{"id":22187,"date":"2017-03-30T21:03:43","date_gmt":"2017-03-31T03:03:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.allaboutami.com\/?p=22187"},"modified":"2017-04-08T15:01:55","modified_gmt":"2017-04-08T21:01:55","slug":"alpaca-yarn-giveaway","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.allaboutami.com\/alpaca-yarn-giveaway\/","title":{"rendered":"Alpaca Yarn Giveaway"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Over my years of blogging, one of the things I’ve loved most is becoming a part of the online crafting community<\/strong>. \u00a0I’ve enjoyed connecting with other crochet bloggers, designers, and yarn enthusiasts who are passionate about what they do! \u00a0Almost one year ago, I started attending a local Sip and Stitch group and became a part of a real life crochet and knit community<\/strong>!\u00a0 I look forward to our monthly meetings, and it is wonderful being able to chat with people who are\u00a0enthusiastic about the fiber arts and have the same interests as me!\u00a0 Everyone brings their own projects, and we love seeing what everyone is working on\u00a0and squishing each others’ yarns!\u00a0 Many are small business owners, so they can share their challenges or market advice with each other as they believe in collaboration over competition! \u00a0I highly recommend joining (or creating) a local crochet or knit group as being able to learn from one another, ask questions, bounce ideas, and inspire each other is amazing, and will help spur you on as you pursue your craft. {Photo credit below to Sarah Willey of Mama Knows Luxury<\/em><\/a>!}<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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One artist in my Sip and Stitch group is Holly<\/strong> from Ilex Everyday Couture<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0 We first connected online when she showed me some Spring Bunnies<\/strong><\/em><\/a> that she had crocheted following my pattern. \u00a0They were her first amigurumi she had ever made back in 2013 as a new crocheter. \u00a0You can see her sweet bunnies below! \u00a0It was so neat to meet her in person during the very first Sip and Stitch I attended as it is always amazing connecting with online friends\/readers in real life!<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Holly fell in love with the fibre arts a few years ago when she decided on a whim to learn how to crochet in order to make something handmade under the Christmas tree for her daughter, and she has not stopped since! \u00a0She opened her Etsy shop HERE<\/em><\/strong><\/a> a year later at the urging of some friends.\u00a0 As she focused on learning her craft and developing her personal niche, she began learning how to spin and dye her own yarn, and soon she started\u00a0selling both finished items and yarn in her shop.\u00a0 Holly places great importance on using environmentally sound practices when processing and dyeing her yarns.\u00a0 She also tries to use local fibres as much as possible and tries to source\u00a0materials from the most ethical sources as she can.\u00a0 Holly loves learning new techniques and says that “there is this magic that happens when I’m at my wheel in the middle of the night with the rest of the world asleep, music in my earbuds, and a beautiful rhythm of my hands and feet working together to make something original, unique, and full of my own soul<\/em>“.\u00a0 Isn’t that beautiful? \u00a0Here is a picture of us below when I visited her during the Etsy Made in Canada Show<\/em><\/a> back in September 2016! \u00a0We are standing behind Holly’s spinning wheel, and she spins yarn during the lulls of her markets!<\/div>\n
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As mentioned above, Holly believes wholeheartedly in fair trade practices and humane treatment of the animals used to create her fibers, so many of her items are made with homegrown, local fibre (we live in Alberta, Canada).\u00a0 Holly gifted me this stunning Sassafras Alpaca Yarn<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0that is sourced from a farm in Rollyview, just outside of Beaumont.\u00a0 The farmer washes and cards the fiber and Holly spins it on her pedal-driven wheel in Edmonton.\u00a0 She spins one ply of white and one ply of brown, and plies them together to get the marled look. I adore this gorgeous marled look and how luxurious it appears! \u00a0It’s neat because this yarn uses the undyed natural colours of the animals, and since the brown is naturally-occuring, there is some variation in each skein! \u00a0\u00a0You can find this alpaca yarn in her Etsy shop HERE<\/strong><\/em><\/a>!<\/div>\n
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I LOVE how this alpaca yarn has been sourced locally and handspun by a local artisan and friend! \u00a0I can’t wait to work with this alpaca yarn in the future, and I’m thinking of trying to knit my first pair of mittens with it! \u00a0Whatever finished item I end up making, I will always remember its special origins.\u00a0 I encourage you to explore what locally sourced wools you can find in your areas whether that be in the USA, UK, or Australia as it will have a special significance, and you can support your local farms and spinners.\u00a0 I know many people who love to travel (including myself) and picking up some local yarns sourced from that area as a wonderful souvenir!<\/div>\n
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Holly provided me with this picture below showing you the roving she uses to create this marled yarn and how it looks worked up into a scarf! \u00a0It is incredible how that fluffy roving gets spun into yarn!<\/div>\n
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The very exciting part is that Holly and I are partnering together to give away one skein (100 g) of her lovely handspun alpaca yarn<\/strong> to one of my readers [GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED]! \u00a0I know many of you are interested in working with more luxurious fibers, so this is an amazing opportunity! \u00a0Holly currently has 4 colourways in her shop that you can choose from: Sassafras, Peppermint, Spearmint, and Seashell.<\/em><\/div>\n
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***To enter this GIVEAWAY<\/b>:<\/b><\/div>\n
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