New Home, New Outlook

Surprise, Surprise! We moved again! Since getting married in January 2007 we have lived in Oregon, Utah, California, Arizona, back to California, Colorado, back to Oregon and now: Montana! My husband Brian received a wonderful job opportunity in Polson, MT, right at the base of Flathead Lake and to the west of the Mission Mountains. It's gorgeous here, seriously. I've always wanted to live in Montana and have the opportunity to be closer to my dad and step mom so when the job popped up it just seemed like the right thing to do. It was hard to leave Oregon, we had been there for 2 years, and we did love it, but we both agreed it was time for a change.

(The skirt in the image is my new Citrus Skirt knit out of Fleece Artist Woolie Silk 3-Ply with the Mission Mountains in the background)

I've been a knitter now since June of 2007. I started spinning in January of 2009 (and opened an etsy shop in February 2009). I had (and still have) a whole room devoted to my crafting, which is in no way limited to knitting and spinning. I had drawers and cabinets for painting, resin casting, sewing, embroidery, shrinky dinks. You name it, I probably had a way to make it.

Then I was faced with an enormous task; pack all of my stuff to move from Oregon to Montana. I will admit, at times, I wanted to just throw it all away and start over. There was so much stuff! I carefully sorted through everything and eventually made a promise to myself: stop dabbling in everything and just focus on my absolute favorites. I gave away all of my random crafting supplies for painting, drop spindle making, lots of fabric scraps, ribbon, buttons, books, etc. I even gave away yarn and fiber. I decided to focus on knitting, spinning, sewing, and embroidery. In that order. And I only wanted to focus on the projects I was really excited about creating.

BUT- then I got to Montana; it's colder here, I'm no longer going to work everyday, and my creative juices really got flowing. I spun over 20 yarns in 2 weeks. I've finished more knitting projects in 2 months than I did all of 2011. That also means that I've been buying yarn for more projects. There are so many things I want to knit, so many things I want to design, and so many patterns I've written that I think I could make better. It's getting out of control again. I created a Ravelry project page for almost every project I have the yarn and pattern for: THERE ARE 30 OF THEM! and about 10 others that I should create project pages for. I am OUT OF CONTROL.

It's time to set limits for myself, and here is the first one: No more yarn shopping! Not for a very, very long time. I think I need to finish at least 15 projects before I even consider looking at a skein of yarn I don't already own. And you all need to hold me accountable for this! I give you permission to inspect my stash, and scold me when I cheat. Hold me ladies, it's going to be a rough ride.