So here we are suddenly in 2013! I am really excited by the prospect of the forthcoming year. 2012 was not a great year for me – there was a lot of stress, strains and anxiety involved across the whole year and it is lovely to now look forward to all that the New Year may have in store.
I have done the typical New Year things: I have set myself the usual ‘loose weight’ ‘Get Fit’ resolutions, I have had a good clear out in the bedroom and am planning to dismantle the Christmas Tree and put all the decorations away over the course of the weekend. All the mince pies have been eaten, the remaining piece of Christmas cake won’t be far behind them and I have thrown away the jug of brandy sauce left over from Christmas day that I found lurking at the back of the fridge this morning.
I always find the turn of the New Year a really positive period – it’s a time when I feel optimistic about all the things on the horizon and, whilst most of those things inevitably involve lots of hard work, sitting down with a mug of tea and planning the year ahead is really cathartic for me. I wrote this time last year about Janus, the mythical King of early Rome, who was the God of beginnings and transitions and thus gates, doorways, endings and time. Janus had two faces; one looked forwards, the other looked back and to the Romans he represented the importance of looking forward to the future whilst also taking the time to reflect on the past. Last year taught me a lot of valuable lessons and, whilst it was not a year that I will remember fondly, it was a year when many important decisions and transitions were made and the foundations were laid for what I hope will be many exciting things that will see fruition in 2013.
The Calendar for 2013 is filling up – there are lots of workshops and trips to look forward to and a couple of books on the horizon!
January sees the publication of my long awaited knit and crochet book ‘Homespun Vintage’ which is now available through our web site. There are some images of a few of the projects and the front cover below. Despite the agonizing wait for this title to finally appear on the market I think it’s a really beautiful book to look though and I am still really proud of the projects within it. Knit Now magazine have published an online interview with me about the book so you might want to take a look by clicking here
January also sees the launch of SimplyCrochet magazine. I think the first issue has arrived on some people’s doorstep this morning, but alas I have not seen my copy yet! I will be writing a monthly piece in the magazine and have also been asked to submit some designs – a simple crochet collar being the first design to feature in this month’s magazine. If you follow the link above you can take a preview flick through the magazine - it looks really fab and I just cant wait to take a peek too!
Towards the end of January I will be tutoring a crochet reminder workshop at Herts Crafts Collective in Radlett – I have the project to design over the next week, so I will post some images once I have finalised the design. I am really looking forward to these workshops – the surroundings of the Collective are so inspiring and a great place to pick up a vintage bargain – I bought Mr C this cast iron shop sign letter which now takes pride of place with the plates in the kitchen.
There are always unusual one off pieces to look at and some lovely ‘crafty’ things to purchase, including hand made jewellery and beautiful patchwork. Suzanne – who runs the collective – is really helpful and has a great eye for fab things so why not have a little trip out and take a look at what she has to offer?
February has exciting things in store too – with the new event Stitchtopia being the highlight of the month. If you’re serious about your knit, crochet and stitching and haven’t yet taken a look at the itinerary for this and read up on all the info you would be crazy to stay ‘in the dark’ and might be kicking yourself later on that you missed it or couldn’t book the workshops you wanted to attend.
Kaffe Fassett and Brandon Mably will both be there along with a team of Rowan consultants (including myself and the lovely Debbie Abrahams) alongside stitchers such as Karin Hellaby and Charlotte Liddle.
I will do my best to blog again this week - I have so much I want to share - just need more hours in the day and more days in the week! I have made 'update the blog more often' one of my many New Year's resolutions - my hope is to find the time to blog at least once a week so please keep an eye on me!
Happy New Year!
Jane x
