I just finished up two of the longer term projects I was working on and was on Ravelry late last night, trying to find another project to use up yarn I already have - a bit of a struggle, if I'm being completely honest because ooh...the yarn. I should know better than to look at yarn. I'm not a big "stuff" person in general, but yarn is definitely my undoing. I looked up the type of yarn Ginny was using on her tunic and fell head over heels in love. I even showed my husband, who nodded absently, intentionally not giving me false hopes because yarn is not in the budget now nor will be for a long time. I knew this, but I cast one last longing look. Sigh. So pretty. So lovely. So completely unnecessary in light of the box of yarn in my closet. Instead I looked up other projects that use yarn I already have and settled in to make something that will be just fine.
That's really why creativity matters so much, why it's a component of life that should be nurtured in every child. It's the wiggle room that allows you to find another way, to make do, to be a problem solver instead of a box checker. There's trial and error and there's learning in creativity in ways that just going with the flow can never offer. It give you that little "can-do" spark even when things look bleak - and the potential to yield results better than you could have imagined.
I remember that when I click closed the tab on the Luna Fiber Arts webpage. Sometime maybe. But today, I think I'm going to figure out how to dye some of the bare cascade I already have. Maybe have the kids help me because learning how to make and do is one of my favorite parts of being a parent - and one of my favorite parts of being alive. Made in the image of the first ever Creative, it's a part of who I was created to be.
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Yes! Lovely. Thank you for being honest about your yarn love and budget needs... I too drool over the lovely yarn through others' ravelry and blogs but the budget just isn't going to be there for the kind of yarn I want for a long long time. I actually just started a Shalom sweater for myself with yarn I repurposed from an Old Navy sweater I'd had since high school. Not exactly Mad Tosh but I was pretty proud of my creative planning. I may not be able to afford really nice yarn for a really long time but the stretching it provides my creative process is a good thing too. Can't wait to see how your dyed yarn turns out!
ReplyDeleteI needed this today. Thank you! :) It helped me to remember that a little creativity would go a long way towards improving my attitude about our current not-turning-out-AT-ALL-as-we'd-hoped situation in life at the moment. "Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not break." ;)
ReplyDeleteYou're echoing my thoughts exactly-so often I find myself looking at supplies that cost so much more than what's in the budget (wool, yes, and other things) and have to make do with something else. I'm surprised though by how often i'm actually more satisfied by what I came up with on my own, (or dyed) rather than trying to pay more than I could afford on the supplies or wool I originally wanted. Dyeing can be so rewarding!
ReplyDeleteThat being said-whatever wool you are using is absolutely gorgeous, I love them together too! Lovely photos.
I, too, find myself closing the tab on lovely lovely yarn. But I agree, making do and stretching creativity is such a joy! We all just need the nudge-- thanks for reminding me!
ReplyDeleteI too have been drooling over some of the beautiful yarns I see. Two years of unemployment means using stash or buying discounted yarn. I am trying to mostly use stash, but a projected Christmas present for my mom prompted a modest yarn buy. A 25% off coupon kept it under $20 though for yarn for a vest. I have found that I can fall back in love some of my stash yarn though and it does force me to be more creative.
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