A couple of people have asked why I included a tiny penguin in a set of patterns that is connected to a little fundraiser for Arctic conservation. Penguins don’t live in the Arctic, duh! I think the Arctic will take all the help it can get, but for those who need more of an acknowledgement/explanation, I thought I would further clarify.
This is not the first tiny penguin that I’ve designed—if you take a close look at the tiny patterns available in my shop, you’ll see a little blue penguin included in the Tiny Mochis Collection 5. I designed this guy a number of years ago, and he’s still close to my heart. He even appeared in a Nickelodeon network ID in 2013!
But a couple of years back I decided I wanted to update the tiny penguin kit that I offer on my site and to retailers to be a black and white type—more of a classic, black-tie penguin. But black eyes don’t show up so well on a black body, so I made the face all white, altering the design quite a bit in the process.
So that was that, but of course some people liked the new penguin design but didn’t want to purchase a kit, so I’ve been looking for a pattern collection that I could include it in. I certainly could have offered the new penguin as a pattern on its own, but I try not to do that with too many tiny patterns, because hundreds of additional shop listings would be a lot to handle (but that doesn’t mean I won’t try it sometime).
So, when I decided to make a collection of Arctic creatures, I was all set with four designs—the glacier, polar bear, walrus, and narwhal. But that little penguin just begged to be included! I couldn’t resist giving the pattern a home so that more people could knit him, and I had a hunch that those who are interested in knitting a polar bear, etc. might also like to knit a penguin. And that’s why the pattern collection is called Tiny Frozen Friends, and not Tiny Arctic Animals.
That’s more of an inside scoop than I think most of you would need, but I thought I’d chat about it for anyone who’s interested. Either way, I hope those of you who get the patterns enjoy the knitting and the teeny new friends and can open your hearts to a tiny black and white penguin (or whatever colors you choose to make yours). I haven’t decided for sure which organization we’ll be supporting with the July sales, but that’s something else that I’m thinking hard on and want to make the best decision about. I’ll certainly share that information here once it’s settled.
Thanks, always, to all of you who knit, comment, share, and like!