24 before 25, part two

source

Hi there!  I hope your week is going just swimmingly.  Today I am sharing the rest of my 24 Before 25 list!  If you missed the first half of the list, you can find it here.

13. Successfully grow herbs in my apartment.  I have tried this a few times, and it usually goes pretty well because I have a perfect spot for growing things.  The top of my refrigerator is out of the reach of nosy cats, and it gets plenty of sunlight.  However, the last time I was growing a rosemary plant there, I had unknowingly bought it from a garden store with a bug issue in their soil, and it contaminated all of my potted plants.  Ew.  This time, I am going to try water-rooting some basil, rosemary, lavender, and mint, then planting them in potting soil myself to avoid any unfortunate six-legged hangers-on.  

14. Spin new-to-me fibers!  I would like to branch out and try spinning some fibers that I have never spun before, like Cormo, Rambouillet, and Targhee.  I will be attending two fiber festivals in the next few months—those should be a great opportunity to start on this goal!

15. Keep flowers in my apartment more often.  Flowers sometimes seem like a frivolous purchase, but they make me so happy every time I see them in a pitcher on my kitchen table, and that has to be worth something.

16. Be less self-critical.  Like most people, I think, I sometimes find myself mentally beating myself up for something that really isn’t a big deal.  It isn’t a productive or helpful behavior, and I would never hold anyone else to the standards that I hold myself to, so I am trying to curb that kind of negative self-talk.

17. Sew more of my own clothing.  This blog is called Julie Rose Sews, for crying out loud.  I haven’t done a ton of sewing for myself since I graduated from FIT two years ago, but I have a lovely fabric stash and I work in the New York City garment district.  I’m certainly not lacking in materials—I just have to make the time.

18. Knit more from my Ravelry queue instead of looking for new patterns.  I really like everything in my queue, so it should be the first place I look when I am trying to decide what to do with a skein of yarn.  I’d like to knit through at least 10 patterns from my queue before I turn 25. 

19. Speaking of which, I would like to knit at least 15 hexipuffs a month for my Beekeeper’s Quilt so that I have some hope of finishing it soon!  This shouldn’t be too hard—I can knit about 1.5 hexipuffs a day on my commute to and from the city.  I just have to resist the temptation to put a shiny new project into my bag instead!

20. Spin at least 4 oz. a month.  Originally I had wanted to spin 8 oz. a month, but I don’t think that’s realistic given that I like to spin teeny tiny yarn.  If I spin 4 oz. a month, I will have spun through my almost my entire fiber stash by my next birthday!   Aaaaaah!  Must supplement the stash!

21. Give only handmade or vintage gifts for Christmas, whether made by me or by someone else.  I usually make most of my gifts, but this year I would like to fill in the gaps with gifts purchased on Etsy or from craft fairs or flea markets.

22. Get back to learning French before I forget all of the French that I learned in college.  I really enjoyed learning French, but it kind of fell off my radar after graduation.  According to my professor, I picked it up very quickly and easily, and I still have all of my French books. 

23. Knit/spin through my yarn/fiber stash so that nothing sits in my yarn cabinet longer than a year and a half.  I feel guilty about accumulating new yarn and fiber when I have beautiful things just waiting at home, and I do truly love everything that I already have.  My lovely yarn and fiber shouldn’t be neglected just because it’s not shiny and new.  

24.Spend more time with friends. As an introverted person living in an extraverted world, it can be hard for me to give up some of my precious alone time to go spend time with other people.  Whenever I do rally myself to go hang out with friends, I am always so glad that I did.  I am happy with being an introvert, but everyone needs to push a bit outside their comfort zone sometimes. 

Well, there you have it!  I have ten months and nine days to accomplish these goals.  Do you have any goals to achieve before your next birthday?  I would love to hear about them!

♥