DESIGNER FANTASY YARNS, SOME OF MY LATEST FINDS AND....WHERE TO BUY THEM

PLYMOUTH YARN'S

"FLIRT"

As a 3D-Fiber artist, I've been working with designer yarns for over 12+ years.  They make the most beautiful, colorful, whimsical hairstyles for my fiber sculpted mermaids, fairies, fairy face pins' and more!

These yarns from Italy, France, Germany, Turkey used to be found in any good, quality yarn shop, and even at shops like Michael's, Joann Fabrics, etc. 

I've always had a "huge" stash of the different yarns which I had bought over the years, but it wasn't until recently that I discovered that a lot of the stores/shops I've purchased from in the past no longer carried these delightful yarns.  Thus began my search to see if I could find some of my old time favorites, and also some new yarns. I was especially looking for some very unique, fun textured yarns for my new designs of "knit necklaces".

I've spent quite a few hours searching the internet for different yarns and thought I'd share them here with you.  If you are a fiber artist, fantasy doll artist, or knitter, you might just find a use for some of beautiful yarns!

Plymouth Yarn's "FLIRT" yarn is a French yarn and is 100% Nylon. It is a fun, wispy eyelash yarn, and it works well for not only beautiful fairy/mermaid hair, but also for my new "knit necklaces" shown in the photo above.  The suggested retail price is $9.99 for a 50g ball (1 3/4oz.) Prices vary greatly, so be sure to check around.

Approx. 93 yds.  To create the necklaces above I used a Size 8 needle, and straight knitting of 4 stitches.

I believe this FLIRT yarn is being discontinued, so when I found several colors of it at a good price, I snapped it up.  Lots of beautiful fairy hair!

The yarns shown below are several I found on the web using the search term "designer yarns".  I purchased these yarns from an on-line shop called GOT YARN. (Click on their name to visit their web page) I've ordered from them several times now and was very pleased with the service and the yarns.  They have a section of "sale" yarns, for some pretty good savings!

The two yarns above are Karabella Yarns, made in Italy.  The name is JEWELS!  The unique texture and color combinations are what caught my eye.

The strand on the right shows the texture of the yarn before I knit it into a necklace chain for my "butterfly knit necklace" creation.  This yarn has a metallic thread running through it which you can't really see in the photos.  This gives it a bit of sparkle.

The necklace chain is straight knitting on a Size 8 Needle and 4 stitches.

In the photo above, is another yarn I purchased from GOT YARN.  This fun textured, colorful yarn is an Italian yarn from ON-LINE called Linie 197 - ZARA.  This was on sale and there were 4 colors to choose from.  I used this yarn to create the "fairy face pin, knit necklace set" shown above. 

A lot of rich colors, and fun texture in this yarn!

The photo below shows the texture of the yarn before being knit

MALIBU by BERLINI

I just LOVED this yarn when I found it on the web at NuMei Yarns. (Click on the NuMei link to visit their website).  It is so fun and yet elegant looking.  It reminds me of a "field of flowers" when knit into one of my "knit necklaces".  While it is a bit expensive ($11.79 a ball + shipping), I felt it was worth the price.  I've used it for several knit necklaces and also for a fairy face pin.

Fairy Face Pin  using Malibu yarn

The strand on the "right" shows you the yarn before being knit into the necklace on the "left".  I used a Size 8 needle and 4 knit stitches for the necklace.

PLYMOUTH YARN'S - JUNGLE

Gorgeous wide ribbon yarn!

Now this yarn is truly beautiful!  All the vivid colors!  It is a extra wide ribbon yarn that is 100% Nylon and made in Italy.  50g ball = 61 yards. 

I happened to find this yarn on Ebay when using the search criteria "Italian Designer Yarns".  Much to my surprise, Ebay is a very good source for finding designer yarns, and especially some of the designer yarns that are no longer being made.  I've spent hours on Ebay searching for yarns that I could no longer find in the shops in my area.

This yarn is very silky in texture and is a bit hard to knit with as it twists and turns.  When making my knit necklaces I find I have to let it "unwind" on the needle several times before I can continue knitting.  I've heard that you should just knit it even though it is twisted, but I don't care to do that.  I want a really even look for my necklaces.

This is one of the necklaces I created with the "rainbow" colored ribbon yarn shown in the photo above.  I used a Size 8 needle and 5 knit stitches.

I've found it really pays to spend a bit of time researching the different yarns if you want to get the best prices.  The same type of yarns can vary greatly in prices whether it is from an "on-line" shop, or a shop on Ebay!  You need to watch that you aren't paying too high a price for shipping.  I've found some sellers on Ebay list the price of the yarn low, but than their shipping is ridiculous.  The same holds true from some "on-line" yarn shops.  I did, however, find that there are also some great yarn sellers on Ebay who have free shipping. 

The yarn shown below is a yarn that I've used in the past, but now that it is being discontinued , it is really hard to find.  I was so happy when I happened across it on Ebay.  This yarn makes beautiful fairy and mermaid hair!  So soft and wispy!

ON-LINE LINIE'S "PUNTA" yarn

The yarn has loops of color in it and a soft, wispy eyelash!

This is a "fairy face" pin I made using the "cinnamon" colored PUNTA yarn shown above.

SPELLBOUND by MODA DEA

Spellbound by Moda Dea is another yarn I found when searching on Ebay for ribbon yarns with which to create my knit necklaces.  Love the colors, sparkle and glitz of this yarn!  It is 92% Nylon and 8% Polyester. 93 yards in a ball.

The necklace is awaiting a butterfly to be made for it.

These are just a few of the yarns that I have found while searching the web for "designer yarns".  I found that quite a few of the really beautiful yarns are made in Italy.

While it was rather disappointing to learn that shops in my area are no longer carrying a lot of these yarns, I was happy to see that if one does a bit of search on the web, you can still find some unique, gorgeous yarns.

If you fiber artists, doll artists or knitters are looking for these "speciality" yarns, just put in "Italian yarns", "designer yarns", fancy yarns", "glitzy yarns" as search terms on your computer and I'm sure you will find what you are looking for.

WEAR A FAIRY....My newest Fairy Face Pin/Knit Necklace Set!

I just finished this colorful, sparkly "fairy face pin/knit necklace set", and the yarn is truly exquisite!!  It is an Italian yarn from Plymouth Yarn called ODYSSEY GLITZ.  I've always been attracted to the many gorgeous Italian yarns out there, but lately it has been harder and harder to find these yarns in the shops in my area.  I've spent hours on the web looking for different yarn shops on the Internet that would have some of these beautiful yarns available  So far my best resource for these delightful yarns has been Ebay!!  If you are looking for yarns of this type, you might want to check out Ebay.  I've noticed that the yarn shops on the web, have really high shipping prices.  some are as high as $8.00 - $9.00 to ship one ball of yarn!

The fairy pin can be worn just about anywhere on the knit necklace to achieve your own invididual look.  In the photo above she is shown pinned just about 2" from the bottom of the necklace. In the photo below, she is pinned to one side of the necklace about 4" down from the top.

If you want the necklace to hang a bit shorter you can pin the "fairy face" about in the center of the necklace.

Below is a photo of the "fairy face" along.

I have a selection of these "fairy face pins/knit necklace sets" in my DZFANTASY shop.  They make great accents for any top or sweater and a unique gift idea.  Wearer is sure to receive a lot of compliments.

HOW TO CREATE A FUN, COLORFUL HAIRDO FOR FAIRIES, MERMAIDS AND OTHER FANTASY FIGURES!

FINISHED FAIRY WITH HER NEW HAIRDO!

Read below to see how she arrived at looking so pretty!

With all the wonderful, colorful, many textured yarns out there...it is such fun and easy to create beautiful hairdos for fairies, mermaids, or many other fantasy creations. This is a follow-up article on an earlier post I did showing how I create hairdos from my fiber sculpted fantasy figures using the different yarns that are available.

Below is a photo showing our fairy waiting to get her hair styled, and the two yarns I used to create her hairdo.


For her short, fluffy hairdo I used a hair loom, which I purchased about 10 years ago. I know there are other style looms that can be purchased from various sites that handle "doll making supplies". It has the two wooden ends, with metal rods running through. You can adjust the size by removing the screws and placing them in the different holes which are in each of the wooden ends.

The holes are spaced 1 inch apart, and are numbered, as you can see in the photo above. I used a spacing of 3" for this fairy's hairstyle. To start the hair, you tie your yarn onto the outer metal rod, as shown in the photo below.You then wind the yarn around both rods, keeping the yarn very close together, as shown below. I gauge about how long to wind the yarn on the rods, by determining the figure's head size, and how full I want the hairdo to be. If you find you have too long a piece, you can always cut it off. If you end up with too short a piece you can make another smaller piece to fill in the back of the head. I used about a 4" piece for this fairy's hairdo.

After you have the length of yarn to where you want it, you center the piece of yarn, (still on the loom), into your sewing machine, as shown below. Starting at one end of the "piece", start stitching down the center until you reach the other end. Use the smallest stitch that you have on your machine. This is important, so that it holds the yarn together when you do the next step of twisting it This is done after you have taken it off the rods.
After you have sewn down the entire length of the yarn, you need to unscrew the screws and slide the "piece" off the metal rods.

Below is a photo of my "piece" of yarn after I took it off the metal rods. The next thing I do, is twist the yarn, starting at one end, and ending at the other, so that you have it looking like the photo below. It is then ready to be stitched to the center of the fairy's head.


The above photo shows the hair "piece" after I stitched the center to her head. To style and shape her hairdo, I then stitch the yarn in place at different points around the head to secure it in place. I also used Fabric-Tac adhesive to shape the yarn around the fairy's face and neck.


Here she is, all finished, with her short, glistening hairdo all in place. I accented it with a hand-painted, organza flower, with Swarovski crystals sewn into the center of the flower. She is now available for purchase out in my DZFANTASY shop on Etsy. Click on the link below if you'd like to see more of her.

GARDEN FAIRY