Happy Belated New Year! It’s about 40 degrees here in Tampa, which means I broke out a wool hat (Petite Knit’s Oslo Hat) for my morning puppy play time! I was sweating by the end, but I’ll take what I can get! We moved back to Florida from Chicago about 4 years ago. So I really had to dig in that “winter” drawer to find some serious socks… to wear with my Crocs!
Moving on from terrible Florida wardrobe decisions (thank goodness our fence is tall!) It’s Martin Luther King Jr Day here in the states, and did you know you can listen to some of his work on Audible? I’m knitting to his “Letter from Birmingham Jail” this year. I used to read it each year, but I’ll try listening this time! An added bonus is keeping my hands busy at the same time.
Okay, seriously on to the craft stuff, do you have a craft-related New Year’s Resolution? I don’t because I’m already trending upward on total time spent crafting and blogging. I posted 3 times as much in 2024 as in 2023! Why ruin that by making a bunch of anxiety-inducing goals? The sure way to get nothing done is to plan on doing everything!
So to kick off this year, I wanted to share a couple of methods that worked for me to spend more time crafting last year. I’m also sharing a second (bonus?) list of things I’m excited about, but very surely not resolving to do, this year.
So first, my advice to past Jess about how to craft more:
1. Be honest with yourself about how much time you spend making versus “scrolling about making.”
I have been guilty of spending more time looking for “inspiration” on Instagram than actually working on my makes! Making is very relaxing to me, but scrolling makes me feel a bit anxious. After 30 minutes of viewing fabulous makes, I start to worry I’ll never get to all the projects I want to make. It took some effort to start catching the pattern, but now when I feel that jolt of anxiety, I put my phone down and actually work on something fun. Which leads right into my next tip…
2. Print out your patterns…
…so you can put your phone down and not be tempted to scroll! This might ultimately be the same advice as the first one.
When I have the pattern printed, or hand write my own patterns in a journal, I can work for longer without getting distracted.
3. Work on two projects, one for achieving a flow state and one for relaxing.
Focus is not a strength of mine, but when it comes to my projects, it works itself out eventually.
I try to keep two projects going. One requires full concentration and helps me get in a state of “flow” where I’m so focused on the project I forget all my other worries. Painting is a great flow project for me. So was the yoke of my “Whitmore” cardigan, pictured below being blocked! I wore this Christmas eve, but of course forgot to take photos.
The second project is something I can do while having a conversation or listening to an audio book. A knitted stockinette stitch, some crochet scrap yarn baskets (full post coming soon!) or a simple stitch baby blanket are good relaxation projects.
Sometimes, I even…
4. Craft and walk (or pedal)
Last year I started working on crafts or writing about them here while I use my walking desk! I feel so productive, but I’m really just enjoying a hobby! The trick is to walk at a very slow pace, and use a treadmill desk attachment so you have something to rest the project on.
5. Make a portfolio to share your projects.
I find this adds some fun to the “finishing” steps because I look forward to sharing! I have four places I post. Number one should be Ravelry. In my opinion, it’s THE place to get ideas, share projects, etc. In practice? I may be a year or so behind uploading projects (the pictured Oslo Hat was nowhere to be found!)
Instagram is where I share photos with friends and family and I can tag other designers to publicly give them credit. This blog is where I post details of my projects and my thoughts about crafting. I give credit here when something makes it into a post, but sometimes all I have to say about a project is “it’s done and here’s who designed it.” Instagram and Ravelry are perfect for that.
I have a Pinterest mainly for saving ideas and for sharing pins of my blog photos. I’ve learned Pinterest is the main way makers find my blog so I put some effort into making some nice pins. I’m in no position to give advice to other bloggers, but if I was, it would be not to ignore Pinterest.
This is a good place to note that blogging is it’s own hobby. I would also say that using Instagram as more of a “content creator” also seems like a separate hobby. So if you don’t like writing, graphic design or filming silly videos, just find a spot for photos so you don’t suck the joy out of it.
P.s. I will follow you if you make a new craft-related blog or Instagram this year and leave a comment here! I love to see what others are working on. Please note that I tend to unfollow most accounts whose main purpose is selling something (e.g. patterns or finished items). This is just a personal preference for my feed.
And now for the second promised list…
What I’m planning, considering, hoping to work on this year!
1. TKGA KAL and Courses
I just discovered The Knitting Guild Association and their correspondence courses recently. I joined their knit-a-long to start and I’m planning to sign up for the basics course and the annual virtual conference this year! I love the idea (in theory) of constructive feedback on my knitting… and I’ll find out in short order if I like it in practice!
2. Use My Cashmerette Subscription
I pay for the Cashmerette Club (I’m getting nothing for mentioning by the way) but then I get very scared when it’s time to order the good fabric and give the projects a real college try. Unlike knitting and crochet, you can’t just frog your sewing project once you cut into the fabric.
Yes, yes, I know how to make a toile, and pay attention to measurements, and all those lovely things… I just have more trouble starting sewing projects for some reason. So somehow, some way, this year I’m going to make more of those monthly sewing patterns and join more of her free zoom calls!
3. Making for Charity
When I was spending time with my Grandma over Christmas, she mentioned she’s planning on sewing up her fabric stash into blankets for her local animal shelter. She’s 85 and she’s still sewing for charity? Get out. What a sweet way to spend retirement, or just free time!
So inspired by Grandma, I’m working on blanket rectangles for Warm Up America! as my “mindless” project right now. I have plenty of “leftover” yarn that I can’t think of anything to make with. The great thing about the rectangles is that they are small projects, great for car/airplane situations, leaving by the couch, etc.
4. Writing a Blog I Want to Read
I can’t be the only 90s kid out there searching for more blogs that are mostly just chatty conversations about current projects? Who wants some long form posts via email to read under the covers on a Saturday morning while getting some pup snuggles?
I’ve been trying to find blogs I enjoy about crafting to get more inspiration for what kind of posts I want to write. I’m also struggling with how to balance the cost of blogging with the annoyance of having ads on here.
Okay, so rambling over, but pretty please leave any blog recommendations that fit those criteria in the comments for me to check out! And hopefully by some point this year I’ll have a list of satisfyingly conversational blogs about all things crafting to keep you under the covers every weekend forever…