Knitting doldrums.

What do you do when something isn't fun anymore?

I've had a prolonged bout of knitting doldrums that started right after Stitches South in April. The show was inspiring and overwhelming at the same time. So many yarns. So many designers. So many opportunities.

I left feeling somewhat inadequate.

I cast on a sweater coat. And ripped it apart after I'd knitted 12 inches. Boring.

I thought about a new design for a felted handbag, something I've thoroughly enjoyed in the past. Nada.

I tried a new knitting technique for socks. Sigh.

What the heck?

Then the synergy of Miss Pettigrew Lives for A Day, a stormy evening, and a clean house led me to noodling in my yarn stash. I am too restless to sit still and watch a movie, so I decided to give knitting another chance.

I played with some lovely pink German yarn I found at an estate sale more than three years ago. It said "shawl" to me, so I adapted the traditional candle flame lace pattern and will add an edge pattern that frames it perfectly. I'm back in the knitting game again!

It's hard when something you've enjoyed so much stops giving the same sense of pleasure. I even thought maybe knitting would no longer be the linchpin it has served for so long.

I guess I just needed a break, to not take it for granted, and to focus on the pleasure of the process rather than just the results.