I have been a member of Ravelry for the past five years and it has been a wonderful experience. Being continuously inspired by so much uniqueness, creativity, diligence and talent spanning thousands of projects from all over the world and having an opportunity to share my own designs, has become an integral part of my knitting routine.

Knitting in itself has always been a crucial element of my own identity. Less than a hobby and more like a natural instinct, a necessity, it has accompanied me since early childhood. At the time, I was growing up in a country with a terrible regime in which things that we now take for granted, such as bananas, properly sized shoes or chewing gum were luxury items, rare finds. I saw my first pineapple when I was 25, after Lithuania got back its independence. Clothing in itself was difficult to find and if you wished to be a tiny bit original, you also had to come up with original ways to make it. Since it was impossible to find yarn as such, I grew up seeing my grandmother and my mother unraveling readymade sweaters, trying to remake them into something less bleak and more playful.

I also started knitting in this way. Perhaps constantly having obstructions and only being able to utilize my creativity within strict boundaries, has influenced my obsession with colour work and stranded patterns. Once I was able to be free in my choices and fully express my inner creativity, I went all in – I design all of my projects myself and I am always sure to include a myriad of colours, textures and dynamic patterns, somehow trying to compensate for my youth, in which individuality was discouraged.

Somehow, I feel that our current times are also marked by somewhat similar trend of blending everyone together, trying to subdue rather than celebrate, even sometimes over-the-top imagination. However, on Ravelry I finally feel that I found a community, which thinks in the same exact way as I am. I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to be here and thankful for all the kind-hearted feedback I have received, which stimulates me to continue knitting and be inspired.