Various and Sundry Saturday

I have to admit that this week has been a challenge and I am pretty exhausted. I felt this way on Wednesday and just had to power through the rest of the week. It was tough! Boys are gone and I am supposed to go to a party. I am tempted to blow it off, but I have gotten a lot of emails asking me if I will be there. I also really like the people who are giving it. We’ll see.

I’d like to get some sewing done as my brain is starting to wonder what that is. I feel like it has been an eternity since I have been at the machine.

I went to the Timberlake Quilters Guild Blog, which is called Fiber Whimsy and saw some lovely photos from their string piecing workshop. One of the photos was a Spiderweb! They seem to be popping up all over. I guess this is message to get back to mine. I think it is one of the projects I want to work on in 2010. Stay tuned to see. Love the red background on the one pictured in the photo.

Tagging this Blog

As a librarian, you’d think I would have all the answers about tagging, but I don’t. I have been thinking about whether or not I should add a tag for the name of each project so you (and I!) can click on the name of a project and see all the posts about that project. I am not sure I could back and tag all the old posts unless I was laid up in bed for a period of time, but I could do it going forward. Let me know if you think that would help you. I would also like to k now what you do in your blog, if you have one.

I helped my mom download iTunes and subscribe to some podcasts. We listened to a little of the Cast-on podcast and she loved it. I can’t wait to hear whether the whole premise works for her or not. She has really gotten into Cat Bordhi, a knitter, lately so I downloaded some interviews to which she could listen as well.

Laura Wasilowski class "Flower Garden"
Laura Wasilowski class "Flower Garden"

Laura Wasilowski left a comment encouraging me to finish the piece that I started in her class. I took a look at it again and realized that the handstitching makes the piece look really spiky and unfriendly. I think I need to add some petals to the flowers and see if that makes it look more friendly.

You can see a watercolor painting that usually hangs in my dining room. I love this painting. It makes me feel calm. I just generally love beach and water scenes. That thought makes me wonder if that is why I like turquoise so much? After the painting project, the art is not back up yet. We may rearrange the art. However, as I seem to never be home, we haven’t discussed it yet.

Elizabeth of Oh, Fransson! blog has a laptop sleeve tutorial on Sew, Mama Sew! While I am not fond of beige, I do like the swirly motifs on the fabric. This would make a nice gift. Yes, I am thinking ahead! I would probably add a strap or a handle, however. I have to admit that I find it hard to navigate that site, but sometimes the effort pays off and here is a list of a year’s worth of Elizabeth’s projects just for you.

Oregon Fabric
Oregon Fabric

My sister received Lakers v. Trailblazer tickets for Christmas from her boyfriend. Our dad lives near Portland, so I think they went together. While she was there she took the opportunity to raid and scan our childhood photos. In the course of that project she went to a craft warehouse to get supplies. While she was there, she found some fabric that she said was for me. YAY! I haven’t received it yet, but presume I will soon.

She has sent me some scans of my 5 year old self, which are not new, but still entertaining.

I saw a post on Twitter to a Detroit artist who is doing interesting things with blue. Steven Magsig has a blog called Postcards from Detroit where he posts paintings of little areas of the city and buildings in the city

I seem to remember mentioning that I spent an hour and half last Saturday talking to the CQFAers about developing a creative habit. I got lots of good feedback. Here are some tips from my talk:

  • Use what you have at hand
  • Use materials you feel comfortable using
  • Tools (KISS)
    • paper
    • pen
  • Start small
  • Acknowledge your distractions
  • Be process oriented not goal oriented. The goal will be achieved if you engage in the process
  • Develop a daily practice that works for you
  • Surround yourself with inspiration

I am thinking about something bigger with more detail on this subject, so am just giving you an overview.

Have an inspirational and creative weekend!!!!