hello!

Well, after a life-induced break, I am happy to re-enter the world of blogging. It's been a crazy busy past few months. I hope you have all had a wonderful beginning to your spring. In my neck of the woods, trees and plants are budding and days are getting warmer and longer. It's wonderful.

While I haven't blogged for the past two months, I have been crafting like crazy but haven't been able to share what I was working on as it was all still in the "to be announced" stages. I can finally blog about it.

I've started my own business and opened my Etsy shop!!! It's called StitchMischiefMade. It's been open for a week and the response has been nothing short of amazing. I sell project pouches/yarnbowls and notion pouches. In the future, I'll be selling other designs and possibly some patterns as well.

I've spent the last five months prototyping and testing designs. I've made over a hundred pouches but haven't been able to share them given I was still in the business development stage. I've also had the privilege of being able to sell my items at a local yarn shop that has been nothing short of amazing. They believed in me way before I ever did. I cannot say how much I've appreciated the support and kindness of the team at 88 Stitches. They've become family.

It's been a bit of a dream come true. Some of you know that I was due to return to work in March. This would be full time, extremely stressful work, and quite frankly, I wasn't ready to leave my baby yet. I extended my leave (unpaid) for six months and will not be going to work until September. I am so grateful for this extra time with my baby and while still dreading my return in September (I am committed to going back for six months), I will be able to handle it as he will be older and I'll have been present for the new milestones like talking and walking.

Anyway, my long-term goal is to be able to help with the bills in a way that I love and that challenges me creatively. It's my goal to have my shop be my part-time "work" next year. (Because, honestly, crafting just isn't work in my world.) We will see how it goes. Time will tell, but for now, I'm thrilled to try something new and to stretch my comfort zones.

While stepping into the unknown is terrifying, it's been exhilarating and I cannot wait to see how things turn out this next year.

And now, I can blog again. :)