Skip to main content

Posts

Fountains

I've often heard creative people talk about "the well" as being the source of their creativity. The well overflowing, the well running dry, refilling the well, etc. I went along with this because I had never met another writer until after I got into the industry. I thought they knew more than me, and creativity does strike me as flowing like water. Yet all this time the well analogy has never really suited my own creativity. I'm not someone who hides their creativity; I've made it part of my daily life. I write every day, and when I'm not writing, I'm usually thinking about writing. That happens even when I'm quilting, crocheting, doing housework or even riding in the car. It's the only part of my life that never bores, hurts or disappoints me. I've always had a fascination with fountains, and only recently have I realized why: for me creativity is more like them. What I do is a flow that comes from inside me, streams up, b...
Recent posts

Thrifting & Patchwork

Last week while thrifting in Lady Lake I was able to pick up this brand new roll of knit fabric for $3.18. That's $1.59 per yard, which is quite a bargain. I'm going to use it to clone a tunic I love that is sadly falling to pieces. I removed all the cobbled patchwork from my February tote, and tried one more time to accomplish what I envisioned with blind stitching. That worked a little better, but I still didn't care for how it looked with my less than impressive stitching, so I tore out that attempt, too. It happens, even to a non-perfectionist like me. My third attempt using the classic crazy quilting stitch and flip method worked so much better than the first two I'm sticking with that. I also found some striped floral pieces in the scraps, which are probably pieces from some vintage napkins or a tablecloth. If I can cobble these together and use them for the lining I think I will.

Not Working

I've been slowly stitching on my February tote, which is not turning out like I envisioned. The idea I had was to make use of these shabby vintage fabric scraps and do some raw-edged crazy patchwork, ala Japanese boro. My version just looks messy, probably because I'm using all patches and no solid fabric underneath. I'm also having a lot of trouble hand stitching the fabric down. Anyway, I'm going to think about it today and maybe start over tonight.

A Wish

Happy Valentine's Day! Image credit: Jess Bailey from Pixabay

Secrets of a Centenarian

Everyone lately (including my nephew) has been telling me and my guy how young we are for our ages. We're committed to staying active, eating healthy and going on little adventures and having fun whenever possible, but being 76 and 64 we're obviously not young anymore. We've seen friends and family pass away at ages younger than we are because they gave up, became sedentary and refused to accept the realiy of ageing. That's not us. At 64 I still have a full-time job, and although he's retired he works as a handyman around our neighborhood. He loves to talk to people every day. Although it's more difficult for me to communicate because of my hearing impairment, I am still active on social media with my blogs and over on Mastodon, and through them I can talk to people all over the world. We don't really think of ourselves as seniors, either. In most aspects age really is a state of mind. Here's an amazing video by a 100 year-old woman who t...

Shabby Chic

After destroying the big canvas tote I'd originally selected for the February installment of my calendar project, I went with a small off white canvas tote, which was actually better since this is a short month. As usual I deconstructed the tote, ironed it and basted some scrap batting to the front of it. I don't know if this will work out like I see it in my head, but I'm stitching layers of vintage reclaimed fabric to the tote. I'm also leaving raw edges because I want a shabby look. Once I have everything stitched down I will embroider on top of the layers, and (if I have time) perhaps bead it a little.

At First Sight

I like to think that I don't fall in love easily, but when it comes to crochet and quilting actually I do. Sometimes despite my best intentions it happens at first sight. That's why I'm careful not to get on Pinterest or Instagram and start envy-scrolling through all the crochet and quilt pics. I do love seeing what others make, but I also can and will fall in love with something and then become obsessed with making my own version. It's the same way I can get distracted by story ideas, and why I have to jot down the bones and file them away. If I didn't I'd never get anything done. For some reason pattern books are safe for me. I can see a gorgeous project like this crochet moorish mosaic throw and love it without having to go and pull yarn and start working on one right away. Maybe it's because I own the pattern and I know I can get to it any time. There are still some quilts I would like to make that I fell in love with at first sight, like ...