I love knitting. Anyone who knows me, knows that I don't readily go into stores and buy sweaters. They know that I inspect, look at fiber content, look at construction, look at drape, see if it itches, and still complain about the price. I would even gladly pay more for yarn, just for the shear pleasure of knitting the sweater. I stare at knitwear as I am traveling and start to pick it apart in my head. I may have caught a few people looking at me as if to say "What are you looking at?". I just smile and say "Beautiful sweater". That warms up the New York attitude almost immediately.
So, in my head I have a ton of sweaters I want to knit. As well as hats, cowls, baby items, gloves, mittens...oh the list goes on and on. One time, I tried to write it all down and gave myself a headache because I was frustrated as to what needed finishing first. There is sometimes a battle. Do I go out and be sociable today? Or..... do I snuggle up with some yarn on the couch and watch a movie? If I spend an hour having a glass of wine at a bar with my non-knitting friends, how many stitches could I have gotten done if I were drinking with a knitting friend who wouldn't look at me weird when I pulled out my Mmmmmalabrigo?
I was perusing through my emails, while I was browsing the bookstore for new knitting books. I came across a very personable email from someone I really didn't know. She has been following my blog for quite some time, and is enchanted with my writing style and my photos. At this point I was floored, because sometimes I think I can just babble on for days. But in hindsight, reading older posts have even made me chuckle. To make the long story short, she has a project that she would like me to be a part of. It involves a new sweater, lots of pretty colors, and lots of blogging about my day to day adventures with my new knitted friend as she grows.
So, basically I do what I love to do (make sweaters), write about it, someone in the internets finds what I love to do just as intriguing as I do, and wants me to continue doing what I love to do, just because she loves it too. Somehow, I feel touched by an angel. I live in a society where everything happens at the speed of light. People get married and have kids faster than the time it takes to figure out what drives a person's wants and desires. People who don't understand my craft crack jokes, but when their head is freezing or their fingers are about to fall off they beg for a hat or mittens. And this one woman actually took the time to read about a portion of my life, and she gets it. She gets how calm and exciting knitting can be at the same time. She gets how there is such an urgency in my fingers to knit that I want to get everything off the needles just to make space for this new project. She understands that there is nothing wrong with buying another skein of yarn, even if I still have about 50 miles worth in stash already. Thank God! Someone gets it!
Having said all that, I have a few plans for the upcoming year.
I will definitely knit this sweater project, and keep my audience updated on the progress, as well as show it off to as many people in this world who want to see it.
I will frequent more LYS knit nights, because the couch does get boring sometimes. (And the LYS serves wine and Lambic)
I have joined the 12 sweaters in 2012 group on Ravelry, because I want to finish these sweaters and start wearing them already!
I will take pictures of more store sweaters, even if they are acrylic, and redesign them to my yummy wooly heart's content.
I will give the naysayers the side-eye and happily go back into my knitting zone. I am making knitted fashion for crying out loud! I need to get it off the needles and pair it up with some skinny jeans and heels.
Oh, and did I mention I am going to start sewing too? More on that after Christmas.
The moral of today's story is..... do what you love, and God will send someone or something into your life to enable you to do more of what you love. This is that sweet spot where new ideas are born and new pathways are made.
To all my new followers, who have said that I inspire them..... I thank you for your kindness and for reaching out to me. I will try my best to make your time on my blog worthwhile, and keep things fresh and interesting. And, for the love of Mary, don't think that you can just make a sweater on the fly without swatching. I know I do it, but don't follow me. Please! LOL! After you finish a few sweaters, unravel those swatches and make a striped colorwork hat.
Woops...I almost forgot a picture. Here are my Thermal Mitts in their current state. I elongated the cuff to double the amount of rows the pattern called for. At this point, I have already started the thumb increases, but have not separated it from the body of the mitt as yet.
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