Hi there! It's me, Alexis Winslow. I know it's been a minute, and you might not remember, but we met a while ago. I feel bad that we've lost touch. Let's catch up.

Where did I go? What have I been doing? Digging myself out from the avalanche of obligation and responsibility that happens when you start a family. I can see light, though, so no search party is necessary. I could go back a few years, but let's start with how 2026 is unfolding.

January was a turning point. I visited an “art cafe" here in Brooklyn with some of my girlfriends, where we each assembled a “vision board" in an attempt to manifest our dreams and goals for the new year. I'd never done this before, but I liked the idea of starting the year with a little intention.

Rowan was just barely one year old, I was finally done with my breastfeeding journey, and I felt like a fog was lifting. As my sons were becoming less dependent on me, I hoped that 2026 would be a time to find myself again as a creative person—and frankly, be a little more selfish with my time. I felt like I'd finally have a little more bandwidth and wanted to think carefully about how I filled any extra time I might get.

The vision board exercise has been helpful. The first thing I did was book a “girls only" trip with a couple of friends for a long weekend in Mexico City in February. I packed my sketchbook and vowed to carve out some time on the trip for drawing. I downloaded Duolingo and started brushing up on those old Spanish skills, dormant since high school, and, of course, wound up some of that gorgeous yarn that I'd purchased more than a year before at the Sheep and Wool Festival in Rhinebeck.

I had one morning to myself in Mexico City while the other girls had plans. I visited a museum by myself and read every plaque. I wandered through a park and found a beautiful fountain—Venus with two cherubs. It reminded me of my two babies. I thought, I want to remember this, so I got out my sketchpad and quickly drew the scene. That moment of just having some creative space with myself truly felt like a turning point.

Spring arrived, and another friend mentioned that she was headed to a beginner watercolor class and they still had a spot open. If I hadn't set the year with a specific intention to find my way back to myself creatively, maybe I would have found an excuse. But I happened to be free that night, and it seemed like the universe was steering me forward, so I joined her. Next thing you know, I'd purchased my own watercolor set and was learning the basics from tutorials on YouTube. I used to paint with acrylics, but watercolor seemed more approachable in this era of my life—compact and fast, perfectly suited to a busy mom who lives in a Brooklyn apartment. No easel necessary.

Summer rolled around, and boy was it busy at Twill Creative (my own little design studio where I do branding design, build websites, and do UX design consulting)! I was sketching, I was painting, I was conjugating Spanish verbs, and feeling great about all that. But then I started thinking about Knit Darling. I'd been dabbling in knitwear design with commissions from various yarn companies, but not much beyond that.

I'd carried a lot of guilt about pattern design, feeling like I'd neglected this thing I'd spent so many years building and now couldn't keep up with the industry. Between social media burnout and an overwhelming Ravelry landscape, standing out felt next to impossible. I missed designing, but I couldn't quite see what returning to it was supposed to look like.

All of this had my head spinning. I decided I needed a reframe. This slow period hadn't been a time of neglect. It was more like when a farmer lets a field lie fallow in order to restore fertility to the soil. Starting a family is intense. I needed a rest to recharge creatively.

Social media isn't my thing, and that's fine—I don't have to follow anyone else's playbook. I'm coming back to Knit Darling now with a new intention. I started with a humble blog, and that's where I'm coming back to it again. Maybe no one is reading, and honestly, that's freeing.

I have old patterns I want to revisit, some half-finished ideas tucked away, new things I want to make, and apparently quite a lot I still want to say about knitting!

Hello again. Welcome to fall. Let's knit.

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