Thursday, August 25, 2011

welcome

Welcome to the Clotho Fiber Arts Blog!

It all started a several months ago when I finally decided to start up an Etsy shop.  So far it's been slow going, but that's because I generally don't hold on to finished items: I give them away as gifts.  (I am hoping that people will purchase my items with the same intent in mind; that is, to bestow them upon others [or maybe themselves, if they've been extra good!] as gifts.)  Currently I have 5 items in my shop, which isn't much inventory.

Building that inventory presents a challenge: between working full time and being a mom, I have struggled to find a regular time to get my knitting done.  Normally it is an evening activity for me, although I have been known to do it just about any time.  However, knitting at home isn't always possible.  My adorable 18-month-old son is very bright but he doesn't quite understand why he can't sit on mommy's lap and yank on the yarn while she's knitting.  So the third leg of my often 2.5-hour commute to work via public transportation is about the only time I have on a regular basis to knit.

That's right: I'm a bus-knitter.

It's difficult sometimes, though, to stay focused.  People are always asking questions.  I only have 20-30 minutes, and there are times I really want to tell them politely to mind their own business because I'm counting.  But I find myself answering their questions anyway, and more often than not just putting my project away to talk to them about why I knit, how I learned, and what sort of things I make.

That's because I realize that for so many people nowadays, the presence of handmade items in their everyday life is rare.  They are fascinated by someone who knows how to make something by hand.  Clothing and household items are something one usually purchases from a store, and when people are confronted by someone actually fabricating those items they are mystified.  The same often goes for vegetable gardening or any of the other lost skills our over-modernized and -industrialized society has seen fit to relieve us of.

I find joy in using these skills and learning new ones all the time.  Someday I hope to take my fiber obsession to the next level or two, perhaps spinning and dyeing my own yarn, or maybe even someday living on a sheep farm where I raise the animals that so kindly donate their fleece to my crafty cause.

I hope that you enjoy reading my blog about being a crafter, vegetable gardener, and mom, and that perhaps something I have made catches your eye and convinces you to purchase a handmade item for your next gift.  Please comment away and remember that the beauty of the internet is the opportunity it offers for community and shared knowledge.

Humbly,
Kelsey