Thank You!

My apologies for the long post below, but please read on, there is a surprise waiting at the end! :)

I've never celebrated my "Blogiversary" before. In fact, for the longest time I didn't even know when it was. But a quick look back a couple of days ago revealed that it was surprisingly close. Five years ago today I created my first blog post. Wow, FIVE years.

First posted pattern: Checkered Moss Dishcloth

Dishcloth Diaries started out as a pattern only blog. I didn't have any intention back then of growing much beyond the few knitted and crocheted dishcloth and potholder patterns I was offering. But then I answered a group challenge with the Cup O Joe TP Cover. That seemed to be the turning point in my design career. Momentum picked up and more people were visiting the blog.

Cup O Joe TP Cover

2009 saw the birth of the year long Calendar 'Ghan CAL. It was my most ambitious project to date. Although there were times I asked myself, "Why did I commit to this?" I still had fun doing it, and in the end it was totally worth it. It is also the project that put this blog on the "crochet map" so to speak.

 Calendar 'Ghan CAL List of pattern links

By 2010, with the popularity of the Calendar 'Ghan and other non-dishcloth patterns, I began to feel Dishcloth Diaries was no longer a suitable name for the blog. A name change seemed to be in order but I didn't want to lose anyone. It was a hard decision, but I compromised by changing the name while leaving the URL intact. I'm not sure how effective it was, as I'm still known as Dishcloth Diaries to many. LOL

Dragonfly Dishcloth

2011 proved to be an exciting year. Firstly, I adopted an additional persona for myself, Crochet Amore. It's actually a play on my real name. The first part, Crochet, is for obvious reasons. But the second part, Amore, aside from meaning Love in Italian, is my first initial plus the first four letters of my last name. I thought it was fitting, Crochet Amore = Crochet Love. The reason for the new name was for my Ravelry Shop which first opened in July 2011. :)

Tic Tac Tote - The first pattern for sale in my shop

Additionally, 2011 brought about some exciting new changes for my designing career. My Flower Tiles afghan appeared in the October issue of Crochet World magazine. (It's still available for PDF download) It was so exciting to see my name in print!

Flower Tiles afghan from Crochet World October 2011

Fast forward to 2013. I hate to say it, but I haven't done a whole lot with the blog over the past couple of years. I've checked in now and then. Added a few free patterns here and there. I've felt guilty for not keeping up, but sometimes life just has a way of taking turns in unexpected directions.

 2-D Butterfly

5 Years is really not long in the grand scheme of things. In some ways it feels like it's been longer, in other ways it seems like it went by in a flash. I do want to say thank you for hanging in there with me through the ups and downs. I couldn't have done it without you! The enthusiasm, encouragement, support, and friendship I have received over the past five years has meant so much to me.

As a way of saying thank you, I am offering a 15% discount on all patterns in my Ravelry store. The coupon code is "5years" and is valid now through March 31, 2013. You can click here to automatically receive the coupon. Sorry, the promotion is over, but keep watching for new patterns and occasional coupon codes. :)

Here's to hoping for many more "5 year celebrations" :)

Cupcake Potholder