Wednesday, December 19, 2012

One Year Blogoversary


Technically, it was one year yesterday, but close enough! The photo here is from our Christmas tree. I just managed this one shot today before the clouds rolled in.

My wrist situation is somewhat better, but not 100%. I've been doing some re-evaluating of my stitching activities as a result! With the blogoversary, the end of the calendar year, and the injury, it seems an appropriate time to consider what's been working and what hasn't.

Working
  1. Blogging in general. I enjoy writing about my creative process, and crafting a post about a project is almost as much fun as the project itself.
  2. Blogging community. I've loved making all my new blogging friends, and I love how we all inspire each other. And, I really love all the encouraging comments!
  3. Blogging as a design tool. This has been an unexpected benefit of my blog. Like a quilter's reducing glass, the blog lets me step back from a project and evaluate it more impartially. I think several improvements have been implemented as a result!
Not Working
  1. Book Reviews. The book reviews are a lot of work, and while they do seem to bring in traffic, I'm not sure it is the right traffic. Going forward, I'm only going to review books that have made a difference to my work. Plus, the affiliate program with The Book Depository has not been successful, so I'll be removing those links soon too.
  2. BOMs and Quilt Alongs. I started this blog to follow my progress on the 2012 TQS BOM Sedona Star. I love the design, and I'm still going to finish it, but I've learned that I need to get my head around the whole project first, before I can really get started. All those waffling posts at the beginning of the year would have been avoided if I could just have read all the instructions at once. I think BOMs are a great way to produce a really spectacular quilt, but from now on I'll be waiting until the whole thing is available before I decide whether to make it.
  3. Motivation. I have to say that I did think that blogging would shame me into finishing more projects, but apparently I am shameless! From now on I will be giving priority to inspiration, rather than motivation.
Unfortunately, CQJP 2013 is going to be a casualty of my dodgy wrist. It will be too much extra hand sewing, so I'll be bowing out before it begins. Maybe next year! In any case, spending more time on the sewing machine instead will be beneficial to many other projects.

To wrap it up, I want to send out hugs and a big THANK YOU to everyone who has supported my blog this year. So many people have been so open, helpful and supportive, and I really appreciate it. I can't wait to see what the next year will bring!

9 comments:

  1. Glad to hear that the wrist situation is getting better. I share your views about blogging. I really enjoy it. I also write a book review every month for my quilt guild at www.thimbleandthreadstl.org. I only review books I have and that I like, so there is probably never going to be a negative review. It only takes me about 10-15 minutes to write one. They are not great literature admittedly. I only got into doing them so as to have some new content for the guild web site. Invitations to guild members to write and submit commentary, articles, etc. for the web site fell on deaf ears, so I stepped in to fill the gap.

    Your experience with the TQS 2012 BOM pretty much mirrors mine. Frankly, I think a lot of our trouble was due to poorly written instructions and a lack of quick response from TQS and the designer to remedy same. The 2013 BOM is by designers that I am familiar with and whose instructions and patterns (via books and guild presentations) I am familiar with. I think it will be a different experience.

    So, here is to 2013, more sewing, more blogging, healthy wrists and everything else!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks very much, Mary Ellen. Your support over the past year, especially in the early months, has meant a great deal to me! I'm glad you are now blogging too. It's nice to see some photos finally! ;)

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  2. Hi Monica. It's good to hear from you again. All has been quite quiet on the blog front for the last few weeks (as is the case with my own as well). You have made some very valid points in your retrospective and I think many bloggers can identify with it. I do still hope that the "shame" factor will motivate me to get my whole cloth hand quilt much further along in 2013. I'm not giving up on that yet! I always enjoy reading your blog and I'm looking forward to seeing what's new in 2013. In the meantime, take care of your wrist and have a very good holiday season.

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    Replies
    1. You know, I have just realized that the reply I made to Margaret below may apply here too! If that quilt isn't fun, there's always a reason. For me, it's usually because my design or my approach isn't quite right. Food for thought!

      Anyway, I was very happy to find your blog too - such beautiful work and many gorgeous photos! Happy Holidays!

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  3. Good to hear the wrist is improving and it was very interesting reading what you think of your blog. I love visiting peoples blogs and seeing what they are doing and will continue to do so. Have signed up for CQJP 2013 but need to get some motivation as I do not seem to be enjoying stitching at the moment.

    Have a wonderful Christmas and all the best to you and your family for 2013

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, Margaret. If you are not enjoying your stitching, I would do something else. Either a new project, or an entirely new craft! I've found that if something isn't fun, there's usually a good reason, and if you get some distance from it, you'll figure out why. Happy Christmas!

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  4. Happy blog-a-versary! I do hope your wrist is much better now. Merry Christmas!

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  5. So glad you are back in he blogosphere and that your wrist is somewhat improved. I know the problem well. I find the thought that I might not be able to stitch so scary that I'd endure any time out or treatment or management plan to avoid long term curtailment. Sounds as if you have it under control. I like your 'working/not working'. My 'working' would be much the same, I think and I agree about reviews. I have a couple of half done drafts of reviews but they DO appeal to a different audience and increasingly I find myself writing with an audience at least partly in mind. Interesting.

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I'm told Blogger has been bouncing some comments, so if it happens to you I'm sorry! But the settings look right so I can't explain it. In any case, thanks for reading!

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