Product Info - What We Sell
All the knit or crocheted merchandise offered for sale on Crafty Sue's Handcrafts website are genuinely hand knit or hand crocheted.
Knit and Crocheted Items
What does this mean?...
It means that each item is knit or crocheted one at a time by one handcrafter
who uses only their own two hands using regular straight knitting needles or hand crocheting hooks to make that item.
There is no mass production of knit items by the use of knitting machines.
Nor is any type of so called 'hand knitting' machine ever employed.
The same holds true for crocheted items.
All the felted items offered for sale on this site are created by hand felting 100% wool yarn with the hot water / friction technique:
Felted Yarn Items
The item to be felted is first very loosely knit or crocheted using 100% wool yarns (not treated to prevent shrinkage).
At this point the item is much larger than the actual finished measurements of the item after it has been felted.After the item is knit or crocheted, it is then placed in a sink basin filled with very very hot water.
A very small amount liquid dish soap is then added to the water.
The dish soap causes the scales on the wool fibers to open.The hand felting process begins:
Wearing rubber gloves to protect the hands from the hot water,
the felter squishes and squeezes the hot water through the item over and over again.
This squishing and squeezing process causes the opened scales on the wool yarn fibers to interlock with each other.
This in turn causes the wool fibers to shorten in length.
This interlocking of the scales on wool fibers causing the fibers to shorten and thicken
in turn makes the item being felted become smaller and thicker as the felting process proceeds.When the desired degree of felting is reached,
the item is next rinsed in plain cold water and then rolled up in a thick terrycloth towel to absorb excess water.
While still damp, the felter then hand shapes the item.
The item is then left to air dry. After which any finishing touches are applied.Felting knit or crocheted items made with 100% wool yarn (not treated to prevent shrinkage) results in very strong, durable items that will last for a very long time.
All the sewn items for sale on our site are individually constructed from the first step to the last by one handcrafter.
Sewn Items
This means that the entire construction of each item sewn from the pinning and cutting out of the pattern
to the stitching of the last seam is under control of one person only.
The result is superior quality construction.There is no huge pile of layered fabrics being cutout at en mass
nor is the item passed from one worker to the next in assembly line fashion.It might seem 'inefficient' in regards to time spent in production,
but the resulting quality of items sewn in this manner is far superior
to any mass produced hurry up and get it out the door products.
Each item is in effect 'custom made'. So if you are looking for quality, you have come to the right place.
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