A year has gone and it’s time for a 2024 recap – a walk through the posts and projects during the year. Pour yourself a cuppa and dive in!
In the beginning of this year I wrote about my intentions for the years. These were
- Write, write and write some more
- Follow a textile
- Connect with fibery people.
I did lots of writing, both for my book and for other purposes.
Writing Listen to the wool
I have had my book Listen to the Wool in my heart for many years, but after I signed a contract with a U.S. publisher in October 2023 it has been for real. I have written regularly, but the writing took new proportions from March and then during the summer until I handed it in to my editor half-way through September. And of course I wrote the writing process here on the blog.
In The anatomy of a chapter I explored the winding ways through a chapter and all its qualities, textures and secret passage ways. I went on a Writing retreat in March and stayed in a tiny house and had the time and the space to just write my little heart out without bother anyone. And do some dancing. I also invited you Behind the scenes of some of the photo sessions my husband and book photographer Dan and I did. Finally, in Press send I took you to a second writing retreat where I finished the manuscript by reading it aloud. It took eleven hours.
Writing on Substack
In May and June I took the River of Words online writing course by Beth Kempton and started a Substack account where I published most of the pieces I wrote during the course. Since then I have been writing there regularly and I invite you to come and have a read. If this blog is where I write mainly about wool and spinning and an occasional other craft, Substack is the space where I write for the sake of writing.
- I come from between
- The fern inkwell
- I write the rain
- The river spirit
- I want to believe
- Queen of Haberdashia
- I trust my hands
- Autumn stitches
- Novemberness
- Ant Myra
- Dear you
- The daughters of the lake.
Fulling
Through a few different fulling projects I have followed a fleece from fleece through yarn, weaving and eventually fulling. I presented the Fulling candidates I had for my weekend At the fulling mill with my wool traveling club in May. I turned three of the fulled fabrics into Fulled pillowcases.
One of the fabrics that didn’t full very successfully in the mill got a rematch in a tub where I spent a few hours Walking waulking.
People and sheep
In Into the forest, Unwritten, unread, Doris and Härvor and I shear, I took you through a few of the visits Dan and I made to sheep owners to photograph a few Swedish sheep breeds. I also wrote about Sheep with stories, where the stories often were told to me by sheep owners.
I said no to most course inquiries, but I did teach my five-day course A spindle a day at Sätergläntan Crafting institute. This was the fifth year I taught it and as always I learned a lot in the time I spent with the students. I also published two short lectures, Tease your wool and Card your wool. Through the writing courses I have taken I have also connected to other writers and got lots of inspiration from them.
Hands in the fibers
While I have invested most of my time on writing the book, I have had some time to dig my hands into fibers as well. Mainly wool:
- Danish wrist warmers
- What’s it for?
- Fjällnäs wool
- triple time
- Silk and kemp
- Multiteasing
- Keeping records
- A shared walking wheel
- Panther and Starling.
I have also had some time for exploring both silk and flax:
Other crafts
After I had handed in the manuscript to my editor I got a rush of crafting inspiration. I have done lots of sewing:
A little embroidery and sashiko stitching in A simple letter, Sashiko pocket and Embroidered tweed mittens, some Japanese bookbinding and a contemplation of crafting people in Hearts of slöjd.
And, on demand, a post about Cold baths.
Listen to the wool
A couple of weeks ago I got three suggestions for the front cover of my book Listen to the wool, and after the new year I expect to get an edited manuscript from my editor to dive in to, probably more than once. I look forward to it, even if I am a little scared too. But with my editor and my agent having my back I know I am in good hands, as is the book. I have no release date yet, but I am thinking the second half of 2025.
I will keep writing about spinning and other occasional crafts on the blog but also on Substack for the sake of writing. You are welcome to both of these spaces, all free of charge.
Thank you for reading what I write and for you sweet notes of appreciation. They mean the world to me.
Happy spinning!
You can find me in several social media:
- This blog is my main channel. This is where I write weekly posts, mainly about spinning. Do subscribe!
- I share essay-style writing on Substack. Come and have a look!
- My youtube channel is where I release a lot of my videos. Subscribe to be sure not to miss anything!
- I have a facebook page where I link to all my blog posts, you are welcome to follow me there.
- I run an online spinning school, welcome to join a course! You can also check out my course page for courses in Sweden or to book me for a lecture.
- On Patreon you can get early access to new videos and other Patreon only benefits. The contributions from my patrons are an important way to cover the costs, time and energy I put into the videos and blog posts I create. You can read more about my Patreon page here.
- Follow me on Instagram. I announce new blog posts, share images from behind the scenes and post lots of woolliness.
- Read the book Knit (spin) Sweden! by Sara Wolf. I am a co-author and write in the fleece section about how I spin yarn from Swedish sheep breeds.
- I am writing a book! In the later half of 2025 Listen to the wool: A why-to guide for mindful spinning will be available. Read more about the book here.
- In all the social media I offer, you are more than welcome to contact me. Interacting with you helps me make better content. My private Facebook page, however, will remain private.
- I support Centro de textiles tradicionales del Cusco, a group of talented textile artists in Cusco, Peru who dedicate their work to the empowerment of weavers through the revitalization and sustainable practice of Peruvian ancestral textiles in the Cusco region. Please consider supporting their work by donating to their causes.
This is a beautiful summary of a very busy year. I thank you for allowing me to tag along. As always, you are and inspiration.
Thank you Tracy! 🌸