Long before I became an avid knitter, I often documented my finished projects with a photo, carefully staged and curated and then sent to my mom for praise and approval. Sometimes a friend or two would get a snapshot as well. I did this because for me, finishing a project was a huge accomplishment. Something to celebrate. As you may have seen me reference before, I was never very good at finishing projects. I was the queen of starting and abandoning them, and this was very much the reason I was a monogamous knitter until recently.
Today there are no shortage of places to share your endeavors. Instagram, Facebook, Ravelry, Pinterest, the list goes on. Often times my non-knitter friends (most recently I learned these folks are referred to as “muggles“) don’t really understand the desire to share works in progress or finished projects. “I just don’t get her whole knitting thing” or “she posts a lot of knitting stuff”. There’s a joy knitters get from the creative expression our craft gives. Making something with our own two hands, and most often gifting it to someone. Seeing someone else’s joy from receiving a thoughtful and handcrafted piece of work, it’s a pretty great feeling.
This brings me to my point. Celebrate your knits. Before, during and after. Take the time to beautifully curate and photograph your finished projects, your hard work and creative spirit deserve it. Do friends think you’re “wool crazy” (it’s a thing)? Who cares, embrace it. Are people looking at you strange because you’re hanging out in a park in a sweater when it’s 70 out? Awesome, sweat it out in pride. Are you standing on a stool in your pajamas, braless, on your patio, rearranging a work in progress to get the perfect shot to share? Sweet! Celebrate your knits!
For all the countless hours you spent searching for the perfect pattern, the perfect wool, knitting and re-knitting, finishing and blocking…give as much attention to the documentation of your victories, and share them. I think you’ll find an incredibly encouraging group of people that love celebrating knits just as much as you. xoxo
