DAY THIRTY TWO

I'm off to buy some wool when this post is finished, to match the many knitting patterns I have been downloading recently. 
 
If you have read more than a few of these posts you may have gathered that I am more of a thinker than a doer, despite my best efforts and resolutions. This often manifests itself in the collection of photos, plans, patterns and drawings of things I would like to make 'some day'. I have a sketch of a dining table I first planned on making about 40 years ago and a file of garden furniture photos about an inch thick and I take great pleasure in looking at them from time to time.
 
I make these collections unthinkingly, without plan or intention, and in fact most of the things which do get made are usually the result of need rather than planning or desire: Monkey see problem, monkey fix problem, ideally with some degree of creativity, engagement and mindfulness involved.
 
There are some exceptions, and these are usually things I do in order to see if I can do them. The picture here is a prime example of something I did one evening just to see how hard it could be, and as it turns out, fingerless gloves aren't all that difficult to make. But you notice I'm only showing one glove. The other was a bit wonky I have to admit. 
 
I doubt I'll ever wear these gloves or make another pair. They are currently sitting in my knititng drawer with a jumble of odd lengths of wool and general paraphernalia. In fact I seldom want to make something more than once. I have great admiration for the kinds of people who dedicate themselves to making beautiful wooden boxes, say. I love decorative boxes in general, wooden or not. But the person who makes the same thing over and over is something I could only aspire to and know that I will never become. 

If I were to become the kind of maker who does it for money, I think I would have to work on a commission basis, making bespoke items, each one ideally solving a unique problem in a unique and creative way. I tall order in the real world, but that's the creative challenge. 

What about you?

Onwards...singularly.
 
 







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