Tag: S Twist Wool

Our Monster Day at Woollinn!

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Beastie Family, Crafting

Happy Friday, everyone! And it’s been a double fun one for us, because we’ve just spent the day at Woollinn, Dublin’s festival of yarn!

I was helping out my buddy Diarmuid of S Twist Wool for the day, so there might be a bit of a bias in the photos…
S Twist Wool at Woollinn - CrawCrafts Beasties, Beastie HQAre you spotting a pattern yet? Still, I was pretty excited to see the new ranges he’s added since we last met up to talk yarn… And top of the list was definitely this spectacular batch of naturally-dyed Galway fleece! Check out those colours…
Natural Dye Yarns by S Twist Wool at Woollinn - CrawCrafts Beasties, Beastie HQAnother bonus is that the wool itself is ALL sourced from Irish farms… As you can see in the map in the photo above.

Oh, and of course there were a couple of Beasties knocking around!
An S Twist Beastie at Woollinn - CrawCrafts Beasties, Beastie HQThis little monster guy was specially made to tie in with a promotion Diarmuid is running on his stand at Woollinn this weekend. If you know the significance of his accessories…
S Twist Beastie Accessories - CrawCrafts Beasties, Beastie HQ… Bring along your copy of the “Guide” or a towel to receive a sneaky discount off your purchase!

It was also nice to catch up with another old friend – do any of you remember Ruari, the spinner’s assistant Beastie?
Ruari Beastie - CrawCrafts Beasties, Beastie HQHe was helping out like a true pro, showing off some of LB Handknits‘ beautiful designs! This is the San Fhoraois sweater tank, which you can find here on Ravelry.
Ruari Beastie with San Fhoraois Sweater - CrawCrafts Beasties, Beastie HQHowever, our newer Beastie friend maybe had less success when he tried to model the Laitís sweater…
Beastie Modelling the Laitis Sweater - CrawCrafts Beasties, Beastie HQAll the same, he looks pretty cheerful – even if it is a little on the large side!

And, after a fun day helping out (and having a good squish at all the yarn, of course) I just had time to run upstairs and get a snap of all the stands from above!
Woollinn from Above - CrawCrafts Beasties, Beastie HQIf you’re in Dublin this weekend, be sure to check out all the yarny goodness at Woollinn for yourself! Or if you’re already planning to head there, let us know all about it in the comments!

We’ll be back on Tuesday with an update from a Beastie abroad, so be sure to join us then… In the meantime, have a wild woolly weekend!

Sitting Beastie, Made for S Twist Wool - CrawCrafts Beasties

A Busy Beastie Month!

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Crafting, Knitted Beasties

A Special Irish Beastie - CrawCrafts BeastiesI 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…
Explorer Beastie With S Twist Yarns - CrawCrafts Beasties… And now here’s the newest member of the Beastie family, hot off the needles!
S Twist Beastie, by CrawCrafts BeastiesDiarmuid 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.
S Twist Beastie's Hair and Sweater - CrawCrafts BeastiesI 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!
A Beastie-Sized Drop Spindle - CrawCrafts BeastiesAnd now he’s ready to get to work!
S Twist Beastie, Ready for Work! CrawCrafts BeastiesBut wait… There’s more to this Beastie than meets the eye!
S Twist Beastie PosesNo, 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!
Vintage Singer Sewing Machine - CrawCrafts BeastiesFebruary 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!