A Happy Adventurous 2016 !

Art by C. Bautista 

Happy New Year !!! It’s Friday the first of January 2016!!! A new year and I am going into my 8th year of blogging (this is my 383rd blog !) and my 11th year of creating fibres, yarns and crafts and art. 2016 will mark my 5th year surviving cancer. I think all of that calls for a good celebration !

This year there will be no “could have, would have or should have done this or that”…not really a new year’s resolution, although I do want to make more time this year for some time off/adventure before it is too late and time runs out. Never ever put off what you want to do and never feel guilty about anything you love to do: life is too short !

No matter what , I think the most important thing is to be yourself, think positive about who you are and what you stand for; not try to please others and aspire to be the image you think they have in their mind of you. One thing is for sure: we all are not mind readers and we can never ever aspire to know what anybody else thinks. Since it is all conjecture it is best to stay true to yourself and be happy with it: you are unique and there’s only one of you ! Never be afraid and this may seem hard, but it is so much easier when you can be a glass half full kinda person. It is such hard work being negative.

Being on social media a lot, I come across so many who comment on just "regular funny no harm done" - posts with their negative opinion on something and it easily gets out of hand. It becomes so easy , so much easier than it used to be when venting opinions had to be thought about, written down carefully and not anonymously ..now I see so many people getting themselves in knots and basically not being very nice to others. I think that is sad because there are no “winners’ in that kind of scenario: it only leaves a sour taste for both parties. So when you come across that  say  “get the popcorn out!” or better still “Leave things be and be positive and understanding”. Compassion goes such a long way. Again, Life is too short …

This year do something exciting, something you’ve never done before, surprise yourself, have fun, smile , learn and create. That is my wish for all of you! May your year be filled with Magic and Dreams and lots of Happiness.

I will do my very best to contribute to make that happen in 2016. There are lots of plans and dreams already being put in action, some are already almost in the last planning stages and some have already happened and are ready to roll! 

2016 is going to be a fibery and yarny year of goodness , filled with super soft blends, handspun luxury yarns and handdyed dreamscapes on fibre and yarn, rare sheep breed blends and rare and conservation sheep breeds you have dreamt about spinning, some beautiful exquisite haute couture blends with Vicuna and qiviut even..but whoa! I am jumping the gun here…lol…I was going to just write a bit of a list of things that are hopping your way in 2016 ! So hold on tight: we are going on an adventure! All of us ! Happy 2016 !!!


some of the IxCHeL YARNS  for 2016
Special super soft Sock yarns with silver bling ! 
Super soft pure 4ply angora/merino yarn that will knock your socks off! 
Dreamy Bunny and mink yarn all hand spun and hand dyed 
Art Yarns galore for your weaving and knitting 
Lush Angora/Wallaby yarn ! Over the moon with this blend and handspinning this fluffy cloud now (photos to come soon !) 
and more !!! ;-)

2016   FIBRE BLENDS 

Apart from the blends I already have like the Gaga bunny, Magic Bunny, my Nr5 with yak and white bison, the bunny bison bliss, the cashmere flings, the Diva with 16micron merino and bling, the Lush bunny blend, Camelbunny silk and cashmere and more: there are some seriously new blends I have been working on and I can honestly say they are going to be AMAZING !!! 
This year I will again focus on rare and conservation breeds and not only sheep but also vicuna, bison, qiviut, water deer and lots and lots more, including ...yes, wolf and ...shhhh...not saying anything...lol . Here are a few of the fibres and blends to come to you in 2016:

Churro Dreaming : A fabulous blend with Navajo Churro, cashmere, angora bunny, cactus fibres !! (yes it’s not prickly I promise! Lol) 
Soay blend: a wonderful Outlander inspired blend with the ancient and rare soay sheep 
North Ronaldsay and seaweed blend with lots of other goodies blended in 
A truly inspired Viking blend featuring a range of rare sheep from Sweden, Finland , Denmark and Iceland! 
A new Valais Blacknose blend with those very cute sheep from Switzerland 
A few special Dutch and Flemish sheep are also coming into the making! 
Something I am extremely excited about: A Lord of the Rings blend with Stansborough Sheep ! 
Yes: Hog Island Tops!!! 
Castlemilk Moorit tops! 
French sheep from the Burgundy region ! 
A special adventure from Portugal and..... ! 
A new version of my Happy Tigerbunny Hemp blend with so many goodness it is fingerlicking fantastic !!
and ....
Guanaco !
and....
shhhh...v..i..c..u..n...a !!!  



And that, my friends, are just a few of the fibery adventures in the making !!!

I hope this list (which is not everything that I have been working on because I have to keep some surprises at hand ! lol) has put a big smile on your face !

So, For this week’s update : There's no real snaffle update..again..sorry but christmas, birthday and new year all come too close together and with the blending and carding I already had to do, there was no time left for quality time in my dye studio...

The special offer of LUCKY DIP FUNKY BUNNY BATTS still stands. For this week only you can get a huge funky bunny batt for only $30, just like last week. Normal price for batts with that kind of weight are anywhere from $36 to $42 so it is a good bargain !

Have a wonderful relaxing week, Be happy, Love what you do and do it often !!

Please don't hesitate to contact me at any time if you have any questions okay? Always happy to enable. All my contact details are to be found at the end of this week’s blog entry.

LUCKY DIP Funky Bunny Batts

AU$30

Every batt is different and have all kinds of fibres in them. Should you be allergic to any fibre let me know and I will defenitely not give you one that you will sneeze at! ALL the lucky dip batts weigh appr 140-150 grams and are for this week only $30 instead of the normal around $40 price tag. They will be filled with exquisite luxury fibres like angora and cashmere, bison , yak and even wallaby along with merino, and rare sheep breeds. It's a surprise but all the ingredients will be listed on the batt you will receive. and Happy Snaffling !

This could be your lucky dip batt........

or ...this one...

or a green, blue, purple or pink or a happy hoppy rainbow batt ..anything goes! It's a surprise !

Wallaby Fibre

25grams  AU$10

Australian Wild Wallaby Fibre, Super fine fibre that will create a gorgeous halo in your spinning. 
Just blend a tiny bit with your other fibres on your hand carders and you will be amazed how much softer this fibre makes the blend. 
It has a gorgeous grey colour. It is short like possum fibre. Very nice to spin blended with other fibres: you only need a max of 10% and you will so notice the difference!

We have several families of Wallabies living in the bush near us and they often come down to graze. It is just magical to work with.

Landscape dyes 

 100g tubs   AU$11 

Want to dye your own with easy to use acid dyes? I have been selling these Landscape dyes at my workshops and shows for a long time, just never thought to put them on my blog. 
They are extremely easy to use and come in great shades. 
Just contact me with the name of the colour you are after and I will get right back to you.

Have a fun weekend Creating your Dreams!

Please don't hesitate to contact me at any time if you have any questions okay? Always happy to enable.

All my contact details are to be found at the end of this week’s blog entry.

Have fun !!!

Dates to put in your Calendar !!

There are lots of exciting dates in 2016:
I will be doing a talk at the Healesville Spinners and weavers in March (more on that later),
The Handknitters Wool and yarn show in May,
The Bendigo show in July,
The Black n Coloured sheep show in August and much much more before, in between and after !

How To Order:

1. You can email me on ixchel at rabbit dot com dot au or ixchelbunny at yahoo dot com dot au
2. message me on facebook or ravelry where I am Ixchelbunny.

I will email you right back with all your order details and payment methods.

Any questions? Any custom orders for yarn or dyeing fibre? Please don’t hesitate to ask! Always happy to enable.

Thank you so much for your help and support !

 RABBIT ON !

((hugs))

Charly