It is time to move our knitting and crochet into the twenty-first century and have access to our library virtually anywhere we go! Imagine you are at the yarn shop and you have found the perfect yarn for a project you've been wanting to make and for the life of you, you can't remember how many yards it calls for. Then you remember you've stored all of your patterns on a cloud based service, you pull out your smartphone and with a few taps there is your pattern. Not only do you have all the information on the supplies needed, but you could sit down right there and start working on it! If you are like me you probably already have a ton of patterns saved all over the your computer: bookmarks, downloads, Ravelry and in emails just to name a few. This week we are going to get those all organized and situated in a way that they will be easy to find at our fingertips.
WEEK FIVE CHALLENGE
- Locate all of your digital patterns. As I said above your patterns most likely live all over the place. Begin by creating a folder on your desktop named "patterns" then start searching and moving them. Check your desktop, downloads, folders, emails and anywhere you might have saved your patterns and move them to your new "patterns folder".
- Begin creating categories and sub-categories much as you did with loose patterns. Create a folder called "Knit" and one called "Crochet", go into the "Knit" folder and begin making even more sub-categories: Cowls, Scarves, Blankets, etc. Now you can move the digital pattern into the correct sub-category. Repeat for Crochet. I hope the image below will help, but if you need assistance with this, please let me know in the comments below.
- Make them mobile. Now that you have everything in order on your desktop you are set up to easily transfer them to a cloud based service giving you the ability to access your files from any internet accessible device (smartphone, tablet, laptop, etc.). There are several options for this such as Google Drive, Apple iCloud, Amazon Cloud Drive, the list goes on and on. Some of these services are starting to make it so you can access your files without being connected to the internet. There are also a ton of Apps available such as Knitting Pattern Database, Evernote & Delicious Library. Explore your devices App Store to find what works for you; try key words: Knit, crochet and library to get started. Once you've chosen which service you wish to use, begin transferring your files from your desktop to the service. You can also store other knitting/crochet related items like tips, how to's and WIP Notes in files related to each category. Below is a sample of how I have my Google Drive, I'm still working on getting my patterns in their folders:
- Use Ravelry Library. If you are currently using Ravelry, why not take advantage of their free library made especially for fiber artists? There are several advantages to using Ravelry over some of the other cloud based options, one of which being you are informed when there is an update or correction to a pattern that has been stored in your library. You can add the books you have on your shelves at home and make notes about them (where you have it stored, what patterns you are interested in, what yarn you plan on using, etc.) There are images of the patterns you have on your "shelves" making it easy to spot the one you are looking for. Here is a tutorial on how to set up your Ravelry Library. Below is a sample of the Ravelry Library (yes, it too needs to be organized!)
Which ever storage solution you choose, keep in mind:
- Take your time, this doesn't have to be completed this week; don't get overwhelmed with the amount of work to be done. If you find you really like making shawls, focus on getting those organized first. You may find that you only need to have those organized and not worry with the blankets, hats and so on.
- Don't forget to check the bookmarks on your browser. See if any of them can be downloaded and added to your digital libraries. If they are not downloadable, make sure to label them well so you will know what you have when you are looking through your bookmarks.
- If you store your patterns on your desktop only, please make a back up on an USB drive. I'd hate for something to happen to your computer and you've lost all of your patterns!
- If you have questions, please ask. I will be happy to help in any way I can.
Are you going to use a digital library, if so what service do you plan on using?
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