Tip of Lovely by Lee

Today I turn 33 years old. I have to admit that I am feeling pretty darn good these days, and I think my thirties have been my favorite decade (so far.) Mostly because I have been doing what I love and discovered a way of life that brings me much joy and satisfaction.

My entire twenties, I had been working in classroom settings, studying to be an educator and having my own classroom in elementary schools. In high school, I felt the pressure to decide on a career very soon, so that I could attain my college degree without bumps (oh, but there were a few bumps). I thought teaching was a wonderful choice, as I came from a line of teachers, and I loved kids (still do). Even my high school guidance counselor provided a "what do I do with my life" quiz that suggested I would best serve as an educator.

So, I became a teacher, but not without longing to follow other passions. Nutrition and food science knowledge came easily to me, and half-way through my schooling, I debated becoming a nutritionist or dietician. I've also been a natural-born a maker since my childhood days (more on that another day), and my favorite college courses were my artsy electives (especially metalwork and jewelry making). As much as I engaged in the making community, I couldn't see how I'd make a living off of it. And being half-way finished with my teaching degree, I decided to pursue nutrition as a lifestyle and making as a hobby. Teaching would be my real career.

I did teach, and there was a lot I loved about it. However, I put 110% into it, including 110% of stressing in the middle of the night regarding the pressures of testing, meeting scores, pleasing parents, pleasing co-workers, pleasing students...and all the while balancing a well-managed classroom, planning, grading and especially, interacting with my students when I was so drained of energy. Mostly, the pressure of maintaining a professional appearance ALL THE TIME. As a teacher, there was a stereotype we were expected to fill, and I wanted to barf at the amount of times I was told, "I thought you were a teacher" as a response to being seen with a glass of wine or having a grumpy day...it still makes me angry thinking about it, as um...I am a HUMAN, ugh. Not going to hide it, I was BURNT OUT, and in a short time of only 7 years of teaching. But, it is the degree I completed (actually 2 degrees), and I really was successful at it. However, it was all I had truly known of my adult working life.

Then comes the crazy fate that I became pregnant, my husband's place of work liquidated, and we moved the summer that my daughter was born. I took all the changes as an opportunity to stay home for a year, which, I was so grateful to do. But being used to a work-a-holic lifestyle, I was very antsy. I needed to do something, so I learned to knit.

Since the beginning of my new "hobby", I have discovered an entire community of knitters and makers via social media. I had been missing out of this lifestyle for too long. People were paying for my knits (which I was designing myself, for uniqueness and also because I struggle to follow patterns), and I eventually began to write my designs into patterns that have since been tested and published. My patterns are being purchased, and I'm living a maker lifestyle.

I am still learning so much, and I sometimes even cringe on what little I knew about this world just a year ago. But I am so happy, even with regards to the stress of owning my own small business. Never would I have thought that I would be doing something unconventional as an income, something out of my comfort zone (putting myself, my work, out there for judgement and criticism), and never would I have thought that making would be an actual career.

My entire thirties, I have been developing and growing Lovely by Lee. It has provided me with happiness, my drive to create and has allowed me to believe in myself...therefore opening doors to so much more...I also continue to live a healthy lifestyle, feeding my nutritional interests, and I feel terrific. So 33 is great, and I imagine it just gets better.