A few weeks ago I posted a sneak peak from my day – a photo shoot I participated in with Sarah & Andrea of Beyond the Flavor with their post yesterday on pickling carrots as the result. The shoot itself was good practice for all the demonstrations I have lined up for myself this spring & summer, while writing the text gave me a chance to articulate everything I know about the process and gather my thoughts for what I want to talk about when doing said demonstrations. Continue reading
Category: creativity
Getting Crafty.
Somewhere between my front porch and the vegetable garden where I re-potted several planters yesterday (keeping a dirty job around the dirt dontcha know) a chain from one of the hanging baskets on the front porch deteriorated. Continue reading
An Evening of Culture.
A few weeks ago, my friend Susan called and asked if I would help her put together an evening for her culture club. She explained that the culture club sprung out of her book club – at some point, they realized that they really weren’t reading or discussing the books, but they still enjoyed getting together and doing things. And thus, their culture club began.
Weekend Project No. 2
I made a skirt.
I made a skirt from a pattern I drafted myself.
I made a skirt from a pattern that I drafted myself that was not an elastic waist.
I made a skirt from a pattern I drafted myself with a zipper(!!).
With sweet orange lace at the hem, which picks up the hint of orange in the leopard print fabric.
I know from experience that heavier fabrics do better with proper enclosures versus elastic waists. I tend to shy away from zippers, although I have gotten decent at putting them into clothing. I realized that until this weekend, I had never used the zipper foot or the button hole function of my 3 year old machine. I am definitely a lazy sewer. Both are incredibly easy to work with – you can actually lock the proper buttonhole size in, which is a function I have never had in any of my old Singer sewing machines. I cannot tell you how much easier this makes the process.
I’ve made my own skirt patterns before, using elastic at the waist, which means the only thing that needs to be precise is the length of your elastic. I read a few tutorials about drafting my own A-line skirt pattern, both online as well as in some of the sewing & clothing design books I have on my shelves. It’s a fairly easy process, one that if anyone would like me to share, I will. Otherwise, I will spare you the details and just let you admire my cleverness. I added a little too much ease into the waist and had to take it in. It is still just a wee bit too big in the waist, but that’s fixable. And bigger is always better than too small. I think my next skirt (because there is a small pile of fabric laying out on top of my ironing board right now, with several skirts planned because did I mention I’m sick of my wardrobe and have been sick of it since last October? Well I am). I’m going to try using some darts to see if that gives me a little bit better shaping in the waistline, which I’m going to make smaller.
While I’m at it, I think I finally gathered up the courage to take this in:
Yes, I made that too, a number of years ago. And it’s now far too big. This pattern actually served as a model for the new skirt. I need to take it a few inches, but then it should be wearable again. Which is good, because it’s awfully cute.
See? Cuteness.
Weekend Project No. 1
Friday afternoon I broke into my fabric stash – notably the big trunk at the bottom of the pile that is chock full of winter fabrics – the wools, the fleeces, the corduroys. (I not inclined to show you the pile either, as it’s not really a nice, neat pile, more like an corner that is piled and crammed and overflowing with ‘supplies’ for all my crafty endeavors that could be mistaken for a hoarding house.) The shot I posted Friday is really not even a drop in the bucket – that was just what was speaking to me that day as far as wardrobe makeovers go.
This purple plaid has been kicking around in the stash for some time. I think I got it at either an old SPCA rummage sale or Focus Flea Market (both of which are no longer to my great sadness. More than half my house and wardrobe came from those two places over the years). I’ve never seen anything like it. I think it’s a wool fabric. It’s woven and two layers – the plaid on one side and a solid purple on the other. It’s a funky size too – a 35″ x 37″ square. For years I’ve wanted to do something with it that would show off both sides, but couldn’t come up with a satisfactory answer. Until Friday. I was playing around it, bemoaning to Edie that it just wasn’t big enough for anything fun, that I didn’t particularly want to put a seam in it, but maybe that was just what I needed to do when it hit me.
I cut a 6″ strip, hemmed the raw edges, added a very large button hole and voila:
A fabric cowl. Instant gratification.
And it’s reversible. I pull one end through the button hole on the other end and it’s attached. I’m utterly amazed at my brilliance. Needless to say, I’m absolutely loving this.
Something New.
I’m sick of my winter clothes, so I thought I’d make myself something new. And I’m trying out this blogger app on my new iPod touch. All sorts of new things.
Found.
Saturday afternoon as I was standing in my friend Rieman’s kitchen, I looked out and realized there was a great photo opp sitting there.
Despite the fact that it was snowing and cold, there was something beautiful about the day. I actually woke up the other night at 2 am mourning my MIA creativity and wondered how was I going to go about getting it back. For someone who’s goal in life to is to live creativity, this was troubling.
I understand these things have an ebb & flow, but the last few weeks have completely and totally sucked it out of me.
I was really hoping that after the holidays, we’d get into some sort of groove again. You see, since before Halloween, someone in this house has been sick. That’s also about the last time Edie had a full week of school.
Holidays, sick days, snow days have all had a turn as to being the reason why she’s home from school. This past week, she had a holiday, was ill with strep throat, had a snow day and then, when she finally went to school on Friday, was dismissed early.
Part of why I do what I do – attempt to live life creatively, free lancing my way through life, juggling multiple projects, is so that I have the freedom to take off when she is sick. Or on school holiday. Or has a snow day.
I just didn’t think they’d all occur the same week.
Over the last 10 days, thanks to all of it, she’s had exactly one half day of school.
She’s alternated between velcrobaby moments, where she wanted me nearby, holding her and moments where it would absolutely kill her to be nice to me, thank you very much. At 11, she is starting to get very close to those teen years. I remembered today that she started practicing her terrible two’s the day after her first birthday and it wasn’t the terrible two’s, they were just a warm up for the truly terrible three, which was promptly followed by four, which starts with F for a reason. If it’s true that the toddler years are a glimpse into what the teen years hold, then we are screwed.
And if she started practicing being two the day after her first birthday, then it would make sense she’s doing the exact same thing this time around. After all, she’s been 11 for a week now. Time to get cracking on that teen angst.
All of this regrouping and last minute changes mean that I have to had to regroup every week for months. And this last week, this week of no school, well, it’s about done me in. I’ve had some great ideas of projects I have been wanting to pursue, that keep getting pushed to the back burner because life keeps popping up. And popping up. And popping up some more.
On one hand, I’m grateful that I have the flexibility to scrap everything at the last minute. On the other hand, scrapping everything at the last minute for months on end has had a disastrous effect on my creativity, productivity and inspiration. Among other things.
So feeling inspired yesterday to wander about the farm and take some shots?
It felt good to get those creative juices again, knowing they were there. It felt good to be able to work on something without being interrupted, without having to stop and fix anyone a snack or water bottle or dinner. It was nice not having to ask anyone to please keep it down, please can you not see I’m working or have anyone (everyone) sit in the same room as me and talk at me as I attempt to get something done.
The camera I have is a point and shoot- and while I’ve gotten quite good at manipulating it to take some great shots from time to time, it’s a point and shoot. It’s not capable of doing some of the things I want it to do, that I know a nicer camera would do. It doesn’t do well with low light at all.
But the black and white setting is quite forgiving. Especially on a grey, snowy January day.
When I happened to find my creativity hidden amongst skulls on a picnic table in the snow.
Ant Music.
It has recently come to my attention that I am long past due for some sort of contact-style card, a business card if you will. Actually, I lie when I say it has recently come to my attention. I’ve known for some time I need a card of some sort.
I will spare you the long version of how I have put this off because what I really want to talk about is how I have spent the last 3 days, farting around on my computer, attempting to design this sucker myself. I have this image in my head of what it needs to look like. Blame that design background, the one I worked my way through college for, the one that I thoroughly enjoyed until I realized it wanted the same large chunk of time as that my Edie girl demanded. The one that still pops up in small ways, like, envisioning this new card of mine. That one. Throw in my ability to bluff my way out of many a situation where I really can appear to know what I’m talking about, when the reality is, I have no clue. My father used to always say, if you can’t dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with bullshit. I live by that code. Well, that and don’t ever let anyone tell me I can’t do something because I’m a girl. Oh, and don’t throw like a girl. Which took me probably 35 years and watching my own daughter do it to understand what he meant with that last one.
In talking with various marketing and graphic folks, I heard over and over that I could design this myself. I bought into my own hype. I allowed myself to be baffled by my own bullshit. Hell, my own husband couldn’t quite understand that I had this idea in my head and I was trying my best to not just get it out onto the computer screen, I was trying to figure out HOW to make it happen on my computer screen.
It seems my photoshop skills are not quite what everyone else seems to think they are. I’m good at many things, but not at photoshop.
The whole card design involves the image of a mason jar. As I just so happen to have some lying around, I thought I could take a photo of one, photoshop it and turn it into what I envisioned. I took a shot and after two days of playing with it, was able to get it somewhere near where I wanted it, although in no way shape or form could I tell you how I got it that way. But then I realized the tiniest detail was off and since I have that design background, I realized I needed to take some more photos and start over. And then I was worried that it was going to take me another two days to get it where the last one was, the one with a line that was slightly off that probably no one but me would notice, the one that I had no freaking clue how I got it to look like it ultimately did, but it would keep me up at night knowing I had put my name on something that was slightly off. Bad design at my own hands combined with incompetence. These are the things that I lose sleep over.
So I snapped this shot today. Uploaded it. As I opened it up in photoshop, Adam Ant’s Ant Music just so happened to play on the station I was streaming.
You might not know this about me, but I freaking LOVE Adam Ant. I’m a total child of the 80’s and Adam Ant is one of the most unappreciated artists of that era. Ant Music should have been an anthem. It’s one of my anthems.
So, I’m sitting there, opening this photo, singing along to Ant Music, which was followed by one of my favorite B-52’s songs, Legal Tender. By the time they were done, I was done. The image I had in my head was on my computer screen. Never underestimate the power of good tunes to get the job done. I don’t know if I actually learned something over the last 3 days or it was the music. Talk about singing a happy little working song. Whatever it was, it happened.
I suppose after all that, I should show you the image. But on it’s own, it’s rather blah. So you’re not going to see it yet. I’ve now fallen into the font rabbit hole, whereby I spend way too much time playing with fonts, choosing just the right one. It’s far less frustrating than where I just was, dealing with the realization that I don’t have the skills everyone thinks I have, which it turns out, I just might have actually. Maybe I should believe the hype. No, the font rabbit hole is far more comforting on many levels, mostly in that I know I know what I’m doing there. The bigger debate that I’ve been avoiding for way too long is now in front of me – and that is, exactly what to say about myself other than my name and contact information. I do so many things, I could cover a business card with words. How to narrow it down to make it be the sleek thing I imagine? And in that narrowing, how to make it eloquent? Because while “Goddess of the Universe” sums it up, it might come across as just a slightly bit pretentious and I’ve heard I should tailor it to what I actually do. Which is sort of everything, although I keep being told I should focus. But with opportunities popping up in every avenue, it doesn’t make sense to focus like all the advice I’ve given tells me. The universe says otherwise and ultimately, it’s the universe I listen to.
It was so much easier two days ago when I could just blame it all on the fact that I couldn’t figure out how to do what I wanted to do on the stupid computer.
Brunch (not entirely) fail.
You might not realize this, but in addition to pickling everything in sight, I’m also a big fan of turning things in fritters – you know, shred it, add flour, baking powder, seasonings, egg & milk and fry it up in a nice little patty presentation.
Latkes are essentially fritters. Squash are excellent fritters and we eat corn fritters weekly during the summer, when I buy corn on the cob by the gallon. You can make a meal of corn fritters, adding some cheese and bacon bits to them….
I’ve been experimenting with spaghetti squash lately. I like it, but serving it in lieu of pasta with some sauce, especially a red one which is supposed to be healthier than say, a cream sauce, gets kinda old kinda quick to me. (That may be my next experiment with it now that I think of it – a spaghetti squash alfredo dish, because I like to mix my healthy with my not so healthy, everything in moderation you know, including moderation.) I made a wonderful little casserole with spaghetti squash a few weeks ago, combining it with ricotta and spinach that went over well. I had a squash in the fridge I needed to use up, so I threw it in the oven Saturday evening. As it cooked, I thought how it might be very well suited for fritters – after all, it’s naturally shredded. I mean, hello, it’s just asking to be frittered, yes?
For various reasons, the spaghetti squash fritters got bumped to brunch Sunday morning. I added about half a finely diced onion, a few minced garlic cloves, finely chopped parsley, salt, pepper, baking powder, flour, beaten eggs and milk.
I wish I had photos of lovely golden brown fritters to show you, but for the most part, they turned out looking exactly like that batter there. No matter how much flour I added to absorb the liquid, the batter remained exactly that liquidy until cooked. Honestly, all that liquid did in the frying pan was turn solid. They were edible – I think the spices is what made that so – but they didn’t look pretty. I may have added one too many eggs. I may have added too much milk. I may have not fried them in enough oil. It may have been A, B, C or D: All of the above. At any rate, my grand inspiration to share a delightful new way to enjoy spaghetti squash was most certainly not realized. Sigh.
That’s the thing with experimenting in the kitchen – even the best cooks have failures. Sometimes that’s just the way the cookie crumbles. Or the fritter fries….
Welcome gifts that are easy peasy. Really.
Despite the fact that we are moving into the middle school years, we have plenty of friends who are still just starting this little ride we call parenthood. I like to give handmade gifts, no matter the occasion. With the number of babies we know coming into the world lately, I haven’t had time to sew or knit something special for each babe, but I wanted something with a handmade touch. Here’s my latest inspiration – freezer paper prints on onesies.
Gender symbols for a set of twins.
His first facial hair.
Freezer paper stencils are quick and easy to do. You can find Freezer Paper at the grocery store. One side is coated in plastic – so if you put an image on the non-plastic side (either draw it freehand or an image from your computer – you’ll need cut the paper to fit in your printer), cut that image out, iron it plastic side down on your fabric and it will becomes a great stencil! I use either fabric paint or acrylic paints, whatever I can find that won’t wash out. I let the image sit for 24 hours, remove the paper, then iron over the paint to set it. Wash it and you are set to go.
We know of at least 5 more babies set to arrive in the coming weeks, including another set of twins to our across the street neighbors, so there will be more where these came from!
Chicken Wire & Paper Flowers 