Fiber Fridays

So why do I take a day each week to talk about my hobby rather than my job. Well, first because it is a very important part of my life. I am borderline obsessed with fiber arts. They relax me, they inspire me, they give me a chance to meet new people and make new friends. I can show my love for family and friends through objects that I have made. Objects that I have lovingly chosen just for that person, with yarn that often took weeks or months to choose and find. Not to mention the object itself. Sometimes made in two days, sometimes two weeks, and even two months, they represent to me the time I have taken for that person.

For example, right now I am knitting the Sweet Honeysuckle Wrap for my MIL. I have been working on it for a week now, and I am not quite half done with it. It took me a week to pick what I though might be the perfect pattern for her, another few days to find the softest black yarn I could, and a few more days to modify the pattern to suit her particular needs (it needed to be a different dimension all together). Now it will take me about three weeks to make it, and I have to learn a new technique to finish it as well. Now I live far away from her, and if I didn't much of this time would have been spent with her rather than knitting for her. But since I don't live near her, this wrap to me represents all the time that I send her good thoughts, think about her happiness and health, and wish that I could be closer to family more often.

Not all people who knit think this way, but many that I know do. And not all people who receive a knitted (or crochet, tatted, embroidered, etc) gift understand what these gifts can represent to the maker. I know knitters who have been hurt so many times because the recipient of their gift didn't care if it was handmade and not from a store, that they refuse to knit for anyone anymore. I don't care. I don't care if you don't get it. If you don't know, understand, or care how much of my heart and soul goes into an item, I will knit for you anyway. Selfishly it is as much for me as for you. The process is for me, the product is for you. And if you "get" my process and it makes the product mean more to you, than that is great. If it doesn't, well then, your loss.

There is a similarity with my soap making. I make the soaps for my customers. I try and tailor them to their needs. I try and make each one the best it can be, and I try and enjoy the process as much as the finished product. I think the difference is that with the soap, sometimes I get bogged down in the process. That I need to make hundreds of a particular kind. During this time of year where I have little feed back from customers, I an feel engulfed by the process, not knowing if the products will find a happy home. So that is why I dedicate one day of my blog to my hobby, because it lifts my spirits, reminds me who I am, what I want to do, and why I want to do it. Without knitting I would be a grumpy soapmaker, and with it I am actually a better one.