I have seen them and love them. So of course I had to try to make them for myself.
My needle felted acorns.
I love them! They are a great autumn decor feature.
Mine are a bit different from others I have seen in how they are made. They look the same and are just as great, but I did something a bit different that made them less expensive to make. All of the felted acorns I have seen for sell or in craft posts are made with wool roving. I priced some at my local craft store and decided it cost too much. To solve that problem I made my own roving using the scrap yarn I had.
I had small sections of different colored acrylic yarn given to me by my grandmother that I still had not found a use for. I picked my best autumn colors and set to work.
First step is to choose your color. I found that cutting the strands made it easier. So I cut 4 strands each about 3 to 4 inches long. It is not necessary to measure them. Gather all the strands together and hold them tight in the middle with the ends even.
Now for the next step you need a very clean brush. I used an old bristle brush that we do not use any more. I cleaned it well before using it.
Hold the ends of the strands between the brush and your thumb and brush them out.
When that end is well brushed turn them around and brush out the other end. Make sure you work your way to the middle so that the whole section is brushed out.
Now the yarn will have some twist to it but as you work more into it and pull it out several times it will not twist any more.
Do this several more times until you have enough roving for your acorn. Then all you have to do is needle felt it into an acorn. Here is a simple video to see how to do that easy technique. Have fun!
Well I survived the craft sale. It was fun but I did not sell much. Hardly any customers came unfortunately. I don't think the organizer did a great job of advertising the event. The flier she gave me was not exciting nor did it convey "event" if you know what I mean. Of course this was her first time doing anything like this so it was an experiment anyways.
I did make 3 sales total all to other people who had booths so it was not a complete waste of time. Many compliments were given too. So I feel good about my products and I know they were not the reason for the lack of sales. One women surprised me by telling another that my crochet was very professional after buying a hat. Of course it is! I would not be selling it if my work was not of good quality.
So if nothing else it was a great confidence builder!
Ok, my first craft sale is tomorrow. I think I am ready but I just don't know. I am so nervous and excited at the same time. After making a table cloth(which did not turn out very good but will work)and a jewelry tree(which I think is quite unique) I set up my display yesterday to see how it would look and am happy with it.
So here goes. I have to pump my self up because I am so nervous. The worst of it is not the sale itself but having to face people. I get so nervous when I talk to people. I mean I start sweating and sometimes feel like I am about to start crying. I have gotten a little better in the past few years but I am not great at it yet. So pray for me please! Oh and don't forget that if your local you should stop in take a look see, even if its just to encourage me.
So I obviously have not blogged in a little while. Why, you ask? Well I have been busy. Oh yeah and a little under the weather too. I had to go and start the season off right with a head cold. Needless to say it is hard to think when your head is pounding with a sinus headache.
But back to the busy part. I have a craft sale coming up on the 17th(yay! my first one) and I have been making scarves like crazy and more fabric covered pushpins. For a while I was making a scarf a day. I still need to make more stuff and get my table and displays ready. I love it! So join me at the craft sale if your local. It is Sat. the 17th from 10am-3pm at 1665 31st Rd. in Windom Ks. By handmade and get some shopping done for the holidays!
I made it! I survived my first interview. Thank you Hutchinson Magazine. Amy was so friendly and nice. I am going to be featured in the winter issue. It is so hard for me to believe.
My prayers are being answered. I really do believe that this could be my path in life, to be a small business owner. It has been in my heart for a long time but finding my strengths and sticking with what I love, which is crochet, is what is making it possible. I know that my talent is God given. I tried for a while to deny it as a talent simply because crochet has such a stigma attached to it but I am thankful that I got over that and do what I love regardless of others opinion. My motto at least for today is, do what you love and you will find others who love it too.
It is so nice to be home. We had a great time! I really love it up there and want to go back to see everything we missed. Custer State Park is beautiful! 
We drove through it early in the morning. Many animals crossed our path or watched as we passed by. The most exciting part was when we saw donkeys so we stopped to take a picture and they all rushed to the truck. One stuck his nose in the window. We all were surprised and the children were a little scared. Later we found out their nick name is the begging burrows. Fun!
We also had the miss fortune of finding out the my youngest daughter gets motion sick on curvy mountain roads.
We saw and experienced much more. Too much to even list here. Maybe someday I will get it all written down to pass on. Lets just say it was a great adventure and learning experience.
