Monday, November 25, 2013

Velveteen Rabbit Inspired Kit Giveaway!


Hi, Knitters,
The winners of Green Gables Knits are Auntea, MamaMustKnit, DeeS, greenwgirl, and yarnbasket (all Rav IDs)! Congratulations to the winners. I have messaged the winners and given them Joanna Johnson's contact. Winners please email Joanna and provide her with your mailing address so she is able to send out the books directly. 

I can't believe it but I am actually doing two giveaways in a row. I think that is a first. Today I have an incredible kit giveaway for you. My blog giveaway will be your ONLY chance to win the FULL kit version of Bunny Love worth over $100! 

Awhile back Anne Vally of Little Skein contacted me to design a Velveteen Rabbit-inspired bunny to be included in her Little Skein's Read Together series. The last kit was the Extra Yarn featuring Laura Linneman's beautiful sock design. 

Anyway, I jumped at the chance. I am so inspired by children's literature and the Velveteen Rabbit is one of my all-time favorites. The book conjures up many sweet childhood memories for me as it does for so many people. Anne Vally has pulled together and created a beautiful kit experience for you to go along with the book.

The kit goes live today for purchase at 10am EASTERN time!

I received a kit on last Saturday and opened it for the first time on the video above. The video is 8 minutes long and if you can't see it on the email version of the blog post click here to view the opening directly on YouTube!

The individual pattern will be available in January 2014 on my Ravelry Pattern shop! I know I will be asked this so I want to be sure to mention this information.

Click here for the Ravelry project page for Bunny Love!


The bunny is called, Bunny Love, and was sweetly named by Anne. It is knit completely seamlessly from the bottom up. In the DK weight yarn it goes very quickly and is quite a simple knit. I loved every minute of designing this dear little project. Anne Vally's Little Skein is truly one of my favorite Etsy shops. I have talked about her talent on the blog quite a bit before. She is out of San Francisco.

Here are the important links:




Gynx Yarns! on Etsy!


In the photo above you can see how I tried to capture the feel of the slightly sad windblown bunny. I love how the ears can be put to the side to look like the book cover illustration. The toy, along with the beautiful stripey Gynx Yarn, is so old-fashioned and innocent looking. Gynx yarns are just stunning and fun to work with. You should give them a try!


The ears can be flopped to the sides as well.


Here is a back view! Of course every bunny needs a pom-pom tail. The written pattern includes tutorial photos on how and where to pick up the stitches for the little arms and legs. The pattern was tech-edited by the one and only Amy Detjen and Anne Vally test knit her own bunny using the pattern. The pattern is in great shape!

(photo from Little Skein)

I feel so fortunate to be able to offer you the chance to win the full kit today on the blog! My blog is the only one featuring a giveaway for the full kit!! Thank you to Anne. 

Here is the description of the full kit from Little Skein:

Bunny Love will be released on November 25, 2013 as part of a holiday kit for knitters created by Little Skein in the Big Wool.
The pattern will be available for individual purchase in Susan B. Anderson’s Ravelry Pattern Shop after January 25, 2014.
Bunny Love is an adorable, vintage-inspired knitted rabbit that reimagines Margery William’s beloved children’s holiday classic, The Velveteen Rabbit. The pattern is the centerpiece of the “Velveteen” kit for knitters, which is available only at the littleskein Etsy shop (littleskein.etsy.com) throughout the holiday season and New Year, and includes:
• The Bunny Love pattern in PDF format
• 1 skein of Gynx Yarns self-striping DK in antique colors of satin pink, french vanilla and soft, velveteen brown, a three-striping color exclusive to this kit
• A drawstring or zipper project bag (knitters’ choice), sized to fit your rabbit-in-progress in an original holiday fabric designed and handcrafted by littleskein
• Unique stitch markers, cotton thread for whiskers on a vintage spool, and more
Read on to see how you can enter to win a full kit for yourself!
(photo by Little Skein)

The Petite Bunny Love Kit is an option for purchase shown above in the photo.

From Anne:

Bunny Love is also available in a “petite kit” with a beautiful pink tonal yarn also created by Gynx Yarns for this kit.

Here are some photos of Anne's version of the Bunny Love design (she is an expert toy-knitter!):

(photo from Little Skein)

(photo from Little Skein)

(photo from Little Skein)

(photo from Little Skein)

The kit is going live this morning at 10am EASTERN Time! You can order the kit and items in all sorts of ways, lots of options to fit in your budget.

Here is the description from the Little Skein website with information on how to buy the kit, future publicity and more:

HOW TO BUY

The kit will be available beginning Monday, November 25 (at 10:00 a.m. EASTERN Time) at littleskein.etsy.com
The full kit is priced at $100 (with a drawstring bag) or $120 (with a zipper bag).  I will also be debuting a suite of Velveteen "companion" items for knitters with budgets of all sizes. A petite kit, including tonal yarn, will be available for $50, several of the kit components will be available for individual sale, and there will be a limited supply of self-striping Velveteen sock yarn for knitters who want to expand their suite of Velveteen items.
Available for individual sale will be:
•  Petite kits | pattern, tonal yarn from Gynx Yarns, stitch markers, and whisker thread | $50
•  Velveteen stitch markers, in littleskein's signature cabochon style | $14
•  Drawstring project bag, sized for single skein projects in the exclusive Velveteen fabric and handcrafted by littleskein | $30
•  Zipper project bag, sized for 2-skein projects in the exclusive Velveteen fabric and handcrafted by littleskein | $45
•  Self-striping BFL sock yarn created by Gynx Yarns in the Velveteen striping colorway | $34
•  Hardback copy of "The Velveteen Rabbit," by Margery Williams, with original text and illustrations | $14

AVAILABILITY

A limited number of ready-to-ship kits will be immediately available on November 25, and when those have sold, pre-orders will be available throughout the holiday season and New Year. 
Pre-orders will ship on a first-ordered basis, and as quickly as my sewing queue allows. I expect that my queue for these custom kits will fill up quickly, so if it is not possible to ship your order by Christmas, you can request a special (free) gift package, which includes a custom-printed postcard, personal note with details about when the kit will ship, all wrapped in a beautiful pillow box, perfect for putting under the tree or in a stocking.

BLOG & PODCAST TOUR

Velveteen will be featured, beginning November 25, on these wonderful blogs and podcasts. Look for a review or a video preview of the kit:
Susan B. Anderson blog
Knitting Pipeline audio podcast
Must Stash video podcast
Stockinette Zombies video podcast
The Dyer's Notebook video podcast
To win the FULL KIT version (worth $100 to $120!!) of Bunny Love please leave only one comment on this blog post. Please leave your email address or Ravelry ID so I can contact you and Anne can gather your mailing address to send you your kit directly. Please do not comment more than once, there is a delay in the actual posting of your comment. In a couple of days I will be randomly selecting one winner for the full kit! 

Good luck and let the comments begin!
best, susie