About a Year, and About a Week

It's been a long week, but it ended with a lovely package in the mail:

It's sample return time! It was delightful to open the package from Knit Now and find three samples that I had knit up to present my patterns that Knit Now have published in the past year. The Woodland Cardigan represents an important beginning for me, as it was my first third-party publication. It also marks a year since I have started working full-time (or, as full-time as I can during the kids' school hours and the occasional round of household errands and tasks) at knitwear design.

This week has featured an interruption to work; that of having a sick kid at home all week. She's well on the mend now though, and for that I am very thankful. I am also glad that I have been able to easily take that time with her due to my work being fairly flexible, and that if it was going to happen (and this kid is rarely ill), it happened during a slow week. Sure, there was a lot that I would have been working on, but none of it needed to be done this week exactly.

While spending time with my daughter, I did also make a bit of progress on a few non-work projects, such as on her socks that I've been meaning to make for awhile:

and, on a hat for a friend's baby (just need to weave-in those ends!), the pattern being garter and hearts by Amanda Keeys and it is knit in Et après by Plassard, colour 89. If it looks a bit big, it's meant for the 6 month and up size, as it's rather lovely out, so the baby shouldn't need it for awhile yet.

Also, I'm still spinning the blue silk. I'm getting rather close to the end of the singles, but it's still going. 25g has been taking longer than I thought, but it is a rather fine single (maybe not consistently fine, but I'm still happy), so it may be a few more days yet before I can start getting this organized for plying. No idea what I will make with this just yet, but it's certainly no rush to decide. I'm enjoying the spinning process and the feel and shine of that silk!

Crafting is Catching

A very good thing about doing DIY crafty stuff is that it's catching.

I caught it from Mom, who would bake, cook, sculpt, sew, glue things to other things, cross-stitch, do leatherwork, arrange flowers, and decorate wedding cakes (and probably lots of other things) as I was growing up. She continues to be crafty, and has added quilting to sewing, has done a pottery show, taken up crochet, and has added making pretty things with glass to that list. This last she herself caught from a friend with a talent and love for working with glass; I'm happy to hear how much they enjoy going to glass workshops together!

Really, I also caught it from Dad, who would garden, compost, build fences, build things for the house to make it work better, build the house itself (two of them!), and with the help of friends and relatives with a lot of DIY know-how, make it a well-functioning house too. I may not have acquired many of those particular skills, but thanks to Dad, I know they are acquirable. Whether or not you learn the actual skills from someone, learning that something can be learnt and done yourself is even more important. 

I also feel very happy that my family has found crafting to be catching as well. Last weekend, there were all sorts of projects on the go. My husband has a great old ex-military jacket that he wears a lot, only the collar was getting thoroughly worn-out. He's taken it off of the jacket, and has cut a piece from an old corduroy skirt that I don't wear anymore. He'll be sewing on the new collar, and will get to enjoy the satisfaction of having preserved a favourite jacket by doing a bit of mending.

My 6-year-old finished up a sew-your-own-mermaid kit, which has a blank doll to put together. Isn't it darling? While I did the hair and some of the cutting, and my husband and I helped her start and tie off threads, she did do the rest entirely herself, including cutting out the scales, and decorating with beads.

My 8-year-old made the cute little fish-themed purse for the mermaid, and is working on a weaving project (thanks to a kind friend for lending her a loom to try out)! She also took the time to make a little bag in which to put teeth for the tooth fairy, entirely on her own.

I'd love to hear who you caught craftiness/DIY from, or any stories you may have of craftiness and DIY spreading, or of being inspired by someone to learn a new skill. For fun, let's make a giveaway out of this, shall we? Comment on the blog with a story (or link to your blog with a story) about crafting being catching by the end of next week Friday (April 17th, Midnight, MST), and by random draw method I will select a winner of a coupon for a free pattern from my Ravelry shop (also listed on my pattern page).