Dreamland

My turn: something I'm proud of.

Last Wednesday's comment question was "What are you proud of?" and today I'm going to take my turn to answer.  (And yes, I meant to do this on Wednesday this week.)

I'm proud of my daughter for accepting her celiac diagnosis with incredible grace and strength.

I'm proud of myself every time I say it out loud and don't burst into tears.

I'm proud to be married to a French cookin' fiend.

I'm proud that my kids are best friends, there for each other through thick and thin.

I'm proud of the days I manage to remember that it could be worse, that most of the things I worried about didn't come true in the end (like lactose intolerance...bring on the cheese!  And the ice cream!  And the buttered popcorn!).

I'm proud that I have a knowledgeable family to help us and caring in-laws to support us.

I'm proud of my grandma, who had to eat gluten free in the 1970's when there was literally nothing out there for her.  (And I'm sorry if I ever wrinkled my nose at those corn pancakes she used to love.)

My new baking cupboard -- I've been using Annalise Roberts' Classical Blend for my gf baking the last few years (and which I store in the fridge), but I wanted to try some other brands too.  The Jules worked great for flour tortillas!  And I'm really looking forward to trying Domata, made locally.

15 Ways to Stay Creative (and a giveaway).

Now that I've finished my A to Z journal (or at least made it all the way to Z), I've compiled the creative habits I shared throughout the project into one list. 

1.  Let your ideas percolate.  Make lists, write notes, sketch, ponder.

2.  Build a bridge:  whenever you're working on a project, leave it in a place that makes it easy to start the next time.

3.  Find your balance:  recognize when you're in a rut (or when you're staying true to yourself in a groove).  I also seek the balance between planning and serendipity.

4.  Embrace (or at least accept) imperfection. 

5.  Remember your goal:  think big picture.

6.  Remember your intention:  think little picture.

7.  Exhaust an idea:  draw a pear every day for a month; create something green every day; use one word in your art over & over.

8.  Find a mentor.

9.  Do something (it's better than doing nothing).

10.  The right tools may not start your project for you, but they'll help you finish it. 

11.  Make your work portable.  Find different places to do your art, or make use of the places where you need to be anyway.

12.  When you're frustrated, go away.  Work on something else.  Clean your studio.  Take a walk.  Organize stuff.  Then come back.

13.  Have more than one iron in the fire.

14.  Think with your heart for a change. 

15.  Remind yourself that if you don't like the art you've made, it will at the very least teach you to make better art next time.

Now for the giveaway!

Meet Amery.  Amery is new in the shop this week, a cousin to Muriel.  You can win your very own self-inking Amery Address Stamp by leaving a comment on today's post:  in the spirit of my A to Z book, tell me one letter/word about yourself.  Randomness is encouraged!  I'll choose a winner on Friday morning.

A to Z.

My new creative habit:  Thanks to Amy at Spirit Out!, I have added a new creative habit to my toolbox.  Once a week (when I can), I like to have a mini-retreat.  I head down to the coffee shop with a notebook and pen (or sometimes a totebag full of notebooks and pens..and colored pencils), to do a little brainstorming.  Today's theme:  my upcoming 20th anniversary.  Woot woot!  But in addition to the usual fevered scribbling of ideas, I added a new layer:  I put the pen down, closed my eyes, and gave myself a few minutes to consider how I'm feeling about it.  (Really proud of myself for one, really grateful to my customers for another.) 

I'm excited about all the ways I could celebrate:  20 giveaways for 20 days?  one great big party?  I would love to hear your suggestions!

A to Z.

Not a lot to say with a U.  In fact, I couldn't even make up my mind about the quote for this page, so I left that for "later."

Yesterday, I had a conversation with Amy of Spirit Out!, and I dwelled on parts of it for the rest of the day.  Amy encouraged me to connect with my mind, heart, and body -- and although I always claim I'm well-balanced with my left brain/right brain, her questions about accessing my heart, and how I feel, had me speechless.  Am I letting my left brain dominate?  Have I become so goal-oriented that I've forgotten how to feel?  Where's my intuition? 

Amy's strength is helping artists recognize that they hold their own wisdom:  the "answers" are in me (not to mention, more questions), I just need the tools to find them, use them.  Great food for thought in my quest to honor my gifts this year!

My new year's resolution...so far.

Edit:  I thought this had posted yesterday via mobile upload.

So far, so good in my resolution to dwell on the lightness of my gifts (instead of the darkness in the world).  I usually wake up early, which gives me a few minutes to think consciously about my intentions while the house is still quiet and dark.

And this week I'm trying to spend an hour at the start of each day planning, regrouping, dreaming.  Today I'm using the journal J made me for Christmas, to linger over the question:  What work do I see myself doing in 2012?

Giveaway winner!

Congratulations to MoniQ in WI:

I am in snyc with you -- but many steps behind!  I have creative talents I do not nurture...I don't allow myself to "play" (create) until all the work is done (housework, parenting, paid employment, family attention).  You know what that means:  rarely do I make anything, other than the knitting I can take along with me to commitments (and that knitting so often has a gift-related deadline).  My resolution is to create weekly...which is a big step from where I have been.

Please send me an email with your mailing address:  lettergirl66{at}gmail{dot}com.

I appreciated all the thoughts on my resolution and all the sharing of your own resolutions.  I've considered the one little word approach, but usually it is more that I have a goal and the word "reveals" itself to me as the year goes on.  (Like in the fall of 2008, when I realized I had to make some big changes to sustain my business...and through diligent effort, 2009's word became "embrace" -- not just doing new & different things, but embracing them was key to my success.  I just didn't figure that out till I was knee deep already.)  There may be a word for this year, who knows!

In the meantime, it's one foot in front of the other:  starting each day with conscious positive thoughts.  Last fall, I applied for a textile arts grant, and when I didn't get it, I decided that if I really wanted to do my grant proposal project, I would have to find a way to make it happen, if at a different scale.  I wanted to use some of the funds to go on a creative retreat in January and another in August.  My etsy shop & design studio have been so very busy (yay) that it is nearly impossible to dedicate time to any other pursuit.  So...

My studio and etsy shop will be closed January 9th-23rd.  I'm hoping to use the first week to get caught up on work and on cleaning my holiday-season-ravaged office.  Not sure all that can be done in a week!  But the second week is definitely for play.  Of course, the kids are home from school on that Monday (MLK), so it is a short week...but a four-day week still sounds heavenly.

Three days left to make etsy purchases at the 2011 rates!  After my break, I'll be retiring a few designs and adding a few new ones.  I'll try to share some ongoing projects while my studio is closed, as I've been eking out bits of time for scrapbooks and stitching.  (And I'm always grateful for your comments!)

New year, new giveaway.

I'm sure it will come as no surprise that I like making resolutions.  I had a few ideas for new year's resolutions floating around in my head before January first -- but I was still feeling exhausted after a stressful December, and couldn't quite get myself to focus long enough to make a plan.  (And I love a plan!)  So when I woke up ealier than everyone else on Sunday, I lingered a few minutes over my ideas...and resolved to keep it simple. 

This year I will honor my gifts.  Instead of being drawn into the web of worry and guilt that often accompanies my creating, I will focus on gratitude for my talents.  Of course, I'd prefer to have a roadmap, but this is a journey that just doesn't have one.  I don't know what route I'll take, what the mileposts are, but I do know that I'll put one foot in front of the other and hope I end up in an even better place.

This week I'll be mailing out the first Quote of the Month.  You can win a year's subscription to Quote of the Month (a $54 value) by leaving a comment with your answer to one of these questions: 

*what is your new year's resolution?  OR

*what is one thing I can do to achieve my own resolution?

Be sure to comment by Thursday night, and I'll draw one winner on Friday morning (1/6/2012).  And if you've already purchased a Quote of the Month series for yourself, you can still enter & have the new set sent to a friend.

Happy new year!

A to Z: Revisted.

Last fall I shared an A to Z project I had been working on -- based on Cathy Zielske's Me: The Abridged Version and Amy Krouse Rosenthal's Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life.  (And yes, I know I have mentioned that book at least five times already.)  This fall my goal is to finish that project, and to share the pages with you. 

 
If you look back at last year's entries, you'll see I've completely reworked my concept.  Although I loved the oversize photos in the last version, and the random nature of the content, I couldn't quite get past the feeling that the type was impersonal.  I'm a hand letterer after all, and it just didn't look like me.  I also found that some of my opinions had evolved or expanded since the year I'd written it, so I'd like a book that has a substantial start but leaves room for growth.

Then I started having second thoughts about even bothering with this project.  (W is for Why???)  And thinking that over (since I love thinking things over) helped me come up with a list of how I approach creative projects in general, my "creative habits."  And that's a list I want to share too.  So, I'm hoping you'll stay with me over the next month (or more) as I share my A to Z pages and the creative habits I rely on.

 

Introducing...

 
...Purnah.  My new friend, coworker, confidante.  Before I even took her out of the box, I started a short list of names:  something to inspire me, something sassy, something out of the ordinary; a name that can be exclaimed in excitement or whispered conspiratorially.  This summer we read a couple of books by Howard Whitehouse and were deeply enamored with the character of Purnah, even a little sad that we had to say goodbye to her.  (In J's words, she's "spirited."  Perfect.)

Although she'll eventually make her home here in my studio, for now she's wearing a fall coat (which I'll share tomorrow) and standing guard in the living room -- where she did startle my husband when he went to get the newspaper yesterday morning.

Should it stay or should it go?

 

When my niece was visiting this weekend, I had to get something from my closet while she was sleeping, and my closet is in the guest room.  (When we moved here ten years ago, we both preferred the little bedroom with the bay window -- and only one closet -- to the bigger master bedroom with two closets.  So the master bedroom became the guest room/my husband's office/the "craft shop.")  Now, two weeks ago it would have been a problem to get into my closet; boxes of old clothes and books and shoes were piled three feet deep on the floor.  And I share space in there for F's dress clothes (since his bedroom doesn't have any closet, oh those Victorians!).  And the suitcases are stored there.  And it's really not that big of a closet in the first place (though those crazy Victorians did trim out the insides of their closets with pretty woodwork).

So a week and a half ago I went to town on cleaning my closet.  I didn't even set a timer and tell myself I only had to clean for 30 minutes.  I spent the whole afternoon.  I actually started with my dresser -- since we got a new dresser (an Amish dresser in a Victorian bedroom!) and I hadn't actually gone through my old dresser yet.  I held up every single piece of clothing and said,

Is this who I want to be?

 

My old dresser: empty. My closet: so spare I can walk inside while my niece is sleeping, shut the door, and turn on the light.

What's left is all the things I want to wear -- plenty for me, but meager by American standards.  I don't think I have double digits of anything; less than 10 pairs of pants (including jeans, my daily uniform), less than 10 t-shirts, less than 10 sweaters (including sweatshirts).

Two days later I made a list (and yes, enjoyed it immensely) of every time I need to wear clothes: working at home, meeting with customers, co-working with the Magic Wand Collective, teaching Sunday school, it was a long list.  But I realized almost everything I do can be accommodated with one of three "uniforms".  Honestly, I felt almost giddy for figuring this out.  And relieved.  And satisfied with the pieces I already have, in my pared-down closet.