puttering, percolating, steeping and brewing
Each Wednesday, I post a snapshot of the projects I’m working on, and where my brain is at.
Last week I wrote this Wednesday morning with every intention of posting it. But then never got around to it:
“Each Wednesday, I post a snapshot of the projects I’m working on, and where my brain is at.”
That’s the beginning explanation of what I posted each Wednesday for about five years (more sporadically at the beginning), and I’ve missed a couple here and there, but it’s been fairly consistent.
But, I stopped around the New Year, posted once a couple weeks into the new year, and haven’t posted again for a couple more weeks.
At the moment when I read this my immediate reaction is, what am I working on?!
I’m always working on ongoing client work.
I’ve finished knitting the sweater I started a couple months ago, and it’s just waiting for the ends to be woven in.
I’m slowly spinning up a couple batts from a friend.
I’m reading a lot.
I’m writing and talking about the Shawl Geometry Books to introduce them to a wider audience.
I’m working on background things for Who Wears Who. Talking to people about their wardrobe aggravations. (How do you feel about your wardrobe? If we waved a magic wand and your wardrobe was now your dream wardrobe, what would it look like? That sort of thing!)
But after two years of consistently working on a REALLY BIG PROJECT, that feels like nothing.
That list feels like puttering, and housekeeping.
Which is totally valuable!
And also doesn’t feel interesting/desirable/exciting enough to be blogged each week.
And also, also, I know the value in teeny, tiny, seemingly inconsequential steps (after all, a sweater is knit one teeny tiny stitch at a time).
So, I guess the project I’m working on is puttering, and I think I’ll keep puttering until I find a new “big project” to dive headlong into.
But I realized right now that “puttering” isn’t exactly the right word. It’s more like “percolating” or “steeping” or “brewing.” And those tiny gwish-projects are asking for space.
Tiny gwish-projects are brewing. That feels like a FAR more accurate statement.
In the meantime! (While the gwishes percolate).
Penny wrote a lovely review of the Shawl Geometry Series, which you can read here.
And she asked me to write a bit about the driving idea behind the update for the Shawl Geometry Series, so I wrote about how the series has grown and evolved, but always been a place where math didn’t need to be intimidating, or overwhelming, or unapproachable. You can read that piece right here.
I wrote about what is possibly the world’s oldest tee-shirt hack over on Who Wears Who.
And finally, I’ve (slowly) started adding all of the patterns & shapes that are in Shawl Geometry Books to Ravelry! Book One is taking shape right here, if you’ve ever wanted to queue or favorite your go-to shapes.
getting back into the swing of things
Each Wednesday, I post a snapshot of the projects I’m working on, and where my brain is at.
Whew! Hello 2018!
Part of me feels like I’ve begun this whole year already behind, but another part of me reasons that, that is, of course, not possible, because a) a beginning implies clean slate, and a clean slate cannot coexist with “being behind.” And b) because the whole concept of “behind” might very well be an illusion, at least in the “we are all stardust” version of reality.
The end of 2017 coincided with wrapping up the second edition of the third book in the Shawl Geometry Series, which had a satisfying element of poetic timing about it. It turns out that the that third book took basically a year to update, and updating the whole series took two.
After that was Christmas, and then New Years, and then trying to get back into the swing of a regular schedule. Except, now, every coherent spare moment wasn’t focused on editing, and rewriting.
It’s been nice to have that space to putz around. Space to not have an overwhelming project in front of me asking for attention. Nice to have a spontaneous break from writing here each week.
But it’s also really nice to be back here.
It feels fantastic to sit here with an open blog post, and chat about what I’m working on, and where my brain is at.
There’s been almost no knitting, or spinning, or sewing, or crochet, or anything over the past couple weeks. My free time has been focused on vegging, and rewatching the Gilmore Girls. And it’s been wonderful.
But I’ve also just picked up a new spinning project. And updated all of the Shawl Geometry Blog Posts. And written a new post over on Who Wears Who?.
And the timing on all this feels beautifully right. It feels as though halfway through January I’m finally catching up with the beginning of my year.
You can learn all about the updated Shawl Geometry Series of Books right here.
Or get a sneak peek through the Shawl Geometry Blog Series here.
And read the new style post here on Who Wears Who?.
Here’s to a wonderful to 2018.
a longer sleeve, and a finished book!
Each Wednesday, I post a snapshot of the projects I’m working on, and where my brain is at.
And Shawl Geometry Book Three is finished, the update is sent out, and the latest edition is available for purchase!
I’m delighted that this is finally finished! It took far (FAR, FAR) longer than I originally thought it would to edit this book (which turned into completely rewriting it). And a little part of me is still shocked that it’s finished – I don’t need to make any more notes, or change any more commas, or check any more page numbers. It’s done, done.
You can learn more about all three of the books in the Shawl Geometry Series here. (Books one, two, and three, are also available on Ravelry, if you prefer purchasing there).
In other news, the first sleeve of my Fairchild sweater has gotten much longer, but it’ll still make fantastic travel knitting over the weekend. And I’ve been living in this sweater.