365 and Counting

Hello Kneeps*

Well, today is my last post for the Knitting and Crochet Blog Weeeeeeeeeek (seeing as it’s taken me a lot longer than a week to write, I thought that is was only fair that I made it a very long “week” 😛 ). The final challenge is to blog about where I would like to be this time next year in terms of my crafting. It’s taken me a long time to figure out how to write this. Not because I don’t know where I want to be but because my own self doubt got in the way of writing something positive. So I am taking the plunge (while I’m feeling good about it all) and baring my knitting hopes and dreams with you all and I hope that you will keep me accountable to this.

For a while know I’ve been keeping a sketch book close by to jot down/ sketch any original pattern ideas I have, these vary from kids through to adults; socks through to jumpers. I’ve even gone so far as to chart out some of the different designs, and I’ve cast on 1 or 2, only to rip it out again a few rows later. I’m kind of scared, firstly because I really don’t know what I’m doing and I struggle with the concept of making “mistakes” and not making something perfect the first time. Secondly, I’m scared that I’ll knit something up and be really proud of it only to find out later that everyone else thinks is ugly. Thirdly, I really really don’t know what I’m doing (beyond the knitting bit) and that freaks me out a fair bit. Maths was never my strong point at school and despite the fact that I know how to use a calculator and have one handy, I still avoid anything to do with maths as a general rule (says the mum with school aged children who bring maths homework home 😕 )

My goal for the next year is that I actually get over myself and turn my sketches into tangible items with real patterns available for those that want them. Realistically, I know that not everyone is going to like my particular style and you know what? That’s fine. But I also know that there must be people out there that will like what I design. All I need to do is start – or more knittingly, cast on 😛

My 2nd goal for the next year is to start dying yarn. I’m really keen to give it a go. Once again, colour aesthetics differ from person to person, just like design. There are some indie dyers out there whose work is good, but not my style. I’m sure that there will be people that love my colourways and some that don’t but until I give it a go I’m never going to know what I can accomplish. And if I bomb out, well, someone’s going to be getting a very ugly multi-coloured Beekeepers Quilt for Christmas 😛 .

So, that’s it. Putting it out there is a good thing for me (despite the terror I feel at baring my knitterly soul to you all), it means that if I don’t do it, everyone will know. Really, I don’t want to come to this time next year and find myself having to make excuses as to why I didn’t give it a good shot, it’s certainly not an example that I want to be setting for my kids.

I hope you have enjoyed the last 7 posts, some of them have certainly been very different to what I normally write. I’ve enjoyed the challenge and having to think outside of my usual box and I’m certainly looking forward to doing it all over again next year.