Rounding the corner into Year 3 of the pandemic
plus a shop announcement
Dear fellow makers,
I am gently stepping into your in-box this frosty January with warm wishes, tales of cozy yarn, and a new kit in the shop.
You may have noticed that my shop and (public) making has been quiet for the past few months. This time of year — fall turning into winter and winter turning into deepest winter — is often an introspective time for me. I like to hibernate a little bit, soak up family time, and, somewhat like a waning moon, draw inward. The pandemic has really underscored all of this for me, and I've been extra attentive to tune into what my body, my family, and my community need — and what I have to give.
As the pandemic rounds the corner into Year 3, a few things are standing out to me:
a social safety net is still deeply needed;
parents, and especially parents of under-5s, are screaming into the void;
our structures of democracy, critical to actually enacting the policies that a majority of us in America agree on, are imperiled;
many small maker shops are closing under the weight of the pandemic;
I find that my own making has changed, too. I am working through my stash rather than creating (or buying) new yarn. I find myself with more patience to unravel a project that is no longer working for me, or which has a less than ideal execution. I am re-working, re-purposing and re-imagining.
With fewer external activities going on, my natural way of going slow and valuing the small, simple moments of life feels more natural than ever.
I am enjoying having enough, honoring the many beautiful handmade things in my home, and taking the time it takes to make new ones. Not rushing, consuming mindfully.
I don't think these reflections are particularly novel, but I hope you will enjoy them — I hope, also, this email finds you, too, with enough.
Please remember to:
Be gentle with yourself. We are all getting through, as best we can.
Protect the most vulnerable among us.
Remember to point out hidden systems of inequality where-ever you see them.
Keep making. Slow, mindfully, and with intention.
Shop announcement
I've made some significant changes in how I work so that I'm best able to weather the continuing pandemic. Many are things you won't notice, but a few you should know about:
I am now a solo person shop. I won't be offering sewn project bags often (but will be introducing kits, soon, for you to make your own). Yarn may be more limited in quantity than it's been in years past.
The shop will now open for a few days each month, like a pop-up, rather than being always open.
If you love my style of dyeing, please consider joining my yarn club. It's the best way to ensure you get my yarn. It's a surprise skein, every other month, which I've found is the very best frequency to balance using yarn with stashing.
Shopping hours for January are: Saturday, January 22 through Tuesday, January 25, 2022.
As always …
As always, thank you for supporting my creative work, whether it's with a shop purchase, a donation to my Community Fund, a like on Instagram, or a comment on my blog.
Stay safe, and be gentle with yourself.
—Anne