This week’s blogging is brought to you by the letter B, makers of Breathe and Believe- practice both so you can move forward!
Woo woo – I now have 2 more garden boxes! You know what this means? A dyer’s garden! Or…a garden to DYE for! Oh har har!
I want to be able to dye the fiber I get at the fiber festival this September, so whatever I plant will need to be fast-growing. Borrowed several books from the library and it’s just on the brink of overwhelming. The one I think I’ll be referring to the most is this book by Rita Buchanan. A small book and very organized. On the left page is a photo of the plant followed by a description, how to grow, and how to dye. On the right edge of the right page are photos of the colors you get from that plant, depending on the mordant used and on the fiber. It’s interesting to see the difference a mordant makes in the final product. I will be using only alum for this year.
Now to figure out what I’ll be growing!
Some aspects of Old World dyeing puzzle me. Like cheese puzzles me. Some techniques used fermentation. Some used pee. It makes me wonder who took that first step. With cheese, who looked at the smelly, moldy mass and thought, “Hm. I’m going to put that in my mouth and eat it.” Same thing with dyeing. Who thought, “I’m going to keep my pee and use it to soak fabric in.” or “Oh hey. This bucket of plant material may make a good dye, but first I’ll let it sit around in murky water and let it rot. THEN I’ll stick my fabric in it.”
And how about this- “Hm…I’m going to scrape all these bugs off this plant, smash ‘em up, and then use that as a dye!” Good times!
Does make me wonder what plants are out there yet to be discovered for dyeing making, though. I will probably let some of the weeds grow in for this purpose. I will not, however, be saving my pee.
I’m sorry. This will be it for today. It’s been a long day and I’m already falling asleep. Not even a photo to make things pretty.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Thursday, June 4, 2009
I spend too much time thinking about the things I want to make instead of actually sitting down and making them. This is how my dreams often go, too. I have so many dreams where there’s a destination or object to get and I always get sidetracked. Always. These dreams are cousins to the one where something is chasing you and the hallway gets longer or your legs get really, really heavy.
Having deadlines helps and I came across a great one to last me through next year. The link was on Gingerbread Snowflakes. Please read the poem, take a look at The Butterfly Project, and pass it on. I plan on making several and I wonder what will result form being inspired by sadness and anger. Can’t even imagine what 1.5 million looks like.
Being part of something creative to help ease suffering or increase awareness is another way to keeping moving along the creative path. There are always people who need help. It forces me to always reconsider my priorities and reminds me that no matter how little I sometimes feel I have to offer, I actually do have something to give. More importantly, knowing I am one of thousands involved in such projects gives me hope. For all the pain shown on the news, there are always total strangers compelled to ease it. Like an invisible thread that ties us to one another.
Well, this will be it for the post. Wanted to get the word out about The Butterfly Project. There’s more crafting stuff to write about, but that’ll happen this weekend.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Looks Like Somebody's Got a Case of the Mon-days!
Before, I begin, I’d like to send a word of thanks to our sponsor. This week’s blogging has been brought to you by the letter A, the makers of ART and ATTITUDE. Remember, it’s what you create and present to the world!
Does the Monday feel like the start of a marathon workweek? Do you wonder, “How will I make it through to Friday?” If yes, please wander over to Susie Hewer’s blog. I listened to her Craftsanity podcast this weekend and it left me inspired and amazed! I will be spending my breaks at work this week catching up on her blog. And I must say, she has excellent taste in picking out blog templates!
Mondays will always come around, no matter how tightly we hold on to Sunday. There’s no point in fighting it. That being said, let’s start it gently and with gratitude.
Here are 3 things I’m grateful for right now (what are yours?) :
1. The huge tree outside my window and how it sounds like the ocean when the wind blows through the leaves.
2. The birds and squirrels who hang out in this tree, cruising over to the plate of seeds, the bird feeder, or the birdbath. Sometimes I’m perplexed by how easily they will capture my attention for long periods of time. You’d think I stepped into a fairy ring.
3. The long days in late spring through summer. I love that the summer seems to have started early and the seeds I planted have all started to sprout.
While I actually really like my job a lot and my co-workers even more, it’s hard to shake that feeling of, “Awww…I can’t sleep in and do whatever!” In light of the economic situation, though, I’d be grateful even if I had a job I hated with people to match. The reality of it, for me, is that if left to my own devices, I don’t think I’d really get that much more crafting done if I didn’t have to work. I’d do a lot of puttering about. Besides, there’s something about being at my desk and interacting with my co-workers that inspires ideas. Is it wrong that I actually miss them when I take a stay-at-home-for-a-week vacation? …or is it wrong that so many people don’t experience this? Every single day at work, I am guaranteed giggles and laughter. When bad things happen, people are kind and caring to each other.
The other part about my co-workers, which I appreciate so much, is their talent. As it turns out, there are several people who are very artistically talented. When I bring in something I’ve made, it’s fun to be able to share and get feedback. During our breaks, there’s no stupid gossiping or backstabbing. We talk about our hobbies and what we did over the weekend. We arrange play dates instead of hanging out in bars, complaining. It’s nice. Fantastic, really. Now that I’ve just written this and read it over, I really am fortunate, especially considering what diverse backgrounds we all come from.
That’s one thing about getting older that I love so much: differences matter less. Some of those differences have simply faded and are no longer vivid enough to earn anything more than a passing, curious glance. Positive changes.
The other part about getting older that I love is how much less I care about what others think about what I make. It’s come down to whether or not I enjoyed the process. That part of the creating is something solely within me and what I hold important. It feels great to get compliments, but if someone were to insult what I made, it wouldn’t mean much. It would be like me taking a vacation somewhere and having someone tell me how much they hate my destination. It wouldn’t matter since the trip was all mine to experience anyway. To those who seek to bring down with insults, I blow a raspberry in your general direction.
Oh- and I went and bought some papyrus, by the way. Then went to the library and borrowed several books on paper making. Haven’t looked through them yet, but the papyrus is still small anyway. Right now, it’s sitting outside in a bucket with a water hyacinth and some other water plant that I’m too lazy to look up the name of. As an added bonus, I discovered that it came with a teeny, tiny snail. Just a little bigger than a grain of rice. I will love him and squeeze him and call him George.
Well, the stagecoach turned back to a pumpkin and Monday is here. Go off and buzz around, busy bee. Remember- the task may feel small and redundant, but it’s an important part of the big picture. Go out and help things prosper.
Does the Monday feel like the start of a marathon workweek? Do you wonder, “How will I make it through to Friday?” If yes, please wander over to Susie Hewer’s blog. I listened to her Craftsanity podcast this weekend and it left me inspired and amazed! I will be spending my breaks at work this week catching up on her blog. And I must say, she has excellent taste in picking out blog templates!
Mondays will always come around, no matter how tightly we hold on to Sunday. There’s no point in fighting it. That being said, let’s start it gently and with gratitude.
Here are 3 things I’m grateful for right now (what are yours?) :
1. The huge tree outside my window and how it sounds like the ocean when the wind blows through the leaves.
2. The birds and squirrels who hang out in this tree, cruising over to the plate of seeds, the bird feeder, or the birdbath. Sometimes I’m perplexed by how easily they will capture my attention for long periods of time. You’d think I stepped into a fairy ring.
3. The long days in late spring through summer. I love that the summer seems to have started early and the seeds I planted have all started to sprout.
While I actually really like my job a lot and my co-workers even more, it’s hard to shake that feeling of, “Awww…I can’t sleep in and do whatever!” In light of the economic situation, though, I’d be grateful even if I had a job I hated with people to match. The reality of it, for me, is that if left to my own devices, I don’t think I’d really get that much more crafting done if I didn’t have to work. I’d do a lot of puttering about. Besides, there’s something about being at my desk and interacting with my co-workers that inspires ideas. Is it wrong that I actually miss them when I take a stay-at-home-for-a-week vacation? …or is it wrong that so many people don’t experience this? Every single day at work, I am guaranteed giggles and laughter. When bad things happen, people are kind and caring to each other.
The other part about my co-workers, which I appreciate so much, is their talent. As it turns out, there are several people who are very artistically talented. When I bring in something I’ve made, it’s fun to be able to share and get feedback. During our breaks, there’s no stupid gossiping or backstabbing. We talk about our hobbies and what we did over the weekend. We arrange play dates instead of hanging out in bars, complaining. It’s nice. Fantastic, really. Now that I’ve just written this and read it over, I really am fortunate, especially considering what diverse backgrounds we all come from.
That’s one thing about getting older that I love so much: differences matter less. Some of those differences have simply faded and are no longer vivid enough to earn anything more than a passing, curious glance. Positive changes.
The other part about getting older that I love is how much less I care about what others think about what I make. It’s come down to whether or not I enjoyed the process. That part of the creating is something solely within me and what I hold important. It feels great to get compliments, but if someone were to insult what I made, it wouldn’t mean much. It would be like me taking a vacation somewhere and having someone tell me how much they hate my destination. It wouldn’t matter since the trip was all mine to experience anyway. To those who seek to bring down with insults, I blow a raspberry in your general direction.
Oh- and I went and bought some papyrus, by the way. Then went to the library and borrowed several books on paper making. Haven’t looked through them yet, but the papyrus is still small anyway. Right now, it’s sitting outside in a bucket with a water hyacinth and some other water plant that I’m too lazy to look up the name of. As an added bonus, I discovered that it came with a teeny, tiny snail. Just a little bigger than a grain of rice. I will love him and squeeze him and call him George.
Well, the stagecoach turned back to a pumpkin and Monday is here. Go off and buzz around, busy bee. Remember- the task may feel small and redundant, but it’s an important part of the big picture. Go out and help things prosper.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Precious....my precious....
This year, I’m becoming more and more aware of how not alone I am in certain crafter traits that I was more than a little ashamed of. Kept this as my dirty little secret because I really didn’t know anyone who did these things, although I now suspect I did know, but they kept it a secret as well.
My dirty little secret? I have a lot of stuff. All for the sake of some project that has yet to hatch.
As I read through various blogs and listen to podcasts, it’s comforting to know that there isn’t anything wrong with me- this is just the way of the crafter. Publications like this and this not only confirm this, but show me there are a lot more people out there with way more stuff than I! I find solace in my crafting brethren. I find I am not alone in my collecting of all materials and objects of this world. I find I am not alone in collecting ribbons off candy boxes, buttons off old and worn clothes, keys that no longer open doors. Low tide leaves exposed, treasures that others would see as nothing more than beach glass and rocks – Look! This rock has a hole in it that you can peep through! This one is heart shaped! This one has some flecks of some shiny stuff in it- nature’s glitter! wooooo. I have a jar of acorn caps, a box of very old photos of people I never knew, and hoarded glitter. IKEA and recycled food jars help keep things in their place. When I saw a brief tour of Aaron Spelling’s mansion, my only thought was, “Wow…he almost has enough room there so that I could devote each room to one craft subject!”
The drive to make stuff invades all aspects of my life. Like spilt glitter on shag carpet, it will always be there, sticking to everything. Ideas are triggered at every turn. They change and evolve with the seasons.
With the weather so warm this spring, I had already started my garden a few weeks ago. This year, amongst the edibles, I’ve planted gourds. Why? so I can have more of this in my home
Oh wait. That was the before.
Here’s a prettier after:
I know. Gross, huh?
That was my first foray into drying gourds and I love the end result. While not expensive to buy, a whole packet of seeds costs the same as one gourd and I need more. There’s also the joy of growing things and harvesting. Inner gnome is pleased.
And what do I plan to do with a collection of dried gourds? Fairy houses! Instead of a traditional Christmas village, I’m thinking about a fairy village. Seen some really incredible gourd art and it would lend itself nicely to being converted to houses. It would be…gourd-geous!
Also in the garden this year: several varieties of lavender. I want to make those ribbon-woven lavender thingamajigs. Love the smell of lavender when in it’s natural state. So far, all lotions I’ve found have an underlying patchouli scent, which I dislike very much.
Thinking of planting a small garden of dyeing plants, too. Oh- and last week, I saw a papyrus plant and I think I may get a few. I’d like to try and make paper.
I know a woman who does cross-stitch. Nothing else. Just that one craft and she’s been doing it for years and years. For people who have the capability to focus on one craft and do it exceptionally well, hats off to you! I’ve tried it and failed. I became like the kid in school who is constantly looking out the window to watch birds bathe in a pool of water or autumn leaves caught up in a swirling column of wind. Ants in the pants. I have crafting ants in my pants. And they are covered in glitter and wool.
My dirty little secret? I have a lot of stuff. All for the sake of some project that has yet to hatch.
As I read through various blogs and listen to podcasts, it’s comforting to know that there isn’t anything wrong with me- this is just the way of the crafter. Publications like this and this not only confirm this, but show me there are a lot more people out there with way more stuff than I! I find solace in my crafting brethren. I find I am not alone in my collecting of all materials and objects of this world. I find I am not alone in collecting ribbons off candy boxes, buttons off old and worn clothes, keys that no longer open doors. Low tide leaves exposed, treasures that others would see as nothing more than beach glass and rocks – Look! This rock has a hole in it that you can peep through! This one is heart shaped! This one has some flecks of some shiny stuff in it- nature’s glitter! wooooo. I have a jar of acorn caps, a box of very old photos of people I never knew, and hoarded glitter. IKEA and recycled food jars help keep things in their place. When I saw a brief tour of Aaron Spelling’s mansion, my only thought was, “Wow…he almost has enough room there so that I could devote each room to one craft subject!”
The drive to make stuff invades all aspects of my life. Like spilt glitter on shag carpet, it will always be there, sticking to everything. Ideas are triggered at every turn. They change and evolve with the seasons.
With the weather so warm this spring, I had already started my garden a few weeks ago. This year, amongst the edibles, I’ve planted gourds. Why? so I can have more of this in my home
Oh wait. That was the before.
Here’s a prettier after:
I know. Gross, huh?
That was my first foray into drying gourds and I love the end result. While not expensive to buy, a whole packet of seeds costs the same as one gourd and I need more. There’s also the joy of growing things and harvesting. Inner gnome is pleased.
And what do I plan to do with a collection of dried gourds? Fairy houses! Instead of a traditional Christmas village, I’m thinking about a fairy village. Seen some really incredible gourd art and it would lend itself nicely to being converted to houses. It would be…gourd-geous!
Also in the garden this year: several varieties of lavender. I want to make those ribbon-woven lavender thingamajigs. Love the smell of lavender when in it’s natural state. So far, all lotions I’ve found have an underlying patchouli scent, which I dislike very much.
Thinking of planting a small garden of dyeing plants, too. Oh- and last week, I saw a papyrus plant and I think I may get a few. I’d like to try and make paper.
I know a woman who does cross-stitch. Nothing else. Just that one craft and she’s been doing it for years and years. For people who have the capability to focus on one craft and do it exceptionally well, hats off to you! I’ve tried it and failed. I became like the kid in school who is constantly looking out the window to watch birds bathe in a pool of water or autumn leaves caught up in a swirling column of wind. Ants in the pants. I have crafting ants in my pants. And they are covered in glitter and wool.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
My inner gnome has spoken and I have answered. Frugally.
Last year, I bought some washed fleece at a fiber festival.
Keep in mind, I know pretty much nothing about spinning. Know even less about how to pick fiber, but knew I needed (not wanted- NEEDED) some and the only criteria I went in with were: affordable, nice color, washed. Sure, there were many vendors with amazing displays of roving in beautiful colors, beckoning seductively… “Loook at ussss….we’re ready to spin! All aligned and perrrrfect!” Oh, believe me, I wanted all of it! Wanted it to be mine- ALLLL MINE!
…but no. I was strong.
Fueled by the desire to teach myself, I knew I needed fleece so I could start as close to the beginning as possible. If I could, I would have just come home with some sheep and started there (one day, one fine day..). I had to skip the getting my own sheep step, decided to also skip the washing step because I have neither a big enough sink nor am I ready yet to deal with sheep dingle berries, and started with 3 humble 1-pound bags of fleece. 2 dark brown and 1 cream. One has caramel brown tips, which I suppose some may see as imperfections, but to me, it’s beautiful. Then again, I’ve always found sweet beauty in the imperfect – the runt of the litter, rust, mutts, vegetables that look like they have noses, gargoyles.
One bag I bought was from the first shearing of the sheep. The woman told me this as I was paying her and she smiled a little sadly and patted the bag like a mom watching their child go to their first day of kindergarten. This is my favorite bag and the one I chose to finally do something with.
For the last year, I looked at what I bought and wondered how to prep it. I have no hand cards and didn’t want to buy a set yet because of the cost. How about dog brushes? smaller, but the same concept, right? Well, I priced them and decided it wasn’t cheap enough. I’d be better off just saving my money until I could just get a real set.
But the inner gnome. It wants to play!
So…I went to the Dollar Store and found a dog comb. Guess what- it worked fine! Not something I’d use for the whole bag unless I wanted Popeye arms, but for small amounts, it was perfect. This also allowed me to witness the fibers as they turned from clumps, into lofty clouds. Very primitive, my skill level, and I’m happy walking this slow and imperfect path. If I can understand where something is coming from, I stand a better chance of knowing how ride with it to new destinations.
So here is what I came up with. “After,” on the left, “Before,” on the right. My $1 dog comb peeking in from the top to say, “Hello!”
Now this will be no surprise to most acquainted with wool, but it was a fun surprise to me- dark brown plus cream does not equal light brown! At least in fiber world.
It makes a nice warm grey. Who knew? Not me! The cream roving is actually from some “mandala wool” from the Tandy Leather Company. Never made a mandala, but it was a good price for a bunch of roving. I originally bought it to experiment with felting, but got distracted by knitting.
After about and hour of playing around with the fleece and dog comb, I had a small pile of fluff. Used the CD drop spindle and spun a yard of brown and a yard of grey and liked how they looked in yarn form. Then went on to something else.
Needle felting! Saw this first years ago on the Carol Duvall Show (why did she have to go off air? I miss you Carol!!) and bought a set of needles, but had no good direction on how to create anything beyond lumpy blobs. That is, until a co-worker brought this book by Laurie Sharp in:
I was so impressed by the step-by step photos and the end product, I went out and got my own copy. Check out her blog as well- funny and especially good to read on a down day. Coincidentally, the night I brought home the book, I downloaded some CraftSanity podcasts and what do you know? There was an interview with the author!
Inspired by the book and wanting to make something from my pile of wool, I made…
A pig. Squeal!
This was a gift for a co-worker who wants a miniature pig one day and it was very well-received.
Here’s the oinker from a different angle…I guess you could say he’s HAMMING IT UP! hyuck hyuck!
Alrighty then. I have now made up for the lack of regular blogging by writing one really long one. You still awake?
All this and for what? To tell you about what I did with some hair shaved off an animal.
You know what though? My inner gnome is content.
Last year, I bought some washed fleece at a fiber festival.
Keep in mind, I know pretty much nothing about spinning. Know even less about how to pick fiber, but knew I needed (not wanted- NEEDED) some and the only criteria I went in with were: affordable, nice color, washed. Sure, there were many vendors with amazing displays of roving in beautiful colors, beckoning seductively… “Loook at ussss….we’re ready to spin! All aligned and perrrrfect!” Oh, believe me, I wanted all of it! Wanted it to be mine- ALLLL MINE!
…but no. I was strong.
Fueled by the desire to teach myself, I knew I needed fleece so I could start as close to the beginning as possible. If I could, I would have just come home with some sheep and started there (one day, one fine day..). I had to skip the getting my own sheep step, decided to also skip the washing step because I have neither a big enough sink nor am I ready yet to deal with sheep dingle berries, and started with 3 humble 1-pound bags of fleece. 2 dark brown and 1 cream. One has caramel brown tips, which I suppose some may see as imperfections, but to me, it’s beautiful. Then again, I’ve always found sweet beauty in the imperfect – the runt of the litter, rust, mutts, vegetables that look like they have noses, gargoyles.
One bag I bought was from the first shearing of the sheep. The woman told me this as I was paying her and she smiled a little sadly and patted the bag like a mom watching their child go to their first day of kindergarten. This is my favorite bag and the one I chose to finally do something with.
For the last year, I looked at what I bought and wondered how to prep it. I have no hand cards and didn’t want to buy a set yet because of the cost. How about dog brushes? smaller, but the same concept, right? Well, I priced them and decided it wasn’t cheap enough. I’d be better off just saving my money until I could just get a real set.
But the inner gnome. It wants to play!
So…I went to the Dollar Store and found a dog comb. Guess what- it worked fine! Not something I’d use for the whole bag unless I wanted Popeye arms, but for small amounts, it was perfect. This also allowed me to witness the fibers as they turned from clumps, into lofty clouds. Very primitive, my skill level, and I’m happy walking this slow and imperfect path. If I can understand where something is coming from, I stand a better chance of knowing how ride with it to new destinations.
So here is what I came up with. “After,” on the left, “Before,” on the right. My $1 dog comb peeking in from the top to say, “Hello!”
Now this will be no surprise to most acquainted with wool, but it was a fun surprise to me- dark brown plus cream does not equal light brown! At least in fiber world.
It makes a nice warm grey. Who knew? Not me! The cream roving is actually from some “mandala wool” from the Tandy Leather Company. Never made a mandala, but it was a good price for a bunch of roving. I originally bought it to experiment with felting, but got distracted by knitting.
After about and hour of playing around with the fleece and dog comb, I had a small pile of fluff. Used the CD drop spindle and spun a yard of brown and a yard of grey and liked how they looked in yarn form. Then went on to something else.
Needle felting! Saw this first years ago on the Carol Duvall Show (why did she have to go off air? I miss you Carol!!) and bought a set of needles, but had no good direction on how to create anything beyond lumpy blobs. That is, until a co-worker brought this book by Laurie Sharp in:
I was so impressed by the step-by step photos and the end product, I went out and got my own copy. Check out her blog as well- funny and especially good to read on a down day. Coincidentally, the night I brought home the book, I downloaded some CraftSanity podcasts and what do you know? There was an interview with the author!
Inspired by the book and wanting to make something from my pile of wool, I made…
A pig. Squeal!
This was a gift for a co-worker who wants a miniature pig one day and it was very well-received.
Here’s the oinker from a different angle…I guess you could say he’s HAMMING IT UP! hyuck hyuck!
Alrighty then. I have now made up for the lack of regular blogging by writing one really long one. You still awake?
All this and for what? To tell you about what I did with some hair shaved off an animal.
You know what though? My inner gnome is content.
Monday, May 4, 2009
What do you get when you dye roving with Kool-Aid in bright, awful colors?
Clown yarn!
I want to learn how to spin yarn. It's something that has always fascinated me, probably because of fairy tales. It's one of those things that calls to my inner gnome.
I'm just starting out and having to stick with the self-teaching route for now and I decided to try it with a homemade CD drop spindle since it's, well- CHEAP. Only had to buy the rubber grommet and dowel. For less than $2 and 15 minutes of my time, I had me a drop spindle! Ugly, yes. Not as "spinny" as a proper drop spindle, I'm sure. Didn't matter, though- I had something to make something with! Woo!
I actually dyed some roving with Kool-Aid in my favorite colors- dark, blood reds- first, but I don't have a photo of it yet. The above colors were more an experiment to see what colors the flavors would make and then to see how bright colors would look when mixed up (clowny). It goes well with my FAT-skinny-FAT-skinny-LuMpY-skinny-FAT-LuMpY yarn that I've been producing while getting used to this whole spinning thing. It's very addicting! I'm thinking this fall at the fiber festival, I may end up treating myself to a proper drop spindle. I love how they look clustered in jars and pots. The kind of thing Mrs. Weasley would have, I'm sure. Jars of beautiful wooden spindles.
Going with the theme of cheap and ugly, I also have plans to make out of all the PVC pipes I've had for the last 9 years: a swift and an inkle loom (saw it here and here). Trying to figure out if I can make my own ball winder with stuff I already have...saw one made of Legos, but I gave all mine to my nephews. After using the ball winder at my LYS, I was hooked! Although I love the look of a hand-wound center-pull ball, it takes a long time (time that could be spent knitting!) and they don't stack nicely.
Oh- and let's not forget the bead spinner made out of a plastic take-out container and a chopstick. Nowhere near as beautiful as the $40 wood one I saw, but worked fine.
If Fat Albert and his friends did crafts, they'd have the above.
It's late. I'm sleepy. I'll be back later to add links to some of the above for any of you who may want or need to go the Fat Albert route of making crafting equipment.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
It's been awhile. Been busy making stuff and reading about making stuff.
This is one of the charms I sent off for the Cloth, Paper,Scissors magazine charm swap. Almost didn't make the deadline even though I knew about the swap at least 4 weeks before the due date!
Keeping myself on task has been a challenge. You'd think since I enjoy making stuff so much, there wouldn't be any problem about sitting down and just doing it, but no. The big problem is how easily I get distracted while working on something. Usually happens when I need to find a tool or materials. While looking for my hammer, I suddenly found myself on the floor, looking through a book on needle felting. While outside spraying a coat of varnish on some charms, I end up spending an hour puttering around with the plants. It's very enjoyable, but the end result is a whole bunch of half-finished stuff. This is where having projects with deadlines comes in.
In the last month, I've completed making the journal for the round robin swap (the phoenix book below), completed my 4 pages in the journal I got from the person before me on the round robin, and submitted 3 charms for the charm swap. It became a little stressful at the end of each project because up until I finished, I spent a lot of time following some crafting wil-o-wisp into the deep forest. The feeling of pride of actually finishing a project was fantastic, though! Now that creativity is back in full force, my next exercise will be to learn to be disciplined in time management. Ai-ya!
Even this blog., the frequency of my posts isn't anywhere near what intended. No worries, though. It's still in it's infancy. So many ideas...so little concentration.
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