Ok, so here's why it's not as insane as it sounds. My local yarn shop, Heinselmann's, is having their annual "Make it with Wool" sale. ALL of their yarns with any wool/silk content is on sale. How could I resist a sale like that? And of course, they put these yarns on sale just in time to start all of my cold weather projects. Likewise, in the spring, they put cotton blend yarns on sale for warm weather projects. I love this store! So, while trying to stay within some sort of budget, I went yarn shopping for some of the projects on my to-do list. Amazingly, I managed to stay under my budget (but over my husband's budget for me ;) ) and got enough for four projects on my ever-expanding list!
In the past, I have done things to keep my on track with things like Christmas presents when I was making a whole bunch of the same thing. When I've done snowflakes in the past, I made about 50 of the same snowflake for family and friends, and that can get a little monotonous. So, to keep myself moving forward I'd make little incentives for myself usually in the form of allowing myself time with another project, or taking a break to read a book over the course of a day or two.
Last Christmas, I made something a little different for each person. I made jewelry items, and only had repeats for my sisters, who each got the same earrings; and all the men got tie tacks/lapel pins since men are so hard to make anything for with tatting. (And you thought shopping for them was tough! lol) I found it was so much easier to stay focused on the overall project because it was like having a bunch of mini-projects!
However, I've had a few requests for something unisex this year, like the snowflakes I've done in the past. And while it's kind of a relief to not have to try to come up with something for the men, it means I'm back to making at least 25 of the exact same thing. If I tried to make a couple of different ones, I know I'd quickly lose track of who I gave which snowflake to, and people would end up getting repeats. It's much better to give everyone the same snowflake, and change up which snowflake I make each year, don't you think?
So, while I'm working on Christmas presents this year, I also get to continue in my everyday duties (My husband gets lovingly grumpy when I let the house get away from me) and try to find the time to make some of my new projects as well as finish old projects. To make matters worse, I just got my bobbins!!!
No, not the kind for sewing. I mean the bobbins for bobbin lace! (Try a google image search if you don't know what I'm talking about. But do yourself a favor and stop there or you'll be swimming in all the different types of bobbin lace.) I'm so excited! They were given to me as an early birthday present! I still need to collect some of the other hardward, like a pillow and a pricker. And lots, and lot, and lots of pins--the kind with the nearly-non-existent heads. Plus, I still need to purchase the book that will teach me what I need to know beyond the cloth stitch. Apparently, there's a bit of math involved. Who knew? (My husband calls the bobbins Barbie canoe paddles.) So now I'm anxious to get the rest of the supplies so I can really get into learning bobbin lace!
While it's not entirely clear when tatting developed, and it shares some characteristics with ancient Egyptian macrame, tatting as we know it today didn't come around until about the 17th century. Bobbin lace, on the other hand, was made popular in the 16th century--largely thanks to royals all around Europe who had it added to their clothing. Because of the royals taking a fancy to lace, lace became the height of fashion and anyone who could afford to purchase it did. Anyone who couldn't afford to purchase it, instead, made it. And each little cluster of lacemakers eventually developed unique characteristics in their production. I still can't tell every different type of lace apart from all of the others, but there are a few that are very unique (either in technique or overall appearance), and I do have a few favorites emerging. I'm so excited to learn more about the different styles and techniques as I learn this wonderful new/old craft.
But you see what I mean about my attention and too many projects! Haha. I love what I do, all the different things included. I'm definitely going to have to come up with some strategies to keep me on track to getting all of the Christmas presents done this year! Then again, maybe I might learn bobbin lace fast enough to give something made from this wonderful technique for Christmas this year. Oh, the possibilities! However, it would probalby be wiser to go with what I know for now and see what happens next year. Ooh. . . too many possibilities! Ok, now I'm just rambling.
As you can tell, it's never dull (at least to me) in the Light house!
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