Blogtober 2020 :: Review

During the past few days I've been thinking a lot about Blogtober and how it feels coming out the other side after thirty one days of daily posting. It was a very spontaneous decision  to embark on a month of blogging, and I didn't give it a lot of thought to be honest. I simply decided it would do me some good to show up each day and be present in my own little patch of cyber space. I wanted to renew my commitment to this precious online journal that I've created and the friendships and connections that are made here. It's the connectedness (is that even a word?*) that means so much to me, and the thing that first drew me to start a blog almost thirteen years ago. Blogging allows me to feel that I belong somewhere, a small part of a bigger community of creative people sharing their passions.

*I just had to look up the word 'connectedness' as I wasn't sure if I'd made it up or not....turns out it's a real word, and it sums up being a blogger perfectly : "a feeling of belonging to or having affinity with a particular person or group". YES! Exactly that. When I publish a blog I feel like I belong, and I feel a profound sense of purpose. And when you leave me a comment here, you also belong. That connection, no matter how much it may feel intangible at times is very, very real. We are connected, you and I, and doesn't it feel wonderful?!

So I thought that as this was my first ever attempt at Blogtober, I would perform a little monthly review if you'd like to join me?

Creatively I felt as if I faffed around a lot throughout October. But looking back at photos I see that there was a definite plan in place and as stop-start as it was, I did make progress. I set out to breathe new life into a neglected project, digging out my pile of Summer Garden granny squares in an attempt to turn them into a bag. I had the squares and the handles already made, and I had even purchased the lining fabric. I just needed to pull it all together.

I didn't quite manage to complete the bag by the end of October, but the Ta-dah moment came very close. I am so very nearly there!

The other project I wanted to bring over the finishing line was these socks for J which I cast on in the middle of September.

I finished them on the 27th October, much to J's delight. I really enjoyed knitting them, especially as it had been over a year since I knit a pair of socks. I've got it into my head that I want to learn how to knit colourwork next, you know where you knit two different colours at once and follow a chart? Christine says she'll help me (she has some really lovely simple colourwork socks for me to have a go at) but right now when I'm still in a floofy head phase I don't think it's a good idea. I need to wait for the hormones to settle a bit I think. 

On the home front, October was all about embracing the change in seasons and welcoming in autumn. I faffed my mantel with all my autumn guff, and we lit our first fire of the season.

I celebrated my 52nd birthday with prosecco and cake.....

....we celebrated Little B's fantastic achievement when he successfully passed the 11+ grammar school entrance exam....

....and on the very last day of October we celebrated Halloween. 

Committing to Blogtober meant that I had Attic24 on my mind an awful lot of the time. Every day I would wonder what on earth I might find to blog about - I didn't plan anything in advance, simply allowing the days to naturally unfold and taking photographs whenever I felt inspired. I found that by thinking about my blog as I went about my daily life it really helped me focus on all the many small things that make me happy each day. It also reminded me to actively practice gratitude for these things and not just letting them slip by.

I am a great believer in the power of mindfulness - I don't meditate or practice anything spiritual in my life, but I think simple mindfulness can be a wonderful tool for reducing stress and anxiety and creating a genuine sense of contentment. Mindfulness to me means being fully present in the moment with all of your senses engaged and having a true appreciation for that particular moment in time. I can highly recommend it - there is lots of info online about practicing mindfulness, but in its simplest form it means stopping every once in a while and really taking note of your emotions and your senses. Allow the feelings to surface and flow (even if they aren't the best kind of feelings it's important to give them space) and acknowledge the simple fact that you are alive and that this moment in time is a gift. Happiness can be found in the smallest of details and the simplest of things, we just need to slow ourselves down enough to seek them out and appreciate them. Blogging encourages me to actively do this on a daily basis, although it's something that I've always done, it's just part of who I am I guess.

During October I really enjoyed taking photos that showed something of my ordinary daily life, capturing the local places that I regularly walk and the way my days gently pass by.

I often walked into town to visit the shops and the market....

.....as well as through the park to the farm shop.....

....and many times I stood at the top of this hill after a walk in the woods. 

We didn't venture very far away from home during October, but we did drive out into the Yorkshire countryside to walk.

We walked around Grimwith reservoir on Day 1

Day 12  was my Birthday and we had a beautiful (if wet) walk at Malham Cove.

Day 19 was a day I felt quite low after a week of not feeling great and having poor sleep. A walk on the wild and windy moors helped to blow away the cobwebs.

We walked along the river at Linton Falls on Day 25 .....

....and walked twice at Bolton Abbey on Day 4 and Day 29.

Most of the time I was sharing photos of my walks in the local woodland which has become part of our daily routine since the pandemic began in March. October saw a real colour change in the woods as it was still pretty green at the start of the month. I shared our woodland walk on 11 different days during Blogtober (it felt like more!), I hope you didn't get fed up of seeing leaves, leaves, trees and more leaves?!

Blogging every day meant that there was bound to be a lot of repetition and I worried about this as I really didn't want to bore you. But you assured me that you didn't mind the sameyness of my daily routines so I continued to take photos of the ordinary bits of my days. I shared 19 cups of coffee with you during the month (which really felt like way more!), haha, I don't know whether this is funny or ridiculous, but there you have it. I love coffee. LOVE it. I absolutely adore the comfort and pleasure of my daily cup, whether it be in a cosy café, a takeout or a home brew.

When I first started blogging back in 2008 I had a very definite routine with it and posted five days a week Monday-Friday. J was out at work all day and the Little People were aged 5 and 3 at the time (Little Man was at school and Little Lady spent 4 hours every morning at nursery). Those weekday mornings were lonely times for me, living in a brand new town with no friends close by, but once I began to fill them with photographs and words, well my life was transformed. I loved it from the offset (you can read my very first blog here - I wrote very short blogs back then!).

I have always enjoyed writing about my days - I wrote diaries as well as a huge volume of letters to a good many distant friends throughout my teens and twenties. I started taking and sharing photographs in the summer of 2007 when I first discovered the Flickr community (in the olden days before smart phones and Instagram existed), and starting my blog gave me a platform to string those photos together with words to create a daily narrative of my life. I loved that blogging provided a creative outlet for me, and that it felt so natural too. I also really enjoyed being a part of the blogging community, and that connectedness that I mentioned earlier was a game changer for me. It made a fundamental difference to my life at a time when I was pretty lonely and feeling very adrift, and I am forever grateful for all that it has given me.

I could talk all day about blogging and what it means to me, but I think I've probably said enough for now. Incidentally, if you ever have any questions you'd like to ask me about blogging, or my creative/design journey, my arts/textiles background, crochet, photography - anything really - do feel free to ask in the comments. I think it would be fun to do a Q&A thingy perhaps? Let me know if that appeals.

In the meantime - back to Blogtober. Have you enjoyed it? I certainly have and it wasn't nearly as difficult as I thought it might be. There were only one or two days where I found it hard to write and that was purely down to being so tired at the end of the day, not through any lack of things to actually say. I am never short of content because I have a solid habit of taking photographs every single day. There are always high points in every day, always things to inspire, bring a smile, make me stop and take note. 

I want to thank you so very much for keeping me company during a month of daily blogging, and an especially warm welcome to those of you who are new here to the Attic. I thought you might enjoy a few October 2020 blog statistics to finish with, just for fun.....

Number of daily blogs completed : 31

Total number of photographs shared : 332

Total number of beautiful comments : 1002, thank you, thank you!

Total number of blog views : 757,617 (!!)

Total number of words written by me : 25,444 (yes, I added them all up. Yes, I am nuts)

Will I do it again next year? : absolutely, #blogtober2021 is on.

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Comments

[fnaf]

Five Nights at Freddy's, also known as fnaf , is a popular indie horror game that takes place in a haunted pizzeria filled with cartoon characters.

[Lin]

Thank so much for blogtober. It was what I needed and looked forward to at the end of a hectic day. I found myself being inspired to crochet or knit more, enjoy my walks and races 2 -5k’s and a 20.11 mile. All your photos were beautiful. Thank you for taking and sharing them.It was a beautiful journey with you. I can’t wait to be able to travel again. This past summer my grandson and I were supposed to travel abroad (Scotland where my father was from, England and France). It was to be his graduation gift from me. Hopefully next summer.
Thanks again for brightening the days.

[Marion Jones]

Just wanted to say thank you for blogtober and say how much I enjoyed reading them and looking at your beautiful photos. Look forward to reading more of your writing and of course making some more of you designs. Keep safe.

[AnnalenaV]

Thank you for sharing your life and creativity with us, i really enjoy your blogs and of course your colorful projects!

[Willy]

Lucy I enjoyed jour blog posts very much. Thanks!!!

[Ann]

Thank you Lucy. It is lovely to share your daily life. You reflect what we all feel and need at the moment and truly celebrate the small happinesses in our lives. Your creativity is inspiring and I use your patterns and suggestions all the time. Thank you.

[Lekki]

Thank you Lucy, I have loved seeing snippets of your daily life, your 19 coffees and gazillion leaves. I look forward to seeing your new bag finished. All the best for the next few weeks x

[Meredithe]

It’s been an absolute joy sharing your blogtober posts - thank you for being such a good blogger for a whole 31 days!! It hasn’t seemed repetitive and definitely not boring. I do so enjoy sharing your life vicariously. X

[Tanja]

Hi Lucy, thank you so much for your Blogtober. It gave stability and soothing calm in a chaotic world. I love all your pictures, even if it’s „just“ coffee, since all of them are lovingly taken and capture beauty. They feel like hot chocolate for the eye!

[Cathy]

Hello Lucy. I've been learning stranded colourwork the past 3 years or so. I've had help from Very Pink Knits, Arne and Carlos and Skeindeer Knits, all on YouTube. I decided to knit this Advent Calender Mitten Garland -

https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/search#sort=best&inline=&craft=knitting&query=Mitten%20garland

Some are very easy with a simple over all pattern and no long floats. Others are much trickier with good tension required. I've done okay so far, 6 more to go to the end. And I'd say my colourwork has come on pretty well.

The other things I've done occasionally are Arne & Carlos' Christmas balls, just with scraps of SSDK. They're good practise too.

Both make lovely decorations and the mittens are big enough to hold a few sweets or small gifts.

Just an idea for small colourwork practise things that I started with.

Good luck with yours. You'll soon get the floats and tension licked and then you'll be knitting Tin Can Knits sweaters!

Regards Cathy

[Andrea]

Your Blogtober posts were wonderful during a time when the weather is a little gray and I am feeling NOT connected with my friends and family because of the pandemic. I always try to check your blog every few weeks anyway to catch up on the beautiful pictures and inspiring yarn colors, but I was amusingly excited to pull up my browser almost daily to see what you had been up to last month. I don't know how you find the time. Thanks for sharing your life and ideas!

[Wrenny]

Thank you Lucy for a lovely connectedness Blogtober!
It’s been a perfect antidote to Pandemic stress.
Seeing your lovely walks has made me miss the country, I grew up surrounded by trees and fields but now live in a city. Much as I’ve enjoyed city life You’ve inspired me to make the move back to family, fields and trees.
My move is imminent and I can’t wait to start a new chapter in life of gardening, walking and crocheting with my sister by my side.
Here’s to pastures new for all of us! X

[Kathleen Crouch]

Oh Lucy. How I LOVE your blog! October was wonderful. Something to look forward to each day. I have been following you for some time now and you’ve renewed my interest in crochet once more. Rather than make lace doilies- now I’m making blankets. Much easier on the hands nowadays.
Thank you 😊

[Angie S.]

Thank you for blogging every day in October! I found your blog about 2 years ago and binge-read everything for hours each day, so it felt like I had a visit with a good friend every day. You brought me back into crocheting, something I had done as a young person...and I made over 12 afghans (mostly large twin-size...some baby size) last year due to my excitement of seeing your projects. When I got caught up on your blog, it was sad to not have you in my life daily anymore...so this past month was a real treat! Your walking/hiking trails are always a pleasure to see photos of...absolutely beautiful and I have had an infatuation with Britain for years already. Thank you for sharing your art, your life and your scenery with us!

[Jane]

Thank you Lucy for sharing parts of your life with us all I have thoroughly enjoyed reading everyday in fact looked forward to them. I have started several new craft projects so thank you for the ideas.

[BarbS]

Love reading your blog each day. The routine that you have is somehow comforting to me. You live in a beautiful place surrounding yourself with nature....something I absolutely love and do the same!

[Charlotte]

I am so thankful that you decided to blog. The Attic has been a breath of fresh air.

[Hilary Bennison]

I've always loved reading your blogs and have been following you for a good few years now although I have never posted a comment before - does this make me a lurker? Sounds a bit sinister but I can assure you I just enjoy reading about your days and seeing the pictures of your lovely home town and surrounding countryside. I have visited Skipton once while on holiday in Yorkshire and loved it. Your daily colourful blogs through October have definitely helped to get me through this dark and anxious time. Thank you so much!

[Sarah F.]

We loved Blogtober! My Mom and I both read it everyday and talked about it. Reading your blog was our favorite event to look forward to each day. :) Thank you for sharing your days with us and putting so much effort into bringing daily cheer to the rest of us. ❤️ Now I’m going to crochet on my son’s Coast blanket, I only have 20 rows to go 😊

[Mary W]

Yes I really liked reading your October blog posts! I learn so much about a related land that I don't much about. Did you notice that the picture at the top of the hill looking down to town seems like a Van Gogh? I can't stop looking at it and think the colors and levels would make a perfectly lovely blanket. Just saying.

[Jeanette]

I have enjoyed it very much, thank you Lucy!!

[Claire Hayden]

Hello Dear Lucy, when you described how your blogging makes you feel connected, that’s exactly how I feel when I read your blog posts. You feel like a friend to me, even though I haven’t met you. I often start a conversation with my husband with “You know Lucy, from Attic24….”
You have inspired me to take more photos and to look at the details in nature, to be in the present. I have made sooo many blankets over the past 10 or so years and that is all thanks to you starting me on my crochet journey again after about 20 years of absence. I have now started to crochet for the local hospital and giving something back has made me feel so happy.
Whenever you mention about the handmade socks you have made, I am so tempted to have a go but then I get all nervous about getting the right equipment and wool and understanding the terminology that I don’t even begin….it’s silly, I know, I really must just have a go. It’s probably because I too am suffering with unsettled hormones and often have a floofy (love that word!) head these days.
Have I enjoyed Blogtober? NO!...........I’ve bloom ‘in LOVED it!!!
I think a Q&A would be fantastic!
Thank you so, so much. Claire x

[Suzie]

Can you write a daily Blockvember for me? I loved Blogtover. I need to see those walks, cosy scenes and read your gentle words. (I am in work at a local school xxx)

[Robin]

I enjoyed reading every post during October. Your posts are like a soothing balm during these trying days....and as a coffee lover, I never get tired of seeing photos of coffee goodness! Thank you for sharing your blog with us!

[Sue]

Thank you Lucy! You make me feel ‘normal’ in this very mixed up world.
Sending my gratitude and a virtual hug Xx