I blame the cloth diapers. It was that crazy drive to be organic and environmentally responsible that set me on this path.
When my son was born I cloth diapered him. We were using PUL covers, but I wanted to use wool as a diaper cover because all of my research said that wool was so much better than polyurethane laminate. (Wool is a wonderful
alternative to the rubber pants of years gone by, as it is hypoallergenic and wicks moisture from the body.) However, I refused to buy something that I knew I could make. I'm weird like that. Maybe it's an artist thing. Some tell me it's a Scorpio thing. All I know is that I won't buy something if I think I can make it, or until I prove to myself that I really can't do it as well as someone else.
I inherited my love and talent for all things craft and design related from my father, an architect. His family is filled with artisans going back many generations; jewelers, clock makers, engineers and stone masons. My mother taught me the domestic crafts, like sewing and baking. She also taught me how to knit when I was about 8 years old. Maybe it was her background as a teacher that gave her the patience to teach a very-stubborn-I-know-how-to-do-everything-by-myself-kid how to knit. The same kid that saw soap carving on Sesame Street and wanted to do it, but wouldn't wait until her father got home to help her. So she almost severed her thumb trying to secretly carve a block of lava soap in the basement. There were a lot of tears during those early knitting lessons, but somehow my mom survived and I learned something.
When my son was born I brought the needles back out. I figured out how to knit in the round, how to create short-rows, how to make a great a gusset, and how to graft. Although the first pair of knit wool longies that I made were horrible, they worked as a diaper cover, and I have never looked back.
Knitting has become a great diversion from the stress of balancing a full time job and raising a family. My 'real job' requires me to work with computers and technology and 125 different personalities all day.
By the Fall of 2011 I directed our focus toward newborn photography props, while maintaining a strong connection to the cloth diaper community through knit diaper covers. It was also during that period that I decided to dedicate more time and effort to our Etsy shop. I had a very successful holiday shopping season, and had to enlist the help of my mother in order to keep up with demand. We haven't stopped since.
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Some interesting facts about My Knoodle Knits:
The name 'My Knoodle Knits' is a play on Christine's surname (Knudsen), the term 'noodle' to represent a little baby head, and the word 'knit'.
At My Knoodle Knits you will find unique hand knit and crocheted items for babies, children and adults. We specialize in woolies for cloth diapering and newborn photography props such as, hats, headbands, beanies, cocoons, hammocks, and diaper covers.
My Knoodle Knits was recently invited to attend a taping of the Martha Stewart Show in NYC. Their products have been featured on several blogs and the shop mentioned in a few magazines, including Bamboo Conscious Family Living, Lemonade and Lenses, and Model Life Magazine.
In addition to running My Knoodle Knits, Christine teaches Graphic Design and Advanced Placement Art History in a suburban NJ high school. She and her geo-scientist teacher husband are committed to organic living and peacefully parenting their very precocious little boy. They have one cat, two beehives, and a keen interest in developing organic soap and lip balm recipes.
After 25 years as a Business Education teacher, Janet retired in 2009. When not knitting she provides day care for her grandson, and enjoys spending time reading on the beach in Delaware. She does most of the knit work these days, while Christine runs the business end of the operation and works on the crochet orders.
You can also shop for My Knoodle Knits here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/knoodleknits