- Share This Post
- submit
- 2
-
Sparkle (0)
I've been knitting the very same pair of socks for the past year. Jaywalkers is not that
complicated a pattern, though it's the first time I've done anything except a basic sock. A simple 2 row pattern that repeats down the leg and onto the top of the foot. Definitely a stretch for me, though, as I'm pretty much a mindless knitter. With these, I have to pay a little attention. That might be my downfall.
What's happened? First sock: did the gauge but the sock ended up way-too loose; it would have slipped down my shoe and bunched at the toe. Rip. Then decided to "make life easy" and knit both socks at the same time on 2 circular needles. Ended up with two socks on one needle and an empty needle. Fixed it to 2 socks on a needle each, "magic looping" them. Made mistakes, lost my way, ripped out and started over several times. More than several times in fact.
When I finish these socks, they will stand testament to my perseverance if not my knitting prowess.
Actually this pair of socks are a great illustration of what happens in real life during the creative process. It doesn't matter if it's a pair of socks, a beautiful collage, an art quilt or a crafty IPod holder. Creating something is a process.
Phase One: Blossoming. Fully engaged in starting something new and wonderful. I'll bet for most of us, the first phase begins with shopping. We find an irresistible paper, cloth, yarn, OBJECT that we want to create with. Check supplies, test inspirations, dream of the item as it will be. For me it was 2 skeins of yarn gifted to me last year; and the desire to stretch a bit with sock knitting. Way too many pretty socks show up on the knit blogs for me to resist.
Until we hit a wall and meet the witch of the process: Phase Two: Resistance.She is your inner-critic, pointing out the flaws in your plan. She shows herself as boredom, frustration, and over thinking. Although we want her to be unwelcome, she is important to the process, acting as the Balance to the Blossoming. This is the point where work slows down or stops.
Resistance comes to visit early in the process and may revisit frequently. If you sit down and have a cup of tea with your Resistance, you will learn about yourself and your work. Resistance will have good ideas if you're willing to listen. She'll ask you: what if?
To me, she asks: what if you miss the pattern, does it matter (yes). What if you put the project down for 3 months, can you immediately pick it up again? (yes). What if you make major mistakes? Can you start over yet again? (surprisingly, yes).
I am relaxing into the work now. Knitting, counting, watching. It's getting easy again. And I'm about to enter phase three: Mixing It Up. Anahatakatkin explained this step when she wrote about ping-ponging:
When I reach my resistance phase or in a sense a place of critical mass, I bounce to a new
material and a new perspective. . . .The trick seems to be to move even more quickly and impulsively at this point. Remember your critic will be trying to grow but by using your impulsive instincts you learn to tame the critic faster. With Ping Ponging you can gain a real momentum in the artwork and trick your brain into a new place. Change your focus ... Anything that will hone your intuitive creative eye and switch your perspective.
So what about sock knitting can change my perspective? This little thing called the heel. It requires more attention and slightly different skills than the simple foot or the upper leg. I have to make the sock larger, then smaller all the while knitting one pattern on the top of the sock, and a different one on the bottom. I'm sure that the Witch Resistance will play with my mind in here, dragging the process out longer. Let her. We'll make tea and I'll learn a new thing about myself. (besides the well-documented fact that I'm stubborn)
Eventually the socks will be completed, and I'll move forward with another creative endeavor.
Blossom, Witch, Mix, Relax, Breathe. Do you see this pattern in your own pursuits?
How often do you find yourself rushing out to buy some new supply for an exciting project you've read about? Or tearing apart your stash to find that perfect
