beastie antics aplenty, starting with a special travel feature from Explorer Beastie on Friday. See you then!