artsy-crafty babe

daily fabric play challenge

All last week I was looking forward to Saturday because I had nothing planned.  No baseball, no soccer, no dance, no kid activities whatsoever.  There was no excuse to keep me from making something.  Anything.

I tried, but it wasn’t happening.  I pulled out my big basket of scraps, looked at them for a bit, then put them away and took a nap.  I never pulled them out again.

I went to bed Saturday night feeling frustrated that I didn’t use my time how I wanted.

Sunday was much of the same, but it was the chores that I didn’t do on Saturday that got in the way.

All this got me thinking about priority and how I really haven’t made making much of a priority these last few years.  Sure, I still make stuff, but only when I’m able to squeeze it in.  This arrangement has worked for a while, but I’m ready to make my creativity a priority.  A totally selfish creative indulgent priority.

On Labor Day I had a few minutes to play with fabric which resulted in some textile oysters.  That was so much fun!  This is the kind of making I miss.  Playing.  No agenda other than to see what happens.

For the next 30 days I am committing to playing with fabric everyday for at least 15 minutes.  I hope it ends up being longer than 15 minutes, but I know that on busy days 15 minutes is realistic.  Every day, y’all!

I’m challenging myself to get my creative juices flowing, and just PLAY.  My plan is to use my basket of scraps.  Some days I may mindlessly sew pieces together, or I may have a specific end result in mind.  It doesn’t really matter.  The point is to just DO IT.

I’m excited to see where this leads.  I’ll be sharing what I make every day on Instagram (#dailyfabricplay) with a weekly(ish) recap here on the blog.  

Okay, here I go!!

(and I'm going to pretend like it hasn't been 8 months since I last posted here ;-))

hey there!

Happy 2015!?!  Yeah, I'm a little late. I have no excuse, other than living.

I have no project's to share.  

I can't even recall that last time I touched a sewing machine or needle and thread.  

There's been lots of cooking (I could do a whole post+ about how I've changed my eating and feel fantastic!), some knitting and bits of doodling. 

I'm happy to report that after a long drought, I'm feeling creative again, all thanks to doodling. I started the new year with a new sketchbook and a desire to experiment with watercolors. I tried, but I wasn't feeling it.  Then I rediscovered my Scribble Diary.  I LOVE my Scribble Diary!  I'm not sure if I ever blogged about it, but I got it 3 years ago...and it's BRILLIANT.  There's no blank page syndrome. There are guidelines, which I like... and it's journaling!

I use it by randomly opening a page, then filling it out. Sometimes the prompts work for me, sometimes not.  If they don't, I simply scratch it out :-)  Sometimes I draw flowers or hearts in the empty spaces.  Whatever.  It's fun!!

And then I color it.  More fun!!  I treated myself to "nice"colored pencils (not the cheapest set in the store, but certainly not the top of the line), quality does make a difference!    My goal is to fill the entire journal by the end of the year.  I think I can do that.

Since turning on my scribble faucet, I am feeling the flow.  More than once I've felt the urge to pull out some scraps to start sewing.  I feel a quilt coming on.

The lesson I've learned from this is sometimes you've just got to do it - make that first step...you never know where it will take you!

I'm hoping that 2015 is filled with LOTS of making and doing ;-)

 

LA love

LA as in Louisiana, of course.

Keeping with the same theme as last time (gosh, however long ago THAT was), another one is finished. Louisiana love. Y'all, I'm stuck on these mini quilts! Right now, they're just the right speed for me.

This one isn't as I originally envisioned, but that is my fault. I was too impatient to do it how I wanted, so I compromised. The good news in this is that the original idea may come to fruition eventually. I'm pretty sure it will, actually.

It started without a plan, just an idea I had to get out. Once it took off, I knew exactly its' purpose. It was to be a gift for a dear friend moving home from out of state. Perfect. (it hasn't been gifted yet, so cross your fingers that she likes it)

I thought of her often as I was making it, thinking good thoughts and offering good wishes.

I think the stitched parish lines are my favorite.

If I were to keep it, I'd probably do something like this.

Love.

P.S.

It feels good to be here again!

Last month (okay, 2 months ago now!) I wrote about slow sewing and why all this crazy hand sewing fits in my life for Sew Mama Sew. Check it out if you’re interested ;-)

inspired by Lulie

I’m sure you’ve all see the work of Lulie Wallace. I love her style! The color, pattern, whimsy – I love everything about it. Last year for my birthday I treated myself to one of her prints. It took me about a year to find a home for it, but now it resides on my bedroom wall surrounded by lots of other fun prints I’ve collected over time. (that empty frame is will be filled eventually...I'm not too speedy at decorating!)

When I look at my wall, it’s that print that always catches my eye.

While in my mini quilt phase (which is still going strong), the idea popped into my head to make a Lulie Wallace inspired mini quilt.  I looked at several pieces of her work and chose elements that I could interpret into a quilt.  It was meant to be my summer long project, but I got so caught up in it that I finished it in a few weeks.  Well, almost finished – I think it sat longer waiting for binding than it took to do all the appliqué and quilting.

This was one of those projects that just flowed.  Love that.

The background was machine pieced then the flower arrangement was needle turn appliquéd.  Next was the fun part – the quilting!  Hand quilting is becoming my favorite type of hand work.

I’m not done exploring this medium. There are so many ideas I’m eager to get out of my brain that I wish I could finish them in an instant, but then that’s not really the point, is it? I don’t think I’d like them nearly as much if I were to machine quilt them (not that there’s anything wrong with that). Weird. I've always been a process girl, and this process makes me very content.

Right now, sewing by hand feels right, so that’s where I’ll be ;-)

 

another birthday, father's day, bubble shooters, and a hammock swing

We're in full on summer mode around here.  The kids have been out of school since the end of May, so we're deep in it. Personally, I'm enjoying the freedom - no baseball, no soccer, no dance!!!  Well, Lily has dance team practice, but that's during the day, so it doesn't interfere with our afternoons.

Despite our new found freedom, last weekend was busy! We had a 10th birthday and Father's Day. Whew!!! We celebrated both at home, which is fine by me.

When we're not celebrating, we're mostly just hanging out.

Bubbles are always a favorite, especially when they're battery powered.

And a special surprise arrived today - a hammock swing!!  I only ordered one, to make sure that we like it, which we do, so I'll be ordering another ASAP.

Backyard living...love.

pinwheel mini

Last fall I stumbled across a beautiful old handmade quilt at an antiques store.  I wanted to bring it home, but it wasn’t in my budget.  I did think to snap a quick photo. That quilt never left my mind.

Since then I’ve done some quick searches to try to figure out the pattern, but I never really found anything. Honestly, I didn’t look all that hard.  Do you know what it is?  I assume it is some sort of pinwheel variation.  I found something similar, but it wasn’t quite the same.

One day it dawned on me to reproduce it.  So I did, in mini version.  Have I mentioned I’m obsessed with mini quilts at the moment?

I didn’t hand piece my blocks like the original, but I did hand sew the rest.  The hand quilting is my favorite part. This is why I’m in love with mini quilts. Hand quilting a mini - yes. A full size quilt, uh, I’m not quite on board with that just yet, but I’ve jumped into crazier waters ;-)

 

13

Over Memorial Day weekend the oldest turned 13. We’re officially in the teenage years! It doesn’t seem possible to have been a parent long enough to have a teen, but there it is.  

She told me not to get too mushy because she didn’t want to cry, so I won’t. But I would like to say that her Dad and I couldn’t be more proud of her. We are beyond blessed to be her parents. She amazes us every day with her accomplishments.  

Achievements aside, we are more proud of the person she is turning out to be. When someone recently commented to me about how they could see the love she has for her younger siblings in how she looks after them, I thought my heart would burst out of my chest!  She’s that kind of girl. Funny, smart, caring, beautiful - she’s got it all.

Happy Birthday Lily! We love you more than you'll ever know!!

yes, my kids are nuts!! please excuse the heaping dose of cheese in the above photos ;-)

 

39

Today is my birthday. 39. The last year of my 30’s. It’s kind of exciting. I see this as a year to tie up loose ends before moving on to the next chapter. Honestly, I feel as though each year of my life gets better as I grow and learn more about who I am and what is truly important to me. I’m right where I need to be and I couldn’t be more blessed!

In old school blogger style I came up with a birthday list.  A list of 39 things I’d like to focus on in the upcoming year.  Some are silly, some are vague, but they’re all things I’d like to keep in mind and maybe do. If I accomplish half of them I’ll call it a success!!!

1. make date night with Matt a priority, even when i feel too tired to leave the house

2. spend more one on one time with each of my children

3. take a cooking class with Matt (fun for me, beneficial for him!!)

4. attend an art retreat

5. complete whole 30 

6. lose 20 lbs

7. decide on a paint color for my house and paint it!  (boring, but it's been 10 yrs!!)

8. finish pulling sheets from my massive magazine collection and organize them

9. paint my fingernails a fun color (I NEVER paint my fingernails.  Toenails, yes, fingernails, no)

10. get chickens (I've been campaigning for this for years - maybe this will be the year I'll get my wish!)

11. stick to a budget

12. 30 days with Jillian (I've started a few times, never stayed with it) 

13. commit more time to prayer

14. do some type of volunteer work as a family

15. smile often :-)

16. turn my neglected quilt tops into actual quilts

17. make and give unexpected gifts

18. tell the important people in my life how much they mean to me

19. pay it forward at least once a month

20. give myself time to play (which may mean letting the laundry & the dishes sit - hard for me!)

21. keep up my garden year round (it's usually a mess of weeds by august)

22. get out of my comfort zone

23. share more meals with friends

24. make art with my kids

25. dance (see #22)

26. purge my house of stuff

27. write in my gratitude journal more often

28. fall in love with photography again

29. pay someone a compliment every day

30. learn to drink my coffee without sugar - I've done it with tea, time to take it up a notch!

31. run another half marathon (a huge highlight of 38)

32. read

33. compost

34. stop beating myself up when I can't do everything

35. treat myself to a pedicure more often than once a year

36. learn a new craft

37. take more naps

38. complain less

39. laugh more

There you have it. Happy 39 to me ;-)

let's catch up!

Y’all, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel!! Soccer is over! Dance is over! (Baseball is not over, but not too far from the end)  Shoot, school is almost over!! That means that some calmness is on the horizon ;-) I may actually get the chance to make something. Yay!! Well, I guess I actually have been making all along, but it feels like I have nothing to show for it.

That bag pattern I mentioned in a post way back when is still in progress (did I ever mention it?). I know, it takes me forever. It’s mostly written, but I’m still fine tuning the wording and adding in little bits that were left out. It’s been so long since I made one that I’ll have to make a few more to remember how it’s supposed to go together. I’m sure I’ll be calling for pattern testers soon.

My mini-quilt project is still happening. Goodness, how I LOVE to hand quilt. I got them both mostly done then decided that there wasn’t enough quilting, so I went back and started quilting the heck out of them. Oh my, I love it! One is completely done. Now i’ve decided that I need to make a 3rd one. Who knows, there may even be a fourth. I do know that they will be displayed when I’m done.

I don’t think I’ve mentioned that I’ve been participating in the handmade birthday club. I’ve had those projects going on, but I think those deserve a whole post of their own. Fun stuff! We’re supposed to have our projects out the door by the 15th of each month, and so far I haven’t met that deadline. Late every month!! At least I get a break this month being that it’s MY birthday month. I can’t wait to share the goodies that arrive in the mail ;-)

Okay, now that you’re sort of caught up, I’ll proceed with real posts on a regular basis, ok? Have a great week!!

P.S. It’s been so long, I think I forgot how to use my camera!!

Happy 8th May Day Birthday

If there's any reason to break my blog silence, there's none better than to wish my May Day Baby a Happy Birthday. Today is Ava's 8th birthday - my child who has had her entire life documented on this blog.  

8 YEARS!!!  How does that happen???

Dear Sweet Ava,

Happy Birthday! You're 8 years old today!

From the moment you were born I knew that there was something special about you. When personality was being passed out I think you got a double helping - I mean that in a good way ;-) You are FULL of hugs and kind words to everybody. It makes my heart happy when people tell me how much they love you because you're so darned sweet to them. You are special, indeed.

I've loved watching you become a big sister these last few years. Ceci absolutely adores you and wants to be just like you! You're also a pretty good little sister, too (even when you call Alex a butt). You seem to be following in your big sister's footsteps with your love of soccer and dance. I know you were sad that your soccer season just ended, but fall will be here before you know it and it will start all over again. I look forward to seeing you perform this weekend at your dance recital. I'm sure you'll do great!!

Since we'll be at your dress rehearsal today on your actual birthday I declare it an Ava Birthday weekend. Your birthday combined with your First Holy Communion makes it extra special. Yes, such a busy, special weekend, but if anybody could handle it, it's you!! I know that you'll eat up all the special attention!

Keep on shining your light, Ava, the world is a better place with you in it. And I'm so lucky to be your Mama!!

I love you,

Mom