Well, 2021 started a couple of days ago and having taken a break from my computer has given me the opportunity to think about the last year and to get excited about things to come! So today I just wanted to thank you for your support over 2020 and to give you an idea of how it has impacted my life and the lives of others!

Family life

You may or may not know, but this year, with your support, our family life changed completely! At the end of July, Calum, Magnolia, and I made the move from Bulgaria to the UK. With this transition, my husband decided to quit a job that made him miserable teaching English online and become a full-time dad to allow me the opportunity to design full-time. This change in roles has been great for us and I need you to know that it is all possible because of your support buying patterns, attending classes, liking my Instagram posts, and sharing your projects. So thank you!

Since living in the UK I’ve been busy creating tutorial content for my YouTube channel, designing as much as I can, and teaching with Vogue Knitting Live. I also have a couple of HUGE projects up my sleeve for 2021 including patterns and maybe more teaching, but I can’t share them just yet.

Charity

I am not great at giving to charity. I try, but I am often overwhelmed by the amount of need out there. So I try to be kind to everyone I meet and to give to causes that I can relate to instead.

This year I had two big fundraisers.

The first one…

…was back in June when I released the Hope Romper and all donations went to Melel Xojobal A.C., a foundation dedicated to help educate children who work in the State of Chiapas, Mexico. On June 22nd, I donated 455 EUR from Hope Romper sales. According to the foundation’s website, that is enough to cover a teacher’s salary for 2 months or to pay for the educations of THREE children for one year. You did that. Thank you.

My dad is from Chiapas and since then I found out that one of his cousins is a social worker there and actually works closely with organizations that help these communities. So this will not be the last time I donate to this cause.

The second fundraiser…

…happened during my Advent campaign. On Dec 18th I dedicated the sales of that day to a cause very dear to my heart.

Growing up my parents were always an example of charity. The number of Christmases we had with complete strangers in the house because my mom had heard they didn’t have dinner plans on Christmas Eve! As kids, we always thought it was super weird, but now I understand!

My dad would also take us to the poor neighborhoods of the city to deliver toys or food baskets. And even though I haven’t been around there since I was like 17, my parents have since joined a church in one of these communities and are working closely with some of the youth there. Actually, since retiring, my dad has started growing cucumbers and zucchinis working with young disadvantaged yet promising engineers, forgotten land-owners, and temporary workers, bringing job opportunities that didn’t exist before.

Anyway, my goal was to raise at least £300 to try to complete 20 food baskets. You guys surprised me and I raised a shocking £600! With that money, 30 grocery baskets and 18 toys were delivered to families in need.

Here are some snippets of the actual people that received a Christmas gift from you. My daddy made it into one too!