Friday, April 20, 2012

In a Slump; and Did Yeats Crochet?

'I said, ‘A line will take us hours maybe;
Yet if it does not seem a moment’s thought,
Our stitching and unstitching has been naught.'

                               from 'Adam's Curse'
                                    by William Butler Yeats


Although Yeats was talking about writing poetry in his poem "Adam's Curse" I can certainly relate to his feelings when I am designing. If a design doesn't flow easily for me, then I don't feel like it is worth publishing. 
And for the past year or so, it has been hard for me to get my 'creative flow' started. I have started several projects, even finished a few, and then just put them aside. 
I haven't released a new design in months, and my blog posts have been few and far between. I just haven't felt like I had anything worth sharing. 
       I did manage to get this set of doilies, called "Autumn Lace Doilies" finished, and they will be available for purchase soon, and I also have a new  design called "Town and Country Wrap." 
Being in a slump is discouraging to me. I have spent the last 25 years turning out one design after another, and my lack of new designs lately makes me feel unproductive and uncreative. 
But I have been through this before, and I know that eventually I will get back into the swing of things (hopefully very soon!) I have had 'dry spells' in the past, and there have even been times when I really felt like I wouldn't care if I never picked up a crochet hook again. 
But I know that sooner or later there will be a design or idea that sparks my interest, and I will be back on track.  Until then, I will just keep 'stitching and unstitching for naught.'