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Happy New Years!

Long time no see! It’s been a crazy year. To catch you all up on life so far, we had a baby! She is sweet, adorable and everything I was missing in life. So exciting and because of that the business has been on hold while i’ve been on maternity leave. I do hope to join more holiday markets and further grow this blog with a post maybe every other week. Do not worry though I have been working every chance this baby lets me while i’ve been gone. (teething is going to be fun).

Right now I have an awesome work in progress that’s not only resourceful its freaking cute. Before that, realize I have been running Finns Wonderland for about three years now and in doing so I have racked up quite a bit of yarn scraps. So recently I was trying to figure out what to do with them and wanted to make something small, quick, and cute. Thus the mini flower pot was made!

I took all of my yarn scraps that were long enough to make a small petal, crocheted them, and organized them by color. With whatever browns and orange clay colors I had I made pots and dirt circles(Technically not scraps). Once I had it all ready I decided what color petals would go together and assembled them all with little scraps as stuffing.

It’s been a really fun way to use up my yarn and try new color combos. They turned out hella cute and even have adorable little faces making them great for valentines, birthdays, mothers day, and any holiday. I might even have ones you can customize when you order. Speaking of orders, I am hoping to have my shop open again in April where I can take custom requests! You could order a cuttlefish in any color, or a giant mushroom.

Again, thank you to everyone who gave one of my creatures a home in 2023 and here’s to more finding a home in 2024! See you all again next time. -Never stop dreaming, because what if…

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Under the Water

Lately I have been interested in what lives below the water, salty or not. There are some really bizarre and cool looking creatures with many more being discovered every year. I wanted to start by making the different tentacle kinds. So far I have made Cuttlefishes, a few dumbo octopi, and some made up creatures that I call Squoctopus. I hope to also make a colossal squid down the line.

Besides tentacles, there are many more fascinating creature features from other animals that I would love to try to make. Mythical or not. I have already made some mermaids, but would like to try to make an angler fish as well as the made up designs in my sketchbook.

You can order your own cute cuddle buddy right here!

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Earth Day!

For earth day I would like to share with you some of the ways I have made my business more eco-friendly.

I use Kapok fiber to stuff my creatures. Kapok fiber is the seed pod fluff of a rain forest tree called the Ceiba tree or the silk cotton tree. The pods are harvested in the East and the trees are left standing. It’s the most sustainable fiber in the market today, leaving no human footprint behind. Combine this with numerous properties like being silky soft and dry to the touch, as well as antimoth, antimite and insulation properties.

For the eyes of my creatures I 3d print with a plastic filament called PLA. It is a type of polyester made from fermented plant starch like corn, cassava, maize, sugarcane or sugar beet pulp. The sugar in these renewable materials are fermented and turned into lactic acid, which is then made into polylactic acid, or PLA. Though this plastic is heavily touted as biodegradable, it can only be properly disposed of in industrial environments. Most recycling plants aren’t set up yet to be able to do that, but someday they might. So for now my goal is to learn how to make recyclable filament, but with science forever progressing I’m sure their will be a new sustainable plastic to use in the future.

Lastly is the yarn I use. My favorite type of yarn (bernat blanket) is sadly made from synthetic fibers. I love it for its super fluffy feel, but haven’t been able to find a non-synthetic yarn that matches. Hopefully down the line I can find a better option without having to compromise the feel of the yarn.

Overall I would love to be able to create a sustainable toy that can easily be shared as well as recycled back into the earth without harm.