Can I have your attention please – this year is a major milestone for the blog (something I never thought I would achieve when I set out to scribble random things into the void that is the internet), but this blog has existed on weekly posts for 10 years. 10. Today is the 522nd post of our streak. We’ve also existed in some form for 15 years, but the big celebration is the 10 years of continuous week-in / week-out posts.
Please celebrate with me!
Highlights from the last 12 months are:
The move to Saturday updates has certainly improved my oomph to keep writing the more creative content for the blog, and the new theme of the blog has certainly freshened things up. We also hit 500 blog posts in January (as I said, this is a big year!)
One thing I’m proud of was writing and coding my small text adventure game “The Knights Adventurous – A Winter’s Tale“. If you’ve played it I’d love to hear from you!
Regular content continues with The Reading List which is now maintained purely as a record of my recent reading. I’ve enjoyed looking back at the first lists and seeing what I was enjoying at the time, some of which may come round again soon with my love of the story and characters. Yes, my TBR list is looooong and I love my local library for fleshing out some of my recent forays into delightful things, but I feel the need for a return to the world of the Clan or another trip to Tortall with my favourite knight.
And of course it isn’t a year on the blog without creative projects with my two favourite pairs of socks – the Sunspot and the Sanctuary patterns by Winwick Mum – and a LARP kit project for a friend and his fabulous Necromancer coat. With tweaking the pattern to suit the plan and finding beautiful fabrics at a local fabric store that I adored (sadly now closed due to the owner retiring), I am still incredibly proud of this project. I may no longer LARP, but my kit still graces the fields of battle and adventure!
And finally, we have introduced new chapters to “There is a Castle” with the adventures of Aret and Trundle and their hunt for a missing friend, and of Malek and Pod on foreign shores; and began receiving letters from young Kit in the city of Koriko in “My Dearest Cecily“
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The last 5 years from the 2019 annual check-in have been a lot of change in content and style. The biggest change of all was becoming a parent and adapting to a new work/life/hobby balance once the munchkin became more mobile and I finished my Maternity leave. I’ve moved house. I’ve changed jobs and changed HEMA club to somewhere more local. And yet the blog has continued week-in / week-out and I am insanely proud of myself for this. I must confess that a lot of content is now written in bulk and primed for launch compared to my frantic seat-of-the-pants writing that used to happen when I was turning LARP content around within 2 weeks.
Here’s what’s happened over the years and some of the choicest content.
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2019: The end of an era
LARP mission write-ups still made up the vast majority of my blog posts, along with costuming and my bi-annual seasonal posts preparing for LARP (this year’s pair featured putting up tents and wintery snack foods amongst other musings). My return to LARP post the maternity pause featured some new dresses (blue heraldic dress / fleur-de-lis gown), a Spring Fashion Collection (a personal joke at the whole wardrobe my Feudal Knight possessed and wore at an event) and a celebration of Lady Judith’s finest hour and her accession to the Ducal seat of Berwickshire. Plus I bought my own tent, which has led to other adventures through the years not documented on the blog. I also shared a personal calligraphy / heraldry project that was my pride and joy at the time.
2020: COVID and the Long March of LARP
During 2020 LARP was put on hold (for obvious reasons) and the blog content pivoted to more personal projects e.g. the Great British Home Chorus, my mossy duffle coat, creating that had been planned in the hope of future games (sunshine tunic, strawberries and cream tunic, viking hood etc) and a series of creating characters from existing kit. In the September I made the decision to step away from LARP permanently.
The Reading List also began this year (which have continued every 2 months since) and the development of my knitting journey that has led to my knitwear collection proudly worn to work.
2021:
My favourite craft project of 2021 was creating a full Rolborian set of robes and accessories for a friend, and I delighted in getting the perfect shade of Cadbury’s purple from my favourite fabric shop. The knitting continued with my favourite cardigan amongst other projects to flesh out my personal wardrobe (sewing is not just for LARP you know!) including adapting an existing pattern into a blouse. I also braved making more clothes for the munchkin, which has continued to this day.
I chose to share my articles I wrote as an NPC for the Newcastle Branch’s local IC newspaper also finished the “Character Crafting” project started in 2020, creating 24 in total (including the bonus personification of the Goodwife Green of Newcroft Chronicle fame). It’s really hard to choose favourites from this project but here are a choice selection: Tally – Frida – Felicity – Ajax – Hildegard – Dís – Elsie – Rose – Sir August – Sir Arden
2022:
The last of the LARP content came when Goodwife Green (my old Newcroft Chronicles agony aunt articles) came to a close in June. 2022 is my most prolific HEMA / This Girl Can writing to date.
Other creative adventure content came through the write-ups of solo games of the board game “Call to Adventure” through the “Adventure Awaits” stories.
Knitting and creating continued with my first pairs of proper socks (the stockings don’t count as they’re a tube, not with a heel etc), a foray into adapting a colour working knit pattern and the creation of my first “Christmas Jumper” which is still the cosiest and comfiest jumper I own. I also made a 2022 Temperature Blanket (finished in early 2023) and completed the lace cardigan I began back in 2021. 2022 feels to have been the year of knitting.
2023:
New content came about with the solo journalling game Colostle and the adventures in “There is a Castle“, in a semi-return to my old LARP content. Here we met Malek and Pod on their quest for the Seastone; and Aret and Trundle seeking their missing friend. We also set the stage for seasonal content with letters from Kit in “My Dearest Cecily” and the solo journalling game of “Koriko”.
Sharing of more personal adventures continue with a review of a theatre event I attended as part of the Leeds 2023 City of Culture programme, and a construction project I am proud to have been a part of with the WOW Barn. I also knitted more socks including pairs for the munchkin (which involved learning how to adapt an adult pattern to fit a youngster’s sizing). I also attended my first “Art that Adorns You” event.
2024:
The biggest change this year (so far) is the long sequence of journal entries from Malek on his travels through Kyodania in “There is a Castle” with a sprinkling to The Reading List posts and letters from Kit in “My Dearest Cecily”. Behind the scenes there is more tabletop rpgs, the hope of a return to the world of the Empress’s Hounds, and several craft projects getting made slowly behind the scenes. Stay tuned!
Over the years I’ve gained more readers and followers (*waves*) and lost some, but I am enjoying the new balance of content and effort that this version of the blog has given me. I am grateful to all who stop by to read and like and occasionally comment. I wonder how many more years we’ll be doing this site and what will come next?
Wolfish Written 
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