January really is the slowest month
But that's not necessarily a bad thing
Goodness me, January can seem like such a long haul can’t it. All of those days that disappear in the blink of an eye during the festive period seem to magically tack themselves onto this month - making it at least twice as long as any other month in the calendar. We are only halfway through but this week alone seems to have gone on for eternity.
There is lots to look forward to of course but I am wary of ‘wishing my life away’ as my mum used to caution me against. Trying to be in the present moment and just accept the month for what it is - a series of contradictions. Strong ‘new year, new you’ energy doing constant battle with the very human urge to hibernate under a blanket until the sun returns.
The blanket is winning - in case you were in any doubt.
The good news is that the sun will be returning very soon. In just 16 days it will be Imbolc - the fire festival marking the exact halfway point between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox. It is always around the end of January that we start to see the the first snowdrops and aconites poking their way through the soil. Although I already saw a few brave snowdrops nodding their heads the other day.
It’s a reassuring thought that, as much as I am leaning into the quiet and stillness of winter, spring is just around the corner.
Fingerless Mitts for the win
The colder days play havoc with my circulation though (hello Raynaud’s syndrome) so I’m a huge fan of fingerless mitts, even around the house. I was always sceptical about leaving my fingertips exposed but it turns out that keeping your pulse points covered really does help. Luckily, being a knitter helps with this scenario and fingerless mitts are perfect for using up leftover bits of yarn from other projects.
I generally prefer to use leftover sock yarn for lighter weight mitts - the Colour Block Mitts on the right use less than 40g in total, for example. They easily roll up into a jacket pocket and I always have a pair stashed in my bag or the car for emergencies. The Battle Mitts on the left use DK weight yarn and these are perfect for much colder days or when I’m spending a lot of time outside.
I also like the super-colourful Everything November Mitts by Jen (every.thing.shapes.us on Instagram) - these are true stashbusters and are designed to work with whatever scraps of yarn you have lurking in your leftovers.
What’s making me smile this week
💖 Let Them by Mel Robbins - I’ve heard about this book for a while and so when I got a few Audible free credits I decided to buy it. I have absolutely blitzed my way through it and I’m planning to buy the actual book as well. There are so many bits I want to highlight and remember - always a sure fire sign of a winner. I’ve always enjoyed Mel’s podcast but this book is on another level. Well worth a read.
💖 It took a while but I finally settled on a word for my year - STRENGTH. Both in terms of mental strength and resilience but also physical strength. At 53 I need to face the fact that work needs to be done on my core and muscle strength if I don’t want to end up unable to get up and down from the floor in a few years (let’s just say that trying to wrap presents on the floor this year was a bit of a reality check 🤣) I bought the Sarah Beth Yoga app last year but to my shame completely failed to use it. Turns out that just buying the app alone isn’t going to transform you into a Yoga Goddess - who knew 😉 So far I have a 14 day streak going there and I’m keen to keep it going as long as I can.
💖 Find Your Word, 2025 by
is a brilliant self-directed workbook that can really help with end of year reflection and moving forward into 2025. If you are curious about what your word might be or if you just fancy a spot of reflective journaling this is a wonderful free resource.💖 I’m not doing anything as drastic as a ‘no buy month’ or anything like that but I am trying to be mindful of my purchases and ensure that wherever possible I am supporting small, local and ethical businesses. I found this article by
on “What Frugal Living Actually Looks Like” really interesting
💖 My husband - an absolute gem of a human - treated me to a new Kindle recently. My old one had got very slow and was prone to doing random updates/reboots at it’s own personal convenience. He not only bought me a new one, but he bought the new Matcha Green colour which I have been quietly coveting on other peoples social media feeds. It’s a beauty - a little lighter and smaller than my old one and lightening fast. Now I have no excuse for not meeting my 2025 book goals. My Storygraph is the only place I have been setting new years resolutions. If you use SG please do pop over and say hi - I’m there as BookishKnitter. If you don’t use SG but are curious and want to know more - just ask away in the comments.
Wishing you a cosy weekend - whatever you are doing. Why not meet me in the comments and let’s chat about what we are knitting and reading?
I feel we’re all living in different time zones depending on our stage of life; people with young children at school (myself included) feel like January is skipping along rather quickly, and how is it that half term feels like it’s nearly here when we are still recovering and catching up from the mayhem of Christmas and the holidays?
Oooh! I just got a new kindle update, too. (Mine is Jade; there's something so fun about choosing a pretty color, isn't there?) Like you, I've been so impressed by the speed difference. On to more reading! (And the better to load random knitting patterns!)