itchy fingers...

not literally, thank goodness. i used to think that i was allergic to wool. turns out i was only sensitive to the really scratchy stuff and only in a sensory sense (lol). not a true allergy.

anyway, the itchiness i refer to is my excitement about knitting up the bajillions of designs i've been working on and writing up and sketching. i haven't had as much knitting time as i'd like and what little time i do have has been spent finishing up custom orders and swaps and trades. i haven't really been able to actually knit up most of the designs i've worked out on paper and in my head.

since fall is approaching, i've been working on a lot of little pant/sweater sets for mostly 15", 16", and 18" dolls. boys' and girls' stuff, but admittedly heavier on the girl or gender neutral side if only for the fact that there are more girl dolls out there in circulation. i've also got a felted coat i'm trying to figure out, but i'll be honest it's not going too well on that front. i may end up knitting individual pieces and hand sewing them together. i like the rustic/rough sort of look of hand sewing, especially with contrasting seams. so i'm hoping that i'll get to finish that some time in september.

i've got to figure out how quickly i can whip up these sets. the pants are pretty straightforward, though the little embellishments can take a bit of time. it's the tops that are more time-consuming, mostly because of the details and shaping. a lot of my designs have cables or lace in them, or at the very least special stitchwork other than stockinette, etc...so once i'm actually knitting them up rather than just writing them up i'm sure i'll find areas that need more tweaking.

my biggest worry is not having enough stock for Etsy and the congo. I don't mind not stocking on my main HC site, but I'd really like to be able to fully (and frequently) stock two stores. i know i'll have more time once school starts up again, but i'm still pretty nervous about timing.

speaking of timing, i've gotta get outta here - baby needs to sleep!


**i am typing one-handed right now, since i am nursing my littlest one, and will be avoiding the shift key. thank you for your understanding.**

For everything there is a season...

That phrase has been used to describe so many profound and important things...so perhaps it's a bit gauche to use it to describe my little online shop. But I'm a rebel so I'm doing it anyway.

I have loved making longies for the past year, and am proud of the work I've done. But I have decided that it's time for that season of Little Knittles to end. It all boils down to me feeling restless and wanting to devote my time to designing. I felt most at home when I was creating my transitional inseam design and working on doll outfit patterns. I may still end up making a few cloth diapering soakers once in a while, but I won't be accepting any more custom orders. I have too many ideas floating around in my head and I need time to try them all out. I do realize that it may be a collossal failure. I mean, really, how many doll outfits do people need?? I'm aware of that potential business pitfall. But I'm charging ahead anyway, full throttle.

I'm also going to try to ramp up my presence on Etsy. I have pulled all of my listings off of my main Hyena Cart site for now and have put everything on Etsy. I've never really listed much on there and am just figuring out how it all works, how to promote on there, what strategies to use in terms of marketing and stocking times. Hello learning curve!

I'm still planning to return to the Bella Tesori congo in September, but I also realize that my speed may still not be up to par. I am not sure I'll be able to stock in a timely manner and I'll continue to evaluate how much of a contribution I'm really making to that extraordinary group of WAHMs.

For now, I'm finishing up a custom and two swaps. Once those are done, I'll be hanging up my size 8 needles for a while and plugging away full force on my doll clothing designs. I hope to have some progress pics over the next few weeks.

Thanks for reading!