Saturday 18 July 2009

Earth Spirits



I've just completed these custom Mother and Child Earth Spirits. I tried out a new yarn (Paton's Spirit, appropriately enough) and it comes out lovely and fuzzy when you brush it. It was a mix of autumnal colours, and then I also used a deep red mohair to give a bit more variation.


Dawn Spirit and Tumpkin

I was asked to make the creatures with some similarities to my Dawn Spirit and Tumpkin, so I decided to try doing them with pointed heads, but ones which are angled backwards, and with ears and horns somewhat like the Dawn Spirit.



I was really pleased at the way the mother came out - you can never tell when you start crocheting, whether the idea you have in your head is going to work, but it seemed to this time.



It was fun to try and make the child, to do it not just smaller, but differently proportioned so that, hopefully, it seems childlike. I used the same sized eyes, so that they would seem bigger - I think eyes are the only part of the body that never grow. I also gave him much smaller ears, and no horns - he's too little to have those yet.

Well, I was very happy with them both, and so was my 7 year-old son. He looked at the child just after I'd finished it and said, "Can I have him?"
I explained that I'd made him especially for someone else, so no, he couldn't. He then said, "All right, I'll have the Mummy one then!"
He was none too pleased when I said that they were both already taken - I think I'll have to make him something soon!

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

they are so perfect! Thanks again Lucy, I'll definitely be praising your work to everyone I see. ;)

Best,
Amanda

Anonymous said...

hello lucy,

these spirits are so lovely! can I get the instructions for the mother and the child somewhere?

Greetings, illi

Sabine Rose said...

Hi Lucy,

These 2 lovely creatures are amazing! I have never tried to brush the wool on my amigurumis but after seeing your work, I might give it a try.

Is there any technical advice you could give me? Or should I just go for it and see ?

LucyRavenscar said...

Amanda - thank you for asking me to make them, your ideas gelled perfectly with mine, and I'm so glad you like them.

illi - I haven't done a pattern yet, but I may well do in the future, I'm intending to sell patterns in my Etsy shop.

Sabine Rose - thank you! There are a couple of really good tuorials out there for brushing amis, so check them out:
Planet June
http://littlegreen.typepad.com/romansock/brushed-crochet.html
Roxycraft
http://tamiesnow.typepad.com/roxycraft/2009/06/tutorial-making-brushed-amigurumi.html

Carlie said...

I just love your earth spirits!!! All of your designs are adorable. They just make me want to hug them!!!!

ironik said...

They are really great, I love them!!

Mych said...

Thanks for pointing us in the direction of a couple of brushing tutorials! Absolutely LOVE your creatures and I really would like to make one of the dream creatures for my son who keeps asking for a dream catcher.

Mych said...

Just checked out your Etsy shop - no pattern for these beautiful creatures - will you be selling the patterns for them, or just the finished products?

LucyRavenscar said...

Hi, I'm pleased you like them! I would like to sell patterns, I'm slightly worried about the fact that it's not always possible to get hold of exactly the same furry yarn to get the same effect. That means I need to make the same pattern using different yarns to give people an idea of what variations will look like. Obviously that takes time, but I will work on it.

Mych said...

I'm happy to experiment and test the pattern - I know I cannot get the exact yarn because it is currently out of stock, but it's a good excuse to go shopping. I looked at some pictures of the yarn in catalogues and I can get similar stuff here in Australia.

I'm desperate to make my own dream guide for my son who is having trouble with nightmares and wants a dream catcher. I don't mind that it won't be exactly the same - I actually don't think they should be (and hand made items never are).

Would you be willing to let me test in exchange for photo's and details of the exact yarns used? That way, perhaps you can have the pattern up for sale sooner.

LucyRavenscar said...

Mum's the Word - that sounds like a good idea - could you contact me through Etsy conversation? http://www.lucyravenscar.etsy.com

Mych said...

Have done. First time I've ever used Etsy, so bear with me...