The Moment of Wow…
The moment when you get to step back and look at what you’ve made with completely fresh eyes.
The moment you finish pinning out a shawl, and can actually see what you’ve made for the first time.
The moment you unpin a shawl and pick it up and it floats along after you.
The moment you finish a new garment, and put it on, and look in the mirror, and see yourself in a totally new way.
That’s why I knit.
That’s why I sew.
That’s why I make things.
Yes, I create because (for me) it’s almost more natural than breathing.
But I finish things for that moment of “wow.”
I’m addicted to beauty.
I’m addicted to stunning.
I’m addicted to jaw-dropping-wow.
And if I can create something that’s beautiful/stunning/wow-worthy…
It makes the last agonizingly long rounds of a shawl worth it.
In every job that must be done, there is an element of fun…
“In every job that must be done, there is an element of fun, you find the fun, and snap, the job’s a game.” -Marry Poppins (film) “A Spoon Full of Sugar”
Naming patterns is, by far, the most challenging part of writing patterns for me.
It’s always the last piece I get to, and I’ll often use some sort of characteristic of the shawl as a sort of working title, or short hand, while I’m knitting.
So, I’ve been trying to publish a pattern for every letter of the alphabet.
A: Anwar. also A-ha, Arrowhead Stole, and Asymmetrical Bluebells.
B: Baby’s Magic Blankie and Birds of a Feather.
C: Climbing Trellis. (the first pattern I ever published)
E: Eirwen.
F: nothing yet!
G: Gene Tierney, Ghosts & Mirrors, Gothic Spires, and Gratia.
H: nicht!
J: nada!
K: Kora.
L: Lapidarius.
M: Mayur also Mrs. Peacock, Mirror World and Malus domestica.
N: zip!
O: zilch!
Q: squat!
R: diddly-squat!
S: Spider Silk and Stereotypical.
T: Tumbling Deco.
U: naught!
V: nein!
W: Wafian.
X: Xylia.
Y: Yuki.
Z: Zodiac le Plume.
9 more letters to go! After I finish the alphabet I’ll need to find a new challenge to help me name my patterns.
I know it’s a little thing, and ultimately having a pattern named after every letter of the alphabet doesn’t mean anything, but sometimes having a challenge that’s a little bit silly is a great motivator.
Why do you knit?
Why do you knit ?
I knit because it’s magic.
It’s transformation. Turning one thing into another. String into stitches, stitches into fabric, and fabric into a picture.
Why do you write?
I write because it’s magic.
Stringing words into phrases, that communicate ideas, that you can then read, and understand. Linking my brain to yours, using your eyes, my fingers, some pixels, and words as many words as we can get our hands on.
Why do you dream?
I dream because dreams are where acts of magic are born.
Why do you dream?
