Week 8 – Fidgets and Pups

Are you getting tired of Pound Puppies yet?

This week, I have continued with my puppy obsession. I’ve made 3 newborn puppies this week (holy shit – that sounds like a lot). The mini puppy pattern is another vintage one from Etsy by Cheryl Vanderwall De Veronica for Millcraft.

The newborn puppies are far quicker than the big ones, and they use a lot less yarn. I have 1 more halfway finished, and then I think I’m going to work on another big one to enter into the Royal Adelaide Show.

But… what am I going to do with all these Pound Puppies?! Maybe I’ll donate to foster kids in my local area or try to sell a few to replenish my yarn stash?

I have been thinking about how sad it is that these vintage patterns are lost to time. There are quite a few reviews on the Pound Puppy pattern, noting that people couldn’t figure out how to sew them together.

I have been thinking… what if I started rewriting vintage patterns for sale? I am going to do some research and maybe speak to a copyright lawyer about it.

Trigger Warning: Death and Grief

So, the muscle pain from the stress / grief of my Mom’s birthday on the 17th is finally starting to let up.

My chronic illness friends will get it, but I haven’t even been able to wear a bra for the last 2 – 3 weeks because the pain in my mid-back has been so intense. Every time this happens, I wonder if I should get a referral for imaging of the area, because how in the fuck can stress and grief cause such intense pain? Then the stress passes, and I’ll go back to ‘normal’ (which is just a baseline of less pain).

I’ve been spending a lot of time on the deck in my egg chair. Honestly, it’s been so awesome. A hypermobile PT on Instagram (Melissa Koehl) recommended them, and it’s the best money I’ve spent in ages. My therapist suggested that I lean into all things that soothe my system to help with the grief, so this week has been a lot of outside time, egg bouncing, 90’s music, and resting.

Due to the stress of my Mom’s birthday, I’ve been trying to stay off social media this week. There’s only so much my nervous system can handle.

I have been thinking a lot about how, growing up in the 90’s, we were brainwashed and sexualised by the disgusting people in the Epstein Files. And now, as grown-ass women, the Patriarchy is still trying to shame us into looking like children – skinny, hairless, and easy to manipulate.

Fascists continue to fascist as CBS censored Colbert (yet again). When the media is being controlled or manipulated by the government, you know you’re in the bad place.

I do have 2 good news stories to report:

The former Prince, Andrew, was arrested in the UK this week. Have you seen the pictures? What a time to be alive! The first time a royal has been arrested in something like 400 years.

And Trump’s tariffs were ruled to be unlawful by the Supreme Court. Of course, our dictator in chief did not take that well. He had a meltdown on national television and has now implemented 15% tariffs across the board as of Sunday, 22nd Feb 2026. Who knows what might happen tomorrow? I bet even Dozy Don doesn’t! 

In further good news: the Farm Hair Clip Fidget patterns are finished! Wow… what a marathon. The pattern is 22 pages (plus pictures). Each pattern is written separately. The bundle is only $5 AUD on Ravelry, and that’s honestly a massive bargain considering the time and effort that went into this one.

I was able to finish the 4th Overlay Mosaic panel this week – Hell Yes. I’m also halfway through Hell No, which means that I might be able to finish the whole pattern next week. All the graphs are done – I just need time to put everything together and take pictures.

As I said above, I finished 3 of the newborn Pound Puppies. The one on the left is made from Lion Brand Color Theory. I also made one in chenille from Scheepjes and Koosh blend. I have another one halfway finished in Bella Baby Nippers.

We finished Season 2 of Breaking Bad. When we watched it the first time (we were in our 20’s), I didn’t realise that the show is highlighting how (most of) the characters are breaking bad in some way. Walt and Jesse with the cooking, Hank with his Cuban cigars, Marie with shoplifting, and Skyler helping her boss embezzle money.

The show is highlighting – where is the line? What crime is socially acceptable, or what crime could you justify?

I’m about halfway through reading Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but it’s been pretty good so far. It’s a fantasy novel set in space with necromancers. What’s not to love? The main character is a badass lesbian.

This week, we took on a super complicated custom order for an Agemon Doll. My sister is making it (I do not have the time or patience for something so intricate right now). We’ve been closed for customs for a while, but this was a special order for the client’s nephew, so we couldn’t say no. It will take many hours to complete, but I’ll share pictures when it’s done. 

As I said above, the Farm Hair Clip Fidgets are done! They are live on Ravelry and Etsy (cheaper on Ravelry due to Etsy’s insane fees).

The bundle has 5 patterns, and they only use a small amount of yarn. Get out those scraps!

The Fuck It Mosaic Wall Hanging has been popular this week. Have we all well and truly just had enough at this point? I think so.

When I was uploading the fidget patterns to Ravelry last night, I noticed that they’ve added a warning to the photo section – “Uploading content that is created by generative AI is not permitted. Doing so will put your account at risk.” 

Can we stop for a second and appreciate how cool Ravelry are? Thank you for taking a stand and protecting designers and your customers (unlike Etsy, who don’t give 2 shits).  

Don’t forget to just breathe, my friends. Pause and take a deep breath down into your diaphragm. Feel your feet… connecting back down to the ground. Sending you all as many good vibes as I can muster.