Project Spectrum

Sarah

Today marks the beginning of Project Spectrum, brainchild of the fabulous Lolly. The project is a fun way to push yourself to explore different colors and textures, and I think the way Lolly has organized it this year is going to be exceptionally inspiring: each two-month period has an "element" theme, with colors related to that element. February and March are "Fire" (orange, red, and pink), April and May are "Earth" (green, brown, and metallics), June and July are "Air" (gray, white, and yellow), and August and September are "Water" (blue, black, and purple).

Some people choose to knit with the PS colors, or seek them out with their cameras, or sew with these shades of fabrics. Last year, my friend Liz changed her blog's theme to reflect the changing PS colors, while others tried incorporating PS-colored foods into their diet.

This year, in the lead-up to Project Spectrum, I had an interesting idea as I was reading Michael Pollan's book "In Defense of Food": why not go on a Project Spectrum "diet"? I care about my health, and I care about eating well and sustainably. Happily, these goals all mesh together well -- the healthiest, most delicious foods tend also to be the most sustainable. These are goals I've had for a while and am always working towards, but I think that by really focusing on them mindfully during Project Spectrum, I can do a better job of incorporating these changes into my lifestyle.

These are just goals I've set for myself, and if you'd like to join me, feel free to set your own -- there's already a little group of us on Ravelry in the Project Spectrum forums, and we'd be happy to have you join our conversation!

February/March: Fire
In this two-month period, I will bake my own bread from scratch instead of buying it from the supermarket. (This goes for desserts, crackers, etc. as well.) Also, I will eat every bite of every meal, snack, or nibble at the table, to help myself to eat more mindfully and savor my food.

                                       

April/May: Earth
In this two-month period, I will go to the farmer’s market at least once a week to buy my fruits and vegetables. I will eat less meat, especially red meat, and avoid processed foods and fast foods.

                                       

June/July: Air
In this two-month period, I will get more fresh air. I will go outside every single day for a walk, a hike, a bike ride, or a trip to the park.

                                       

August/September: Water
In this two-month period, I will drink water. OK, so I’ll also still drink my (one) morning cup of coffee, and my one small glass of wine a few times a week with dinner, but no sodas, no juice, no Starbucks, no smoothies.

Comments

[Ashley]

Love, love, love this idea! I'm going to bake bread when I get home tonight.

[Lolly]

I think it is such an inspired idea, Sarah, and I am so happy that you brought it up! (that means that there are other people that think like me!) Pollan's book has really influenced many of my choices over the past few weeks, and I look forward to incorporating many of these things into my own PS experience. Thank you so much for taking part! I look forward to more inspiration from you! I know it will come :)

[Gretchen]

I'd prefer to switch the months for air and earth-- that way you could enjoy the fresh spring breezes in April and May, then eat fresh summer fruit and vegetables during the hot months, June and July (of course, I'd extend that to August too.)
On a related note, I heard the first mockingbird of spring today. How refreshing!
Btw, in China one speaks of five elements rather than four: water, fire, air, wood, and metal. These suggest interesting fiber choices, don't you think?

[Catherine]

Fantastic! I found your blog through Lolly's blog and was so pleased to see that your "diet" idea comes from "In Defense of Food." I'm reading it now too and it's a feature of my blog today! I'm not with it enough to be an official (or even unofficial) PS participant this time around, but you can bet that I'll be internalizing a lot of your "diet" ideas. We already bake all of our own breads, but I hadn't thought of crackers, etc. Thanks for the food for thought!!

[b from knitting harvest]

I saw this posted on Ravelry the other day and though it was such a clever interpretation of the concept of Project Spectrum. It's definitely something that I can get behind. I'm in the midst of Kingsolver's book, and have Pollan's Dilemma next up on the nightstand. I'll have to pick up the new one the next time that I pay a visit to the bookstore. Great idea!

[Suzanne V. (Yarnhog)]

Oh, how fun! I always wondered exactly what Project Spectrum was. Your diet idea is really interesting. I think I'll stick to the more traditional spinning/knitting field!

[lola]

I finally made a loaf of bread earlier this week. Before the last week of pregnancy, I had been making at least a loaf a week. God I love the bread machine.

I finally broke down & bought Omnivore's Dilemma. I thought I was done obsessing about food. Must not be...

I still haven't decided how I'm going to do PS, maybe I'll take the food route too.

[Janet]

I've had a bread machine for a couple of years now and since I bought the yeast at Costco I try to bake bread two or three times a month. It taste fantastic but doesn't keep well. Also if you want a quick bread try Beer Bread
2 1/4+ cups of flour
5 tblsps of sugar
on can of bear
the bread will be very wet.
Let it rise for 10 or 15 minutes
Bake for 30 mins at 350
Try it you'll like it.

[stinkerbell]

hmmm I kind of like this idea, I am going to try to project spectrum with knitting and photos but I also like the active life idea... might just have to copy you! Imitation is a form of flattery isnt it :)

[maryse]

i must have read about your diet plan in flickr or ravelry because i remember thinking that living in new england i'd be forced to juggle everything around ;).

for example, we don't have anything growing out of the ground until at least june.

drinking water, getting fresh air, and eating vegetables are certainly things that i try to do every day.

you could grill for february and march too.