Felted brooch in robin egg blue

I hand felted this flower brooch in a shade of robin egg blue, sky, green and white. Those are perfect winter colors that will cheer us up during monochrome days of winter.
For me blue is a color of magic and fairy tales. It is airy and light and has some mystery to it. Blue will go well with pretty much any dress and outfit. It's such an appreciative color!

Felted flower web brooch in white red gray

With all the holidays approaching we will need a lot of accessories to spice up our outfits. The same nice top could be worn to a few occasions and yet it will look different every time. Just add a new brooch or pin every time you go out! It's amazing how much even a small brooch can do to a dress.

Brooches are fun as they are easy to wear and usually not expensive. Made from felt they are durable as well. One can pile them up in one's store room and they won't take much space. Yet brooches add so much style and color to our outfits. I have a whole bunch of them in different colors and shapes. It's nice just to look at them. All those colors and shapes make me feel happy somehow!

Warm and cozy hand knitted items from Socksandmittens

Winter is approaching and we are all looking for soft and cozy knitted items to keep us warm during this cold and harsh season. I recently came across a wonderful shop on Etsy called Socksandmittens that offers accessories for men and women: wool gloves, socks, wrist warmers, hats, etc. Every piece is hand knitted and unique.
It's a mother daughter team that is constantly working on improving its designs!

Q: How did you start knitting?
Many many years ago a young girl named Valentyna saw a knitted garment on a girl in a street of a small town in Ukraine. She got so interested in how to make one that started knitting herself. Since that day Valentyna continues improving her knitting skills. She cannot let go of her favorite needles and yarns. Valentyna is my mother and I remember her knitting my whole life. She is never alone and never bored because we run our Etsy shop together and she is very passionate about her favorite thing, knitting!

My mom has been knitting for me all my life. Later she started knitting for my son and now, when she is retired, she finally can do this full time. That's how we came up with an idea of an on-line store. We opened our online shop on Etsy in 2009. It's been a success so far!

Her knitted garments are amazing. My mom's inspiration comes from nature with its bright colors. She creates items thinking about people's real needs and preferences. When we create a new design we are always trying to picture a person who will wear it. Is he or she spending most of their time at the office, by a computer desk? Does he or she love outdoors? Is he or she a hunter, a fisherman or stay at home Mom? There are so many different ideas! We make our best to turn all these ideas into beautiful, warm and cozy hand knitted items.

Q: What yarns does your mom use in her knitting?
She loves to work with wool but we are also thinking of people who might be allergic to it, so we are making some of our items from vegan and other natural yarns. I have to say, these other yarns have improved so much in recent years! They are soft and come in a huge assortment of colors and are really easy to take care of!

If you would like to see my mother work please visit our shop on Etsy or follow my blog to receive updates.
Socksansmittens Blog
Flickr
Twitter
Facebook

Red Berry hand felted brooch

Brooches are excellent for adding color and style for one's outfits. A bright brooch can completely change the way a dress or a suit looks. Red, raspberry and cranberry colors and hues work especially well with pretty much any attire. Even the outdoor clothing can be decorated with a pin. Just think about a brown or charcoal grey coat with a bright red pin attached to it. It will look so much better!

I always wear all my brooches and that's much fun as people always pay attention and take a notice. With a unique and beautiful brooch one will always stand out from the crowd.

Hand felted wool flower brooches

I discovered a few really cute buttons in a store and bought them without any particular purpose. They were so lovely that I just desperately wanted to attach them somewhere. Finally I found a place that fits them perfectly. Hand felted flower brooches with multiple layers of felt in different colors look nice with a large vivid spot in the middle. That's where my buttons belong from now on.
The key is to match the color of a button with a color of the felt flower. It's hard to find nice looking buttons but relativery easy to buy wool of diffferent colors and types. So here is the rule: Start with the button!