2019 in Review
Well it’s been a moment since I’ve posted. I do hope your holidays have gone well. It’s been hectic here so when downtime has been available, we’ve tried to take advantage of it. Since we are nearing the new year, it’s a good time to reflect on what’s been accomplished in the past month, past year, and look ahead to next year.
Past Month-ish
Since we last chatted, my family had our largest Thanksgiving get together ever with 15 people present! For those who don’t know, I am the oldest of 3 kids, and growing up, we didn’t have extended family near us. Holidays were just us. But over the years, we have been adding more people between marriages and babies and family moving to town. This was the biggest group yet and it was lovely! I also played hostess for the freshwater aquarium club (for which I serve as President) holiday party in December which had 50 people attend a lunch party. My son turned 7 yrs old this month as well. We also had some other holiday parties for other organizations I’m a member of, and a ton of events for my kiddos. Sprinkle in some germs that tried to knock us down and the general holiday insanity … it’s been non-stop for us.
Does this mean there was no time for crafting? Are you crazy?!? Crafting during the quiet moments is all that gets me through the hustle and bustle! All these projects will get a full write up in 2020, but here’s a quick summary for the end of the year.
I finished my Harry Potter wrap (the Starting Point wrap by Joji Locatelli) just in the nick of time to wear for Thanksgiving! I was weaving in ends like a mad woman while watching the Thanksgiving Day parade. Didn’t get it blocked yet but it is keeping me cozy until I have the time/space/mats that I need for blocking.
I also finally started my 2019 goal #2 … knitting myself a sweater. I decided to use store bought acrylic yarn while I’m learning about knitting for my own body (a skill I’ve told myself I wasn’t worthy of until now). I decided to knit The Easy One sweater by Joji Locatelli because I wanted to start with a simple silhouette so I can learn what shaping changes I want in the future. All I can say is I’m SUPER thankful for my new friend Steven Hicks for being my swatching moral support because it took 4 swatches for me to finally meet gauge!
I had some wool from the Crafty Housewife Yarns Merino wool braid of the month club from earlier in the year that I had been sitting on because I just didn’t love how the colors were organized. I’m obsessive like that some times. So I set about organizing it. I’m only going to show you the unspun gradient above, but believe me when I say that it came out even better than I expected.
Past Year
In 2018, I spun (well spindled really) and knitted something for each member of my family: a hat and cowl for my dad, hat and fingerless mitts for my sister-in-law, hat for my brother, hat for my nephew, hat for my mother-in-law, a hat and cowl for my mother, and a hat for my sister (finished in 2019). Whether they know it or not, it was a ton of work! But it occurred to me at the beginning of 2019 that I didn’t make something for my kids or my husband that year. I also had never knit a large wrap or a sweater for myself. So those were my big goals: Knit for myself, my kids and my husband.
I was semi-successful. I made my daughter a Groovellous shawl that is so big she’ll be able to wear it when she is grown up. Works great for me though… jackpot! So I need to make something more size appropriate eventually. I spun and knitted a Bariloche hat for my husband. It was the first time in my life I realized “Oh you should have swatched”. Oops! It’s maybe a bit taller on his head than I meant but it’s a beautiful piece (and happens to have a coupon code for my readers that you can get here). I haven’t made anything for my son yet, but I have the piece picked out (the Birdwing Scarf by Stephen West) and I have the materials. He LOVES birds! I just need to borrow a drum carder from the PHG Spin Guild so I can prep the fiber. As for myself, I spun and knitted 24 oz of wool and sparkles for my Hogwarts Houses themed Starting Point wrap. And I did finally cast on the back of my sweater. So I’m off to the knitting races as I enter 2020 with my sweater and something for my son taking top priority on personal projects.
All my 2019 handspun, hand knit, finished objects. From the top left we have the Bariloche Hat, Odyssey Shawl, Starting Point Wrap, Groovellous Shawl, Villapesupinnat Shawl, a cabled hat of my own creation, and the Hipster Shawl.
A lot of milestones happened in 2019. I got my first spinning wheel! The wheel lead me to spin nearly 7 lbs of wool and fiber this year! That is crazy! From handspun yarn, I knitted 5 shawls/wraps and 2 hats (shown above). I went to my first fiber festival where I purchased an obscene amount of raw wool. I tried dyeing with food coloring, knitted my first colorwork piece, used a drum carder, learned how to brioche knit, started learning to card and spin cotton, and got my first wool combs and fell in love with hand combed wool. I tried spinning new breeds and fibers including Tunis, silk, Rambouillet, CVM/Romeldale, cotton, Quiviut, Polwarth, Camel, just to name a few. Also this year, I started my blog, started a Facebook page, set up a Facebook group, and built my Instagram community to over 700 followers! When I see all this written down, I feel overwhelmingly proud of what I’ve done and thankful for all the support I’ve received in doing it.
Looking Ahead
2020 is shaping up to be a great and very busy year already! I’ve got a slew of blog posts and tutorials that I’m working on already. I’ll be teaching a beginning spindling course at Eco-Friendly Crafts starting this January. I’m super excited and nervous about that. I’ve got a storage bin of products ready to list online as soon as my paperwork is filed. I also have a number of blog collaborations I’m working on fitting in as well.
So with that, I want to thank you so all the support you’ve given me this year! When I first started spindling 2 years ago, I never would have dreamed of starting a blog or a business to share my knowledge and craft. It truly has been the support from my family, friends and the new friends I’ve made along this journey that have gotten me to where I am today. If I had to pick one thing I’m most proud of from 2019, it’s all the wonderful friends I’ve welcomed into my life. Here is my fiber wish for you as we welcome 2020:
Do you have a fiber arts related goal for 2020 or is there a topic you’d love for me to discuss next year? Let me know in the comments below!