Can you believe it’s the roaring twenties all over again? I, for one, am very excited! And I really want to make flapper dresses a thing again. As we march into this new year, I feel like the older I get, the faster time flies. It feels like just yesterday I learned to crochet, graduated high school, and finished college. But those were nearly fourteen, twelve, and seven years ago, respectively. Eeek!

As I’ve been working on my WIP of the day, I’ve reflected on the resolutions I’d like to set for myself this year.

Goal Number 1: Stash Busting

It’s really hard to put a number on this goal. Do I want to use up 20% of my stash? 50%? An ambitious 80%? Well, let’s keep our feet on the ground. I’m aiming to use up 30% of my stash. While I would love to use up all my stash over the course of the year, I have a severe case of Crochet-D-H-D. “I’m just going to work on this project from my stash – oh look, new yarn!”

Goal Number 2: Handmade Gifts

I’ve always wanted to strike a good balance between gift giving and consumerism/commercialism. I don’t want to spend a great deal of time on this particular soapbox but quite often I find my holiday spirit crushed by the overwhelming commercialism. Stores roll out holiday decorations nearly six months in advance and spread the message of more. More! MORE! So this year I’m limiting gift giving to those with whom I have a close relationship and the gifts will be handmade. I am hoping this will allow me to focus on the individual and give a gift from the heart. And I feel fortunate that those close to me appreciate the hard work that goes into handmade gifts.

Goal 3: Expand My Knitting Knowledge

I can knit, but I’m quite slow and not very good. This year I’d like to work on knitting skills. Particularly my edges. They tend to look sloppy and loose.

Goal 4: Participate in a Crochet Along

I’ve seen some amazing projects come out of crochet alongs, but I’ve never taken the time to join one. This year I’d like to find a crochet along hosted by one of the many talented designers in the crochet community and join along.

Goal 5: Crochet for Charity

There are so many great charities that accept crocheted items. Project Linus comes to mind, giving handmade blankets to children in need. Hats not Hate to promote anti-bullying. Maybe I can even make that a feature on this blog…spread the love through crochet.

Goal 6: Finish All WIPs

This one is ambitious. I’m very ADHD and I start and never finish projects like you wouldn’t believe. This year I’d like to finally finish my WIPs and complete any new projects started this year. Can I do it? Man, I hope so…Hold me accountable, dear friends.

Goal 7: Expand my Etsy Store and Free Blog Patterns

I’ve been designing things for years, but never wrote anything down. People would ask for the pattern and I’d just shrug and say there wasn’t one. But no more! I’m going to write everything down and share it with the world, whether through my Etsy store or for free here on my blog. Crochet is art and art is meant to be shared.

Goal 8: This Blog

I’m too embarrassed to tell you how many failed blog attempts I’ve had prior to this. Each one was a learning experience, but I finally feel like I’m in a good place, knowledge wise, to run a successful crochet blog. I may not always stick within the confines of crochet; I have many interests that might bleed into this blog. I know serious bloggers heavily advocate having one niche, but this is my little corner of the internet and I’ll share what I want.

Whew. It feels like a lot of change is ahead of me in 2020, especially as those are only my crochet-related resolutions. But I love setting resolutions. I want to grow as an individual and goal setting is a part of that process.

So, my friends, what are your crafty resolutions as we head into not only a new year, but a new decade? What do you want to learn? What kind of projects do you want to make? Who’s up for a bit of stash busting? Let me know in the comments!