End of Year Thoughts and Feelings

At this busy time of year, we in the northern hemisphere have been eagerly awaiting the winter solstice today while running around getting ready for Christmas.  For artisans who sell their work, this time of year has the added bonus of craft fairs and restocking their gallery outlets. This makes it all very engaging and fun!

And for those artisans, the last two or so months of the year constitute a good portion of annual sales.  It's true for me and I know for many others.  Once Christmas arrives, we are pretty well sold out in our studios and at our outlets.

My main aim is to make more, not to get rich or try to satisfy detailed custom orders.  I just want to have fun at my looms and see what I can create.  I call it exploration without travel.  Then if people like my work and want to buy it (or receive it as a gift from me or someone else) that really tops it off for me.  Again this year I received so many lovely, heart-warming and inspiring comments about my weaving - people say it's beautiful, it lasts for ages and it's special to the owner, whether it's a blanket, towel or scarf.  Those comments mean the world to me.

But knowing I have 2020 ahead of me to make more is a lovely feeling.  I have a special order of pool towels with samples to first be made and shipped to California.  At the medieval market here in November, a customer gave me a great idea for a new, really innovative product that I am dying to make and see tested and refined.  And I have barely any cotton blankets left and they're on my list, too.

So while I may feel a little overwhelmed at this time of year, I am pumped for 2020.  It's a wonderful feeling inside me and I can't wait.