Ouchie!

Several years ago, I injured my left knee while in rehearsal for a show. My costume included platform boots (think Herman Munster) and when I went to do a turn, my body went, but my foot didn't. Ouchie! I was still able to go on, so I didn't go to the doctor or anything.
Yeah, I probably should have.
In the past, oh, two years or so, my knee has been reminding me that I should have done that. Now that I'm practicing shiatsu on a nearly daily basis, it's REALLY complaining. So, I finally made an appointment to see the doctor about it. I have a feeling that I may kneed surgery. (See what I did there?) I'm hoping I can put that off for a while so I can finish school, but the pain has been so bad, I don't know if that's going to be possible. Also, my knee cracks (and by "cracks" I mean THUDS) repeatedly throughout my shiatsu sessions. It's kind of embarrassing. It doesn't hurt too much while it's happening, but afterwards, holy cow!
So, there's that.
On the other hand, I'm passing my classes (even Traditional Chinese Medicine, which I don't get at all) with flying colors. I was a little worried about my shiatsu practical, which doesn't happen until next week, but we did practice runs in class yesterday and I did much better than I thought I would. I do have a few things I need to remember, but over all, I feel ready.
Artistically, I've been working on another quilt top. Very basic, simple blocks, but I started with a set of fat quarters I picked up at JoAnn's. The colors are very Autumnal; burgundy, olive, gold, purple. I ran out of the fat quarters and went to Hancock's to find something that would coordinate. Don't you know I forgot to take a swatch! I decided to go with my gut and came home with four fabrics (including a solid burgundy and purple to break up all the busy-ness) that totally coordinated! I added those to the mix and decided that I still needed a bit more for the complete quilt top so I went back to JoAnn's to see if I could find any more of the original fat quarter set. I found two tucked in the back of a shelf and grabbed them both. I also found two fabrics that will work just in case I run out of the ones I have. I've taken a break from sewing while I've been studying for the mid-term exams, but I'm ready to get back to the sewing table. I'll post pix soon.
Oh, yeah! I made enough money on www.Spoonflower.com to purchase some samples of designs that have been laying in wait to be released. They are especially colorful and I'm pretty pleased with how they turned out. One of the best, newer options on Spoonflower is that you can order swatches on any type of fabric they have instead of just the plain quilter's cotton. I'm so happy they have that option now. Some of my designs simply look better on some of the other fabrics. I really like their performance knit. The colors come out so vibrant! (You know how I LOVE my colors to be vibrant!)
By the way, Optitz Outlet, mentioned in my last entry, has a website, www.opitzoutlet.com, and they're on facebook.

Trying New Things

I don't know about you, but I have ADHD. I have several projects going at once. My husband thinks that silly, but he's able to focus on one thing at a time better than I. For me, boredom sets in rather quickly and I simply must do something else for at least a few minutes.

A couple of weeks ago I saw a project to make fabric cards for Valentine's day. It required a notion called Timtex, a stiff interfacing used for lining purses and other craft projects. JoAnn's carries a similar product called Peltex. It's a branding thing. Anyway, I decided to purchase some. I doubted I would actually make the Valentines, but wanted to use it somehow.

Now, you can get it where it's fusible on both sides, but I didn't get that kind. Mine's fusible on one side. So it sat in my shop for a while, me staring at it wondering what the heck I was going to do with it. I swear it was staring back at me.

I had some quilt scraps left over from a batik quilt I made for our old babysitter when she graduated and went off to college. I stitched some of those together. None of them were the same size. Not something I could put together in another big piece. Then it hit me! Fuse them to the Peltex! So I did that with as many as I could get onto the 1/2 yard I bought.

Neat!

Now what?

Muslin! Stitch muslin to the back sides. I got a hunk of it and pressed it. I cut pieces to fit all the little patches. Then I started wondering if I should paint the muslins. I got out some acrylic inks and found a stack of dried baby wipes I had set aside to use... somehow. I'll explain later. The upshot of it is, I started playing with the inks and writing quotes on the back sides of these "cards".  I also stitched some 1/8 inch ribbon onto one edge so that they may be hung, either side out, on the wall or from your keychain or whatever.

This one uses a repurposed baby wipe.

Muslin backing. Sometimes I forget to edit my photos. Echt.

The batik sides. One could make Christmas ornaments this way...

Okay, the baby wipes thing: If you've read my previous entries, you may be aware that I'm a big fan of the protection of orangutans. All animals, really, but orangs are my favorite. I've even played one on stage. Anyway, the harvesting of palm oil has become a real problem for their survival and that of many other species. Palm oil use is insidious. Some companies use responsibly harvested palm oil, most however, do not. Rain forests and peat marshes which are home to the orangutans and many other vital species are being destroyed in order to create palm plantations.

Palm oil is not necessarily harmful on it's own, but get too much of it (like anything) and it can be detrimental to your health. It's in nearly every packaged snack food you can name (from Oreos to Twizzlers to granola bars) it's in things which need to be spread, (margarine, peanut butter, Nutella), it's in the cleansing products we use on our face, body and hair. It's even in baby wipes. I used them to remove make-up quickly and easily after a show. I have two sons and you know I used wipes on their li'l behinds. But I couldn't fathom having them touch my face when I found out about the palm oil (listed as stearate in most body and hair products).

I'm also not for just throwing stuff out in a lump, either. So, I decided to repurpose the wipes. I laid them out on my worktable and let them dry. They have an interesting texture. I figured I should be able to use them somehow in my art. They take the acrylic ink very well, too, as I discovered.

I then spent several minutes dyeing baby wipes with the ink. I still don't know for what I'll use them, but at least I now know I can.

Abstract rose study

Detail of the green stripes. I'm thinking snake skins and dragons...

Your assignment: look around your home for things you can repurpose into your art. Those card stock pieces in the tights you bought for your little girl? Book marks, template material, ribbon organizers. Spice jars? Glitter catchers. Pasta jars? Button organizers. Get out of the comfort zone and look at things from new angles.

Coming Soon - Thrifty Thursdays and Field Trip Fridays!

In my introductory post for Sewnday Morning Musings I promised field trips to local thrift shops and Minneapolis area sewing/crafting Meccas. I've decided to do this on the third Friday of each month, late morning. This may change, depending on my kids' school schedules, but for now, that's how it'll stand. Since the third Friday in January has gone by, February 21st will be our first official Field Trip Friday.

I've yet to decide where they'll be and what topics I'll cover when, but I'll put up the information when I settle on something.

What I hope to achieve with these field trips is to give beginning thrifters, crafters and sewists a better idea of how to shop, what to look for, and what to expect when shopping for supplies. Obviously no one is required to join me, but if you're local and the topic is something that interests you, please send me an email (totallytoots10@gmail.com) at least 24 hours in advance of the field trip so I know to look for you. They will not be filmed (yet) but I may take pix and I'll have something drawn up for you to sign that says you're okay with my using your image on the internet.

I'm also going to treat these as tours. I'm your tour guide, and, while I don't expect anything but the satisfaction of teaching you something unexpected and useful, if you enjoyed the field trip, I'll accept tips. Oh, yes. I will. I'm smart, funny, and, gosh darn it, people like me, so what the heck? It's totally not obligatory, though, so no pressure. The main thing is to learn and have fun. Actually, a nice tip to receive would be a lovely comment on the blog.

Out-of towners, don't fret! I'm sure my advice will work in your neighborhood as well. Also, I do travel, and when I do, I'm going to research in advance any of those cities for field trips. If you happen to be in the area, please join my in-the-field traveling team. Especially if you know of a particular place that's a great resource for artists! This Summer we'll be spending time up near Lake Peavy/Onamia, MN and my husband's class reunion out in the Kittery area of Maine, so please, if you're familiar with those places, let me know! I appreciate any information.

Thrifty Thursdays (not to be confused with Thirsty Thursdays) will be Thursday posts dealing with upcycling stuff from thrift stores. They won't be every Thursday, more of a "Gee, I'm feeling like doing something other than quilt tops today" schedule, but I promise to show you how to use the fun stuff you can find at your local flea markets and thrift stores. I've been known to pick up crafting supplies at thrift stores on the cheap, and I'll cover a little of that as well.

Your assignment: Come up with and email to me a list of places in your area that would make great artist's field trips. Now I'm off to work out a schedule! Can't wait!

What is "Perfect" anyway?

Dictionary.com defines the word "Perfect" thusly:

per·fect

 [adj., n. pur-fikt; v. per-fekt]

adjective

1.

conforming absolutely to the description or definition of an ideal type: a perfect sphere; a perfect gentleman.

2.

excellent or complete beyond practical or theoretical improvement: There is no perfect legal code. The proportions of this temple are almost perfect.

3.

exactly fitting the need in a certain situation or for a certain purpose: a perfect actor to play Mr. Micawber; a perfect saw for cutting out keyholes.

4.

entirely without any flaws, defects, or shortcomings: a perfect apple; the perfect crime.

5.

accurate, exact, or correct in every detail: a perfect copy.

Yet, when I hear the word, I cringe. We put so much pressure on ourselves to be perfect, or what we believe is the socially acceptable notion of perfect. All the plastic surgery in the world won't make a person "perfect" because they'll have the scars. There's no "Perfect time" to get married, change jobs, have children, but so many people wait for that elusive perfection, that they often miss out on something that, while not perfect, is certainly wonderful. How many criminals believed they had committed "the perfect crime" only to be convicted? How often has the "Perfect couple" split up? The "perfect" day gone awry?

I've put off a lot of things waiting for perfect; I've scrapped a ton of projects because they weren't perfect. I didn't want to start this blog (and certainly wouldn't do any demo videos!) until my studio was perfect. Guess what? It's still not ideal, but here I am, typing away, gathering ideas for videos that will eventually be filmed in my messy, cramped studio. I will say it's better than it was, but it's not... well, you know.

When I went to Dictionary.com for this, the daily word was echt. One I've never ever heard of, but one which couldn't have been more (dare I say it?) perfect for this entry.

echt

  \ ekht \   adjective; 

1.

real; authentic; genuine.

As I'm pecking away at things that aren't just the way I expected them to be, I've noticed one thing they all have in common. They're loaded with echt-ness. I mean, look at this thing! I don't know why it's not staying within the perimeters of my blog layout, but I don't know how to fix it, either. And there ya have it. Echt.

I pride myself on being echt. I encourage others to be as echt as they can be. Which is why the health issues of my last year were so disappointing. I suffered a nervous breakdown, followed by conversion disorder. I went to a bunch of specialists, had several MRIs, the first of which presented us with what would later (after being called a tumor, which is what took my father) be labeled as a lesion. I've probably had it all my life, but to be on the safe side, I went through all the testing for Multiple Sclerosis: EKG, EMG (which I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy), Sleep EEG, spinal tap (and blood patch because it didn't heal and I was leaking spinal fluid). I kept hoping it was MS. Why would I want something so horrible? Because then it would mean it wasn't my fault. 

There had been a lot of things which led up to the breakdown, but I had been under stress before. Greater stress, actually. I'm a survivor of rape, I watched my father battle cancer, I've been stalked, I've had two children, one of whom has autism spectrum disorder, I've lived on my own in New York City in the 90s. You know, back before all the hipsters took over and it was still dangerous and cool. So I did not want to cop to the diagnosis of nervous breakdown. I'm too strong for that. Right?

The events leading up to it were numerous and offered a variety of stressors, some of which involved my perceived perfection. All I could think of when it finally got down to "you had a nervous breakdown" was, how could I have let all those outside influences take me over like that? I know I'm not perfect, so why was I so worried about it? Well, okay, the only thing I could come up with is that, deep down, we all wish we could be perfect. Our lives would be so much better, right? But I look around and I have shelter, enough to eat, a family who loves me. I even painted a family sign that hangs on our house that reads, "We may not have it all together, but together we have it all." I was disappointed in myself for not embracing my humanity, flaws and all.

What does this have to do with sewing or art? Well, as artists, I believe we all strive for perfection. Just as an athlete works out every day to get better and better, we study our craft(s) and work toward perfection. Sadly, we too often compare our work to that of others. I had a boyfriend when I lived in New York who was an artist. I liked the style of his work. It was bold and colorful. His best friend is one of these guys who can paint something and have it look like a photograph. Gene was always putting his work down because it didn't look like Phil's. I actually preferred the broad lines and astonishing surrealism of his work, but he couldn't see it or appreciate it for what it was: his echt.

When I was pregnant with my first son, I had grand notions of making my own maternity clothes. On my first trip out, I put the sleeves on backward and couldn't get the seams to lay flat, so I chucked it. I recently found it (almost 12 years later!) in a box in my studio. I really liked the fabric. It seemed a shame that it was just hidden in a box, wadded up in a ball of frustration. So I started to take it apart. Then I fussy cut a few of the motifs into 9 inch squares. I rummaged through my stash and found several fabrics which coordinated with the colors and theme of the print. This was born...

I'm not quite finished with it yet, but when I do git 'er done, I'll have something far more lasting than a maternity top. I may even be able to sell it, who knows?

The other day I went to one of my favorite fabric haunts, Mill End Textiles, which is sadly going out of business. However, it means there are hella good deals going on and I partook, oh, yes, I did. They're also selling the items they've had on display - quilts, pillows, clothing - all made by the people who work and shop there. I bought this pillow, partially because it looks so cool, partly because I wanted to snoop at it and figure out how it was made, but mostly because it was the perfect example of what I'm trying to say here. I'm not the only one who makes imperfect things that still look pretty darn cool.

Cool, right? Like you're looking through glass cubes.

But look at the red border. There's a good 1/8 inch sway in the seam.

Notice how the seams don't even come close to matching.

My first attempt at coordinating a pair of peacock panels to go with two others. I often work without a plan or pattern. I was running out of fabric and options. I did worry that it wouldn't look right.
I ended up changing the blue border into a feather border because I didn't want 2 blue borders next to each other,
which is what would've happened had I left it alone. So I changed it.  No big deal, no worries.  

...And it turned out to be more interesting. Not perfect, but echt and interesting. You also get a sneak peek of my messy studio.

The makers of echt Persian rugs (see what I did there?) always leave a mistake in the pattern. They believe that only God can be perfect and to try to out-shine God is a sin. I don't believe in the supernatural, but I do believe that the idea there is sound; humans aren't perfect, and we shouldn't try to be. We should do our best, certainly, but if things don't quite go the way we expected, we don't have to be so hard on ourselves. 

Here's your assignment: Go though your discarded projects, salvage what you can, recycle what you can. You may even decide it's not as bad as you thought. Of course there's the chance that you'll say, "Good gravy! What was I thinking?" and that's okay, too. If it's isn't echt to you, chuck it. Take it to the thrift store where it may be echt for someone else. Try to be as echt as you can be. Let me know how that turns out...

No, really. Let me know.