Cozy Badger Fiber Arts

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Bee Combs for Wool!

I made a discovery in 2017, when searching for an economic version of wool combs. I've had a pair of hand cards for years, and in a pinch cat or dog slicker brushes will work, though they're much smaller so you will need to card in smaller batches. I've tried dog combs for making a combed preparation, but wasn't really happy with them. So that's why one day I decided to wander the local farm store, and see what they might have. I was browsing the horse area, when I found inexpensive combs in a neighboring section - beekeeping. Now, you're probably thinking to yourself, what do bees have to do with processing fiber? It's not the bees themselves, but their combs. Beekeepers use handheld comb scratchers to remove excess wax. They're also known as uncapping forks. At Rural King they sell for $5 apiece, so you can have a pair of mini combs for $10. I've seen them online for cheaper, but a local purchase means instant gratification. I've purchased

Rigid Heddle Mandala Scarves and Ruminations

I purchased a 24in secondhand rigid heddle loom a couple years ago, via Craigslist. It was made by Couch's Little Workshop , here in Indiana, and uses Beka rigid heddles. Mine came with 3 heddles - 8, 10, and 12 dents per inch. This summer I saw that Couch's was going to be at a fiber arts fair in central Indiana, so I went up that Saturday and spoke with the owner. I bought a folding loom stand from him and he said when I'm ready to add a second heddle kit, for more complicated patterns and finer weaving, I can take it up to him and he'll add it to my loom. I also described a minor piece that was missing when I purchased the loom - he's not sure how it came out, but said he can fix it when I bring the loom up. I'll likely do that next year. I figured out a temporary fix, so that I can continue using the loom in the meantime. So far I've made a few plainweave scarves on the loom, using Lion Brand Mandala yarn . Each cake of Mandala is 590 yards of DK ac

Patterns are Diving Boards

It's rare these days for me to follow a crochet pattern exactly. Sometimes I'll use a different yarn, so will have to adjust for the gauge or figure out how the stripes will affect it rather than the solids in the original pattern. Other times I'll change some of the stitches used - I'll almost always use foundation crochet rather than chaining and then stitching into the chain, partly because the foundation gives a stretchier edge, and also because I invariably make my chains either too tight or way too loose and I'm unhappy with how the edge looks. So patterns are great for inspiration and providing a place to leap from. Don't be afraid to dive into an experimentt - if you try something and it doesn't work out, you can always unravel it and go back to the pattern. After all, frogging is part of the process. I fell in love with the dramatic bell sleeves of this sweater by Chasing SunRaee Designs, but when I watched the tutorial video I immediately deci

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CozyBadger Fiber Arts, Kristin Moran

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