Sabbatical

October sees Knitsch Yarns celebrate 5 years. 5 whole years! When I first started I talked to lots of people about my business concept and lots of them mentioned the magic 5 year mark. Hitting it is a pretty major milestone, and i’m so chuffed that people love Knitsch Yarns enough to keep me super busy.

And busy we are – so busy, I can’t keep up. It’s a wonderfully awful problem to have. However between two yarn shops and dyeing, i’m feeling a bit burnt out. I have plans a-plenty but about zero energy to follow through or explore them further.

After lots of discussions and thinking, i’ve decided to take a one year dyeing sabbatical. It’s been a really hard decision to make, because I love Knitsch and I love dyeing, and I don’t want to give it up. Which is why i’m going for a sabbatical instead of just a break.

What’s the plan?

Tis a long and windy road, this business lark

Business as (relatively) usual until early October

I have two lots of yarn base scheduled to arrive, and i’m going to keep dyeing as normal until early October. So you’ll still find Knitsch on the shelves at Holland Road Yarn Co and online. We’re a bit low at the moment due to delays at the mill, but that’s how it goes occasionally.

Yarn Club

I have been planning a yarn club for about 3 months, and now I can finally get to launching it. There’s been a few delays with yarn base which has pushed it back but i’m still determined to do it. The club goes on sale 10am Thursday 3 July. I’ll post more details once I have them all ready to go.

Sabbatical-like-stuff

I’ll be putting time into improving my dyeing set-up so I can dye more at a time (hooray!). I’ll be meeting with my mill and talking over some ideas for the future, doing lots of research and playing and exploring new processes. I’m really excited about this bit – it’s all the stuff i’ve been wanting to do but have been so busy just keeping up that it’s been impossible to fit it all in.

Random yarn releases

Because inspiration will no doubt strike, i’ll learn something new or just feel like playing around with colour, i’ll do random releases of Knitsch stock. Where and when and how are yet to be decided. It means that Knitsch yarns will still be available, but on a limited basis.

….time to find new inspiration in surprising places

At the end of the day I really need the space to refresh creatively. Hannah Donovan did a really amazing talk at Webstock earlier this year, and it hit home in a big way. Even doing something you love can become too much if you don’t take the time to play and restore your energy. I feel like i’m only just keeping up and things need a shake-up so I can better serve you, my amazing and supportive customers, and make sure i’m still in one piece at the end of it. I’m looking to restore the joy in what I do and therefore share more joy with you. I’ll keep track of my progress here so you can still see what i’m up to. It’s going to be a great ride!