Making the Seasons: January

Hello! Welcome to the first Making the Seasons post of 2018 - a little later than planned, but it's been that kind of month for Lucy and I.

I was worried that I wouldn't have much interesting to show you today, and even thought about skipping a month. But I think it's really important to be honest here and say that yes, January was a difficult month, and no, not a lot of crafting got done, but what little I did do felt really good and helped me a lot.

The kind of projects I choose in January always feel a little more self indulgent than at other times of the year. With Christmas behind me and no birthdays for a few months, I can put aside thoughts of gifts and work on things that are solely for me - jumpers, socks, little things for our home. I like that. 

Something I've been doing a lot this month is buying cheap pots of bulbs from the supermarket or garden centre - hyacinths, usually - and repotting them in pretty bowls and tubs. I don't know why I never did this before - it's so much easier than trying to find plant pots in the garage that fit the plastic pots the bulbs come in.

I always love the spring bulbs that come into the shops in January and feel ready for that fresh lift of green in the house after all the Christmas decorations have been taken down and it's all looking a little bare. It's also a nice excuse to get out some dishes I don't use as much and give them a focus. 

Just gently lift the bulbs from their pot, re-position in your chosen bowl, then top with compost and, if you have it, a little moss looks pretty on top to hid the earth.

These tete-a-tete bulbs don't look very exciting now but in a couple of weeks they'll send up bright shoots of green to cheer up my mantel.

I love how this one looks potted in a clear glass bowl.

I've been crocheting bed socks too, the same pattern as the pairs I made just over a year ago. I just love them - I can't get to sleep if my feet are cold and I wear them almost every night in the winter. I like their warmth, obviously, but also the way they don't dig in and leave an imprint in my ankle which itches, as tighter socks do (anyone else know what I mean?) I think I must get a bit of water retention in my ankles or something. So I'm making myself a new pair in grey and dark blue; sleepy, January colours. I also made a pink pair for my mum. They were supposed to be for Christmas but ended up being an early January gift - luckily she's very understanding!

I've also been enjoying the winter edition of my Craftpod box. These boxes are truly such a delight, I love everything about the choice of projects and the styling. My kinds of projects, my kinds of colours.

This one contains everything you need to stitch this beautiful embroidery hoop...

plus tools and patterns to create your own stamps.

And the element I think I like the most is the self care part, the chocolate, tea, stickers and postcards, little treats that remind you that it's ok to sit down and do something for yourself for a while. Necessary, even.

I found an hour at the weekend and made a start on the winterberry design. I got as far as sewing the branches and outlining just a few of the berries.

That's ok though, I'll finish it in my own time. A project like this is not for rushing, but for savouring slowly here and there in little moments with a cup of tea.

Part of my intention with Making the Seasons was to create in a way that would tie in with the seasons and support me through the months of the year, and I feel that crafting has really looked after me this month. My friend Lucy at Attic24 has also been trying to make space for a little quiet crafting in a very busy month, so do please pop over to her gorgeous, colourful blog and say hello and read about Making the Seasons post.