I’m not someone who works only one project from start to finish. It’s not that I’m easily distracted; I want to have the right thing for where I am in any particular moment.

Some days I need intricate lace that demands my full attention. Other times I want to zone out with stockinette in the round while listening to an audiobook. Maybe I’m craving the satisfaction of finishing instead of starting, or I need a break from sleeve island. Having projects at different complexity levels means that while each one takes longer to finish, I keep moving forward on something.

My mornings most often start with coffee and a sisterhood blanket. I’ve learned to keep these simple enough to work on before I’m fully awake. Afternoons at my desk are for lace swatches or complex colorwork. Forcing my brain to focus on something completely different from my client work often helps solve problems; my brain makes connections while my hands stay busy. Evening project choices are driven by deadlines and energy. Some nights it’s finishing a blanket, other nights it’s whatever WIP calls to me.

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been teaching a knitter how to crochet. She’s confident enough with knitting that she doesn’t need to look at her stitches anymore. She really wants to crochet her next sisterhood blanket, but she’s slowing down to learn the basics first. Small swatches during morning coffee, working on where to place her hook and how each stitch feels. She’s building the muscle memory so that soon she can crochet during conference calls the way she already knits.

She’s doing what I do with my WIP rotation: meeting herself where she is. Not forcing. Not waiting for perfect conditions. Just showing up with what fits the moment. She’s a little frustrated because it’s difficult to be a beginner, but by slowing down and working smaller she’s recognized already that she can tell when a stitch doesn’t feel right. This morning we worked on figuring out where that last stitch in a row goes. For crocheters it’s tricky!

We’re in the season of returning light now, gaining nearly a minute and a half of daylight each day. But January still brings endless grey clouds, and I need projects that match those rhythms too. Something bright and complex for dreary winter mornings. Easy cozy stitches in neutral grey heather for the bright, frigid days..

This is my steady practice. My goal isn’t to finish faster or finish the most projects. It’s to enjoy the process and recognize that I’m different each day, and each day brings new possibility. Sometimes that means lace. Sometimes it means a sisterhood blanket and my morning coffee.

If you’re curious how I track all my projects, I wrote about it two years ago: keeping track of WIPs.