Dear Weavers
Happy New Year!
Now that the awful 2020 is gone, I wish you all a prosperous 2021. May this year be better than the last, in every possible way.
I am totally aware that a new year isn't exactly a new beginning. It is basically just another day. A butterfly doesn't know that it is New Years day. It keeps flying looking for a mate if it is New Years eve or New Years day. Just because it is a new year, doesn't mean we are going to have a covid-19 vaccine and the world will turn back to normal. Unfortunately not. Patience is needed and life as it is now, will stay that way for a while to come. Some call it the new normal. But even then, what is a new normal? Can we go back to the normal we used to have? Do we want to?
Over the festive season my husband and I got in contact with our relatives from overseas, as we usually do. But this time it was different. One could hear the sadness in their voices, the despair, the helplessness and the longing for this crisis to be over. One relative even compared the situation over there as living through a war. One friend lost his job, he is a pilot with all his heart and is now driving a bus in a city. All this was heartbreaking for us to hear. And then comes the realization how good we have it here. Especially here in Queensland! We are so so grateful for living far away from the rest of the world and not being affected by this pandemic as much as anywhere else. I hope it stays that way (touch wood).
You probably wonder why I'm writing all this. Well in one way this blog is an outlet for me, for my thoughts and feelings to let go. Nothing to do with weaving really. On the other side, I can show you how I cope with the situation and therefore maybe help you. You might feel the same way and sharing feelings always seems to make things better. Or maybe just by reading this you will feel better, realising that we all go through the same process.
Here is what I do: I go for a walk every morning and afternoon. No matter what, sunshine or rain, I walk. This helps me clear my head, sorting thoughts in my mind and tanking up on sunshine, vitamin D. Back home I usually fill my day with work, which of course helps me not to think as much about the current situation. The best work is always weaving and if you have the chance to do some, I think it is the best relaxation method ever. Seeing the fabric grow, using different colours to make you happy and the fact you are producing something useful is priceless. Yes, this makes me happy and what else is there better in this current pandemic than doing what makes you happy?
I looked at my yarns from BB Yarn Supply and let my imagination go wild. There is a suitable project for every yarn in my shop. Of course there are many more projects you could do with these yarns, the list below are just some of my ideas. Yes, I do have more, many more ideas. But I restricted it to one project/yarn. See list below:
- Tussah silk yarn = Double weave scarf with 4 shafts, 16epi/layer
- Organic cottoline = Colourful T-towels, 20epi
- Linen yarn 16/2 = Huck lace placemats, 20epi
- Bambu 7 = Scarf in crackle weave, 16epi
- Pearl cotton 10/2 = Apron fabric in twill, 28epi
- Rug warp yarn = Rag rug made out of old clothes or bed linen, 5epi
Can I also remind you, that some old colours from the tussah silk range and pearl cotton 10/2 are still 20% off. Not many colours left, but still this is a really good offer. In Tussah silk there is only one colour left, the navy blue. It is one of my favorites and I can't really understand why this hasn't been sold yet. Don't you like it? Maybe it is a sign for me to make something with it myself.... or did I just make you feel tempted to go and have a look. I'll give it another 2 weeks, then navy tussah will be mine. ;-)
I hope I was able to make you feel inspired and maybe grab some of the yarns and rush to the loom to weave. I sincerely hope so and I am pretty sure this will make you happy.
Now to something a bit more private: Last year has been filled with all the worry about the virus, but for us, my husband and I, it has also been an extraordinary busy time. Next to work, business and household, we have decided to build a house. When we started this, the virus didn't even exist. But in hindsight it turned out to be the perfect time to build during lockdown and restrictions. You see, we are owner builders, meaning we are building the house ourselves. It is a lot of hard work, but amazingly rewarding. But this is another story to tell one day. The new house is 400km from Brisbane, so we couldn't just stay there and build for months. We had to take the time, a week here and two weeks there to make it work. Therefore the house is nowhere near finished. While I am away building, orders have to wait until I am back in the office. Some of you, dear customers, might have already experienced this issue last year. It will probably be mostly the same this year. I will do my utterly best to get your orders to you as quick as possible and I thank you already for your patience.
This turned out to be a rather long blog. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for reading. Looking forward to hear from you soon.
Happy weaving
Ursula
