Every year I designate a theme of some sort. Just a little goal to spur my creativity on and keep my knitting or spinning fresh and new. I have been very satisfied with the results.
The Year of the Sweater (2010) yielded me a nice stack of handknit sweaters.
The Year of the Stash (2011) saved me tons of money, taught me to use some ingenuity when matching patterns to the yarn I had on hand, and still left me with a cabinet full of stash!
The Year of Spinning (2012) was when I added spinning to my fiber obsession, adding a new dimension to my passion for knitting.
Last year could be called The Year of Survival. While I didn’t make any declarations last New Years, I did get some fun things done.
I did some knitting –
I did some spinning –
And I did some knitting with my handspun –
And that’s not even all of it! Pretty good for vomiting the first half of the year and nursing a baby the second, huh?
So, now it comes to 2014. What to do? I have a few ideas flitting around.
Knit only from my handspun for the year?
Only have one WIP at a time?
Set some kind of goal for each month. Say, every month I have to knit a sweater, a shawl, a pair of socks, or what have you?
Another stash down? Lord knows I need it!
A Christmas focused year?
Or maybe a mixture of the above.
Okay. I got it. Are you ready?
This year. Twenty-fourteen is The Year of This and That. And it goes a little something like this:
Each month I will –
1. knit something from my handspun
2. knit a christmas gift or christmas decoration (The Blessing still needs a stocking, I want to make each kid an ornament, and the nativity scene needs some sheep, for example)
3. spin one braid (at least)
4. keep my yarn/fiber purchases to the bare minimum (an unofficial stash down of sorts)
and 5. keep my WIPs to a minimum, say….. four. Yeah. Four is good.
That sounds do able but also challenging. And productive.
Ready. Set. Begin.
I don’t know how you have time with all those kiddos! Of course, the older ones are able to do things on their own (and keep an extra eye or two on the littler ones). My wheel hasn’t seen the light of day for awhile and I rather miss it…and I don’t get much knitting done during the day with Little Man running around like a crazed loon. ::sigh:: But, I do like your approach π
I do have lots of help in the form of big kids. I also keep a very firm 7:30 bedtime for the littles and then craft all night. π
i, too, don’t know how you have time to knit, spin and mother all your precious ones! loved this post! good luck and Blessings to you!