Welcome to the Briarlea Cottage Diary

 Hello Friends, 

Yesterday was officially the start of Spring and I think it's the perfect time to come back to my blog, re-start something new and creative. So hello everyone, I hope that you are well.

I've been living a more intentional seasonal and slow life, embracing the practice of wintering and I feel like it's done me the world of good especially for my mental health. My slow living practice and lifestyle sort of began last year in Summer but I wasn't yet aware that was what I was doing. I found myself spending less time posting on my Instagram account, lost interest in knitting with the sole intention of putting patterns out (yes I began designing knitting patterns), and I think I was a little burnt out. So I kind of just stopped. It was refreshing. I also began reading a lot more which has always been a favourite thing for me to do. 

Everlasting Union Socks - My Design (picture from a test knitter)

When I did pick up my knitting or my crochet hook, I didn't put pressure on myself and I largely didn't even share it on social media. It reminded me of when I first started crocheting in 2016 after losing my auntie, and using it to support my grieving process. I refound the simplicity of crafting and being in a creative space. Leading into winter I felt my knitting mojo return and it came back rather ambitious, I had this overwhelming urge to try my hand at colourwork knitting. It's amazing to think that in those few months I completed 3 colourwork projects; two cowls and a sweater! At one point I wondered who I was and what 'voodoo' was occuring because as well as completing those projects, I finished a shawl and I think it was a couple of pairs of socks too. (Project details at the end of this post). 

         

Astraelus Cowl 

by 

 

 

 Saltburn Sweater by The Knit Purl Girl                                     Woolsia Shawl by Ambah O'Brien 

At the start of the calendar year, I felt an itch to try another creative pursuit, English Paper Piecing (EPP). I've always long admired those handmade quilts that quilters carefully sew together. I told myself lies in that "I could never do that" or "it's too hard and I'm not good enough to even try". Well, you'll be happy to hear that I overcame those negative statements and I ordered some fabric, got my needle, printed out some one inch hexies, watched a couple of YouTube tutorials and I had a go. And you know what? Not only did I do it, I did it well, and I enjoyed it as well! I quickly became a huge fan and found to added a new layer to my self care, relaxation practice that was actually an enjoyable new past time. 

At the current moment I don't have a fully formulated plan of how I want these hexies to look, or in fact how I'm going to finalise their placement. I think I'm settled that I definitely want it to be a quilt, so I know I'll need to purchase the wadding and a plain (maybe) piece of material to sew the hexies panel to for the other side of the quilt (if that makes sense). Right now, I'm really anchoring into not putting too much pressure on myself and to simplify my thoughts processes so that I actually just enjoy the process of making the quilt - by hand. 

Another thing that has resulted in my new slow living practice is that whilst I love designing new projects such as baby blankets, face cloths and socks, I really do not thrive on social media. For someone who has trauma from childhood (discussed in therapy) especially around friend circles and being bullied for being a high achiever, I think social media triggers me a lot. There's a lot of pressure to perform, to be centre of attention, to form a 'clique' or be a part of a 'clique', and it's all too much "means girls" vibes if I'm honest. I hate having to force out patterns, I hate having to constantly perform and "show up" on social media. So, I'm going to try a new approach; 

- spend less time posting + scrolling on Instagram 

- focus on sharing more via my blog in a calm and gentler environment

- slow designing : no pressure on myself and to allow the pattern designing process to develop naturally and organically

- focus on my work, my past times, and enjoy the crafts

I'm very much a quiet, country girl at heart, and sitting out in nature in warmer weather, crafting, gardening, and enjoying the living aspect of life rather than "capturing an aesthetically pleasing angle" to post to prove myself to the world of how I'm good at what I do. I think sometimes we overcomplicate life far more than we honestly need to. I can see where I've done that and contributed to an unhappy Dawn in the process. So, I'm going to try out a softer, simpler approach to see if this works better for me.

I think that's enough rambling on for now, but I wanted to give you a general update and reintroduce the purpose and vision for the blog. 

If you've enjoyed reading this, please subscribe and ensure that you are notified when I next post. Thank you for stopping by, I hope to see you again soon. 

Dawn-Tracie

XxX 

Pattern Notes ||

As promised here are the names of the patterns with their designers and links of where to purchase them.

Easy Peasy Cowl by Karolina Adamczyk

Astraelus Cowl by Bad Wolf Girl Studios

Saltburn Sweater by The Knit Purl Girl

Woollsia Shawl by Ambah O'Brien 

Everlasting Union Socks by Briarlea Cottage Crafts (formerly known as MyCalmHappyKnits)