Is it December already?

Wow, is it really December already?  What a weird year this has been.  In March just before lockdown, we closed the office as a precautionary measure, packed up what we thought we just couldn’t work without and went home. A workspace had to be created and the initial assumption was that it would be temporary – like a week or two at most. Now as we move into the 9^th month of working from home, my little temporary space has become my little home office.  It doesn’t help that I sit surrounded by all my craft supplies and years of hoarding of everything and anything crafty that may one day come to use.  I must admit that sometimes I do struggle a little to focus, but it is the only space where I can shut the door and for a few hours at a time shut out the world.

As I type this I glance across my shelf and see a box labelled embroidery.  I have been collecting patterns even before I went to high school.  There are old sheets of carbon paper, lots of tracing paper with faded ink and lots of bits and bobs.  I make a mental note almost daily to do a proper destash, but some of these things are a little sentimental, as they were passed down from my gran.  On my shelf are books with pages that have started to go a little yellow due to age, but these are I suppose, some of my prized possessions. There is a page in my gran’s handwriting of a pattern that she obviously used. Weirdly her knitting book is not dated and to be honest I am a little scared to browse through for fear the pages may disintegrate.

As a result of pain and subsequent surgery on my left arm, and not being able to crochet painlessly during recovery, I started knitting a little more – perhaps too much more.  Knitting has been so therapeutic and where I always felt that it took so long to make anything whilst crochet just produced results very quickly – I have come to appreciate the art of knitting, and that it is not really about how fast to get to finishing something, but the journey of getting to a finish.  I am loving it, so much so, that I have a list of projects lined up and am very excited to also join a KAL with Lauren at Little Yarn Croft https://www.littleyarncroft.co.za/  where we will get together over zoom or similar sessions at various intervals through the process and encourage each other on.  I am quite excited about this KAL because the simplicity of Andrea Mowry’s “So Faded” pattern is what makes it so beautiful and if I can work at my tension then even better.   Of course, I also have that slightly more difficult pattern I want to tackle and mind you even the yarn ready to start, but I am feeling a little intimidated, because it has colourwork, lace and cables… the project in question is the Misuarina tee by Caitlin Hunter.  I had signed up for a KAL, but then the arm decided to take centre stage and that plan went to naught.

So, whilst its been a crazy year, Creative Kogi got a little creative and discovered Facebook Live as a way to showcase fellow crafters – both those who do, and those who feed the addiction.  My initial plan was to do this through a series of blog posts, but live interview sessions are so much more exciting.   I do wish I could focus a little more on this and  bring you everything I had planned, but the project that pays the bills has to take priority and many a time work meetings seem to extend well beyond the lunch hour, so I can’t even plan too far in advance.  You will have to keep an eye out for invitations on my Facebook page.  It has been a bit of trial and error getting it to work exactly like in my vision. I am so grateful to Lauren Ackerman (Little Yarn Croft), Jarryd Long (Diamond Art Studio https://diamondpainting.co.za/), Vanessa Smith (Hooked on Sunshine https://www.hookedonsunshine.co/), and Sam Barnard (Cross Stitch Supplies – South Africa https://www.crossstitchsupplies.co.za) for coming through to chat to me whilst it was all in a trial and error phase.  I have better software now and whilst it’s still a demo version, for my limited use it will do for now.

I am also so grateful to Dana Biddle (Colourspun https://colourspun.com/) and Miensie van Zyl (Knotty Habit https://knottyhabit.com/) for also accepting the invite and coming to chat to me.  I learnt so much in both these sessions and I am looking forward to exploring and discovering more about natural fibres. 

I was totally surprised and overwhelmed and even in tears when I received a package last Monday.  My initial thought was Lauren from The Little Yarn Croft had sent it to me by mistake.  You see, my cousin told me all about this awesome gift she was planning for a work colleague and asked my advice.  I gave her some options and contact details and off she went, only to conspire with Lauren to put together something just for me.  The note she included too is just so special.  I am so very blessed. Now, to decide what to knit with this gorgeous yarn.

As always, I dream big and act small.  I do love CALs and KALs, but perhaps more to participate than to actually host one.  It does take a lot of work and time, and many a sleepless night to make sure it’s all ready together with videos to explain some of my thinking and of course very detailed information, because…well, I am me, and because I am not sitting right next to you to explain.  I had a CAL planned for 2020, but its been a bit of a crazy year, so perhaps it’s something we can look at in the new year.  Next week I have a square being released as part of the 2020 Friends Around the World CAL https://calcrochetalong.com/friends-around-the-world-2020-fatw5/. Keep an eye out for the release of my pattern and accompanying video.  It’s a simple square, but with an interesting level of detail. 

Oh socks!!!  I have been proudly showing off my single sock that I knitted as part of my very own Sock Along in September/October this year. I was so excited to collaborate with Knotty Habit on this project.  The concept of hand knitted socks was a little foreign and completely intimidating, but I managed to overcome the fear and once I got going, I realised what a quick and simple project this can really be. There is something so special about hand knitted socks that are made to fit your foot exactly.  If you need more details and access to my very detailed notes on how to knit your very own socks, you can join my Facebook group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/CreativeKogi.crochetandknittingpatterns/ and everything you need is in the files.  I am looking forward to completing my second sock and wearing the pair.

So, this was just a quick summary to pull together some of what has been going on in my creative world. Please join me at lunchtime this Wednesday, 9 December.  I will be chatting to Kerry-Anne Crichton Stuart about Knitted Knockers, which is endorsed by CANSA. I already have both the crocheted and knitted kits and will try both to decide which I would like to do going forward.

I am not great at regular catchups, so if I don’t chat to you again, please take care during this festive season and most importantly stay safe and healthy.

Until next time, Create, Craft and Inspire

Best wishes

Kogi