As a Master Spinner who writes quite a bit about spinning, I am considered an expert in my field. But I’m working really hard to remain a beginner. Being a beginner places me in a world of possibility where every moment holds pure potential.

When we get good at doing something, whether we spin or bake or restore old cars, we can get into a nice, comfortable rut. Even though that rut has been earned through years of hard work, I sometimes feel like we lose something in that process. 

When we are comfortable, we can lose our curiosity or we can become perfectionists, afraid to make mistakes.

We can get trapped in our expertise as our craft moves forward with new ideas and tools, and make ourselves obsolete. Keeping a beginner mindset, reminding ourselves that we can never know everything there is to know about our craft, helps us to stay flexible and open to change.

I haven’t always been an expert spinner. This hat was my first finished object made from my handspun yarn, and I still marvel at the fact that I figured out how to make yarn from raw alpaca fluff and somehow produce a hat.

Of course, being a beginner is not always fun. Learning a new skill or revisiting an old one with a different perspective is not easy at all. We won’t fully understand the new words, so instructions may seem like secret codes we may never crack. There will be steps and processes that make no sense to us because we won’t know why we are doing them. Our hands may not know the right movements or they may be used to making different ones. There may be more moments of frustration or disappointment than there are victories.

We begin learning new things because they excite us. We jump in with both feet and most of us will make mistakes and get messy. Some of us will find the mistakes and messes discouraging and want to quit, but the messy places are where the learning happens. Remember that and be gentle with yourself.

When things get hard and you want to quit, find a cheerleader. There will be so many people in your life who think what you are learning to do is hard and they will be amazed by what you are making, even when you aren’t sure you’re doing it right. I’ve found these cheerleaders in a lot of places—in a class, at work, on public transit, and yes, in my own home. (If you have children in your life, share your learning with them! Kids can be fantastic cheerleaders because they are learning new things every day and it seems natural to them that you are doing it too.)

Fibre and textiles give us so many chances to be beginners! These are my beginner projects from the past few years, including Navajo weaving, Saori weaving, and punch needle embroidery. Each project taught me something new about yarn.

There are going to be things you try that you will not like. This is okay, too. You won’t be quitting if you move on from those things. Taking those first steps will still provide some insight into how the thing is done and your brain will have a little exercise. You may learn something new that gives you a deeper understanding of something you already do well. Take that learning and move on. There will be other things to try, other crafts or skills that are a better fit for you.

Of course, you may never become an expert in everything you learn and that’s okay. None of us are ever truly done learning and even those of us who are considered experts don’t know it all. Learn to the level you are comfortable with, be willing to accept new perspectives, and remember that there is always more to learn if and when you are ready. There is no end to the learning we can do.

I have a slogan from Saori weaving tattooed on my arm. It says, “Look out with eyes that shine.”  While that slogan can be interpreted in a lot of different ways, when I see it it reminds me to stay open to the possibilities everywhere around me. It reminds me to be a beginner.