Dear Friends of The Blue Purl,
These days we often hear talk about creating an environment where you “can bring your whole self to work.” It’s an important concept, even if few seem to agree on what it actually means. Is it about being able to be true to who you truly are? Does it mean making sure to stay fully in the moment?
We are partial to the first interpretation, but would also like to add another.
For artisans who work with their hands -- that means you - bringing one’s whole self to the job can also have a more literal meaning: We should never hesitate to draw on our physical senses of sight, smell, touch, taste and hearing.
As knitters and crocheters, as stewards of The Blue Purl, we are all deeply engaged with the world through our senses. (Oh, and if you have been by the shop lately, you know it's been very ‘sensual’ lately! Do we have your attention yet? :)
Our work, hobby, craft, choose your label, brings it all together. The feel of the fiber. The clicking of the needles. The beauty of the color and patterns. All our senses are engaged in the act of creation.
A cool little book called “Why Beauty Is a Key to Everything’’ explains the value of this better than we can.
“When we are making anything,” writes its author, Alan Moore, “we should never forget that as human beings we endlessly engage with our world through our senses. Our bodies are constantly computing all: temperature, pressure, wind, light, taste, sound. . . Sense and sensations pour into us twenty-four hours a day. It is how we make sense of the world.
Why does art endure? Because it always, one way or another, speaks directly to our senses.”
That is a lesson easily applied to hand crafts, too.
We received two shipments of hand dyed yarns recently that set our sense ablaze. The beauty of the colors of these skeins, the texture, the warmth, it’s all so inspirational.
We are attracted and inspired by beauty. That is part of our humanity. We crave it in all its forms -- reaching all our senses. This is something that comes through in our Before and After photos. They appeal to us in so many ways, and they show, over and over, how much love is incorporated to our work; love, sparked through work that appeals to each of our sense.
This picture of Gabi’s granddaughters says it all: Colors chosen for the girls; designs that spark their inner sas. Look into their eyes, hear, see, feel their joy and love for their grandmother.
Come visit us. We promise you will be engaged, with all your senses.
connect + create
Patty, Wendy & TBP Team
