small things

Sponsored Giveaway: Mamma 4 Earth

Today I am welcoming Linda, whom you may know from her blog, Natural Suburbia.  I am very pleased to be sharing her unique patterns and knitted toys here with all of you. I asked Linda to share a little about herself, how she learned to knit and write patterns, and also what led to the creation of her shop:

Knitted Swan Pattern(knitted swan pattern)

“I have always loved knitting, my mom taught me to knit when I was 5 years old. When she was younger she knitted cricket jerseys for all of her brothers. I used to often see her knitting when I was little.  She knitted us a variety of clothing including our royal blue jerseys for school.  These were the softest jerseys, so much softer than the shop bought ones. One day I asked her if she could show me how to knit and she did. She gave me two short, size 4mm knitting needles and a ball of blue double knitting wool. I can remember that day clearly. I was always encouraged to try and knit her projects that she was busy with, and this was wonderful because I managed to master some complicated patterns and knitting terminology at a young age and she always helped me along the way. I attended a Catholic convent school while growing up and knitting was a part of our curriculum, there were new projects to make for school each year and when I was older I started to knit more advanced items. The first jersey I knitted was a cabled design, I was 18 years old and I still have that jersey today.”

knitted whale pattern         (glider the whale knitting pattern)

“After my husband and I had children, I studied to be a Montessori preschool teacher, I taught for a few years and then after the birth of our fourth child, Kye, we decided that I would no longer work but rather homeschool our children. I discovered the wonderful world of Waldorf education with all its beautiful natural toys and this is when I started knitting toys. At first, I just knitted them because toy patterns were so adorable but then I felt a change developing. A few months later, Mamma4earth, our family business, was born and has been growing each year since 2008.”

 

knitted unicorn pattern(unicorn knitting pattern)

“I began to really start looking at animals.   I noticed that when I encountered an animal or bird I would often study its shape and see the curves and bulk of its body. I would watch its movement and grace. I would calculate the stitches in my mind and see the animal become a knitted creation in my mind’s eye. The design usually marinades within my consciousness for a few days and then I begin the pattern writing and designing process. When I start to write a pattern, I usually continue writing until I am finished, I seldom start designing and finish later, this tends to break the flow of my thoughts. Often I wake early in the morning and while my eyes are still closed, I think of a new design, this is one of the most exciting aspects of my creative process. I love how my thoughts eventually fall into place and a new creature takes form… My inspiration stems from my beautiful family and the wildlife that we are surrounded by in this lovely country of ours.”

 

Knitted Goat pattern

(knitted goat pattern)

“My family and I live in South Africa, we have a suburban homestead where we grow veggies and fruit and live a sustainable lifestyle. We have a whole troop of chickens, rabbits, cats, birds, fish and our newest pet that seems almost human at times… a Labrador called Sandy. I often write about our life on our blog called Natural Suburbia. You can find my patterns for sale on Etsy, my Craftsy Shop and my Ravelry Store.”

 

“Thank you so much Ginny, for hosting me on your lovely blog this weekend.”

“Thank you, Linda!“

knitted lion pattern

(knitted toy lion or pattern)

For today’s giveaway, Linda is offering 8 patterns, winners choice, to one Small Things reader.   For your chance to win, simply leave a comment on this post.  Comments will be closed on Monday March 19 and a winner will be announced within this post.

Comments are closed.  The winner is Taryn:

“Ooh! How exciting! I knitted my daughter an aardvark from Linda’s pattern and loved it!”

Congratulations!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  9. I have never tried to knit an animal before, but I am sure I can do it! This would be great for the baby we are expecting in June! Thanks!

  13. Those are absolutely beautiful! I wonder if I can even knit them! But I’m more than willing to try 🙂
    Thanks!

  15. I love Linda’s blog and her animal patterns are so much fun. I especially love the new Meerkat one..Although I have crocheted many..I have not knitted an animal yet…

  18. Very cool! A LONG time ago (with son number one), I knit a bunch of animal mamas with their children for his Christmas present. It was more on the Farm Animal theme, plus a monkey and an elephant thrown in for fun (but without babies). He LOVED those! He played with them so much! When we had to move across the ocean for my husband’s schooling, we said goodbye to those, but the children who came after him would surely have loved and played a lot with those animals too!!!

  23. Those patterns are awesome and adorable! I would love to win some!! One of my friends just had a baby and these would be perfect.

  25. I have been a fan of Linda’s for a long time now. What a wonderful giveaway this is! Thank you.

  34. Love these patterns. I have 5 kids ages 7,6,4,3,2. They always want me to knit things for them. These would be fun quick and cherished. Love them.

  42. What a talented woman you are, Linda! I love the whale and know some little ones who would love one!

  45. Such wonderful toys! Linda, you are extremely talented! I was looking over the patterns and I saw the pig and I would love to have to snuggle and squish!

  46. These patterns are simply amazing. I wish that I could just envision a pattern like that!!