Notes on productive problems, plans, and spring coming

Studio Notes

all things crochet

I released my second pattern this week! It's a cute little mallard duck. Pattern releases are fun in that I finally get to share what I've been working on, but sometimes I need to release some creative energy. I've got several projects in various stages.

There's a baby blanket that looks kind of like a patchwork quilt. We’ll see how that comes out. That’s taking a lot of work to figure out how the design is going to come together. I've got a very clear picture of what I want in my mind, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to translate well into crochet. It's been a very productive problem. I enjoy having productive problems. I may not have figured out the actual pattern that I'm working on, but I have created elements and experimented with different techniques that have given me ideas for other projects. Nothing is wasted.

I’ve also been working on a turtle lovey. I’m excited to share that. I think that will be a few patterns down the way because I’ve still got quite a bit of noodling to do on it. I really like how it’s coming together, and I definitely have a vision for it. It’s just making sure the shaping is right.

I have also been working on some friends for Mr. Mallard. Mr. Mallard is actually one of the later patterns in that set, but had more color changes and things like that that I wanted to have tested first, so the other birds in that bundle should be coming out relatively quickly.

I’m thinking through how to bundle the birds as a mix-and-match set. I have 5 to 7 specific birds designed, but ultimately, the goal is to give customers the flexibility and variety to create even more birds from that one set. I don’t know exactly how I want to organize that bundle yet. I've been thinking about other patterns that I've downloaded myself. They are often wonderful patterns, but I've found them difficult to navigate and find what I'm looking for. I like having an overview of what is coming, so adding a table of contents to my own patterns is an attempt to help resolve that, but I'm not sure it goes far enough for this bundle.

Nature

sightings and experiences

Lots of first-time-this-year bird sightings. The birds are all coming back or migrating to their summer homes. I've seen red-headed woodpeckers, red-bellied woodpeckers, eastern bluebirds (never seen before!), gold finches, northern flickers, indigo buntings (never seen before!), blue jays, and cardinals. I was a little concerned I hadn't seen any blue herons yet, but I finally saw one the other morning. Now I'm waiting to see if the barn swallows return. I really enjoy them as well!

Gathered Things

annotated links and more discovered this week

I read this quote from Vincent van Gogh this week:

If you hear a voice within you say, "You cannot paint," then by all means paint and that voice will be silenced.

No explanation necessary. Let's do the thing.