January Newsletter
Looking back and looking ahead
As much as I love the Spring, with it’s warmer weather and working outside, I feel like I need the Winter. I need the time to reset, to take stock and to prepare for the new year of creating and collaborating with other creative people.
Looking back at 2022, I’m grateful for my collaborations with other creatives. One special project was making the tableware for Chef Nicholas Leiss’ Cornucopia Dinners.
Another project that I really enjoyed was making sets of egg cups for heirloom egg producer Annie from The Chicks Next Door.
At the end of the year, after the rush of the holidays, I take some time off from woodworking to be with family and to tackle some house projects. After being away my wood shop for about three weeks, I began to feel unmoored. My plan was to do a thorough cleaning, but I needed to get the lathe spinning again and back to making. I’ll have to take that cleaning break in between projects.
Looking ahead at the new year, one of my resolutions is to make and use more wooden items around the home. After I turned a bag clip last year, I started using it on my package of coffee grounds. Every morning now, I have a moment of connection with something I made that feels so much better than a binder clip. Most of the things that I make, I set aside to sell, so I don’t enjoy my own creations enough. This year, I’m going use more of my wooden items at home.
I just finished my first project of 2023 and I think it’s fitting that it’s a baby rattle. I filled each end with different-sized dry beans for a richer sound. I hope he likes it.
