Finding your path to productive creativity

When I'm inspired to create something it just flows through me like an electric current. From the start to the finish it's like I'm obsessed, no joke! The whole project can take on a life of it's own and my family will be left to starve and go naked because I can do nothing but work on my project until it's completed. Lucky for my family that I'm not obsessed with my current quilting project. I think that it's because of 3 things;

1.  I've made a quilt with this pattern before, so no new challenge.
2. It's a Christmas Themed Quilt, so I feel in no rush to complete it.
3. And I've been sick off and on through this project and I feel as if that has knocked me off of my game. 

But the last couple of days has got me feeling inspired to work on it again. Not to mention the fact that I've got some NEW quilt ideas bouncing around in my noggin. Today, as I'm having my morning coffee, I'm suddenly intrigued by the design of my quilted table runner. The more I look at it, the more I wonder if I could adapt it to make a quilt top. Well it's time for me to brush off my math skills and get to work. Usually I put my two math maniacs to work on such a project (I like to have my family feel loved and needed) but today I think that I can tackle this on my own. Actually there are 2 different table runners that I want to adapt into quilt tops, yes I'm feeling rather ambitious today. I've got the PERFECT fabric for one of these ideas! Funny thing is, when I saw this "perfect fabric" I knew that it would be awesome to work with and the colors are so bold and striking that I HAD to have some of it! Good thing I bought 2½ yards of it!

I know that I had said that I want to take classes, any kind of classes, well I think that I found what I want to do... it's to take classes at my local quilt shop. No it's not a "quilting" class per say but a class on learning how to use the large quilting machine and to become certified to use it. How cool is that? These machines are very expensive and becoming certified to use one can save me hundreds of dollars on having my quilts "professionally" quilted by someone else and that can incorporate into thousands versus buying the machine.

Alright I've got to dust off my calculater and get out a pencil, note book and my tape measure, I've got to get some design work going on!

Goals for the New Year

1. To post more often.
2. To take MORE pictures.
3. To teach others how to quilt (I've currently got 2 students)
4. To take classes- of any kind.
5. To ride my bicycle MORE. I joined a seasonal cycling group last year (yes I really did). I had a blast too! 
6. To be fit- I mean really fit! I go to the gym but I need to step it up and be more religous about it and my work outs.
7. To be more open to trying new things- especially in the athletic department.
8. To hand make at least 50% of the gifts we give this Christmas 2013
9. To write more hand written letters to friends and family members.
10. To do more design work.

Creativity for the New Year

Believe it or not, I've been very active in the creativity department (it's just that I've not been posting). I feel bad about not doing any paper crafting- then again ALL of my paper crafting stuff is still packed away in cardboard boxes since something that feel like for forever. All I can be creative with these days is either fabric or food. Since I made a fabulous Chocolate Mousse Cake for New Years Eve (I still need to get over to the food blog and post about that) I've just finished another quilt top and today I finished up a quick and easy project- a tote bag! I'm using my daughter as my model. The bag is made from two 1 yard piece of fabric cut to 35 inches square. The pattern can be found in the 2012 winter edition of Quilts and More magazine. The fabric used here was chosen by my daughter and if I do say so myself it's very Laura Ashely looking (living in Great British has been a good influence on her tastes). I love the liner fabric as well- very charming indeed!

A new Year and a New Scrapbook Nook

As it's now 2013 and my scrapbook nook is still under construction. It's a slow process but then again it's being built by my loving husband and by his own two hands. The 2 pictures you see above are the "closets" in my new much larger Crafting Emporium. All of my crafty goodness will be done in this room. The cabinetry is still to be selected (I'm going with white). My floors are going to be hand-scraped Bamboo and it's a dark brown. The bathroom is waiting for the flooring to go in before we call back the plumber and the electrician in install the remaining items (light fixtures, toilet and sink).

quote of the day

Joy is not in things; it is in us.

-Richard Wagner

Have you ever...

Just looked at yourself wearing an outfit and said...AS IF and then laughed yourself silly? I did that with my newest Cycling Kit. The bike pants are like capri pants only much more form fitting and the jacket, well it's kind of (insert eye roll here) tight. Not much is left to the imagination to this outfit! Then again this stuff is suppose to be form fitting. Heck I feel as if I'm wearing a wetsuit. The only good part of this is that I'm not the only one wearing this sort of thing (thank the Lord for that). The disturbing part is when you see this kind of thing on men, oh bless my soul if I don't want to blush sometimes!

quote of the day

I write down everything I want to remember. That way, instead of spending a lot of time trying to remember what it is I wrote down, I spend the time looking for the paper I wrote it down on.

Beryl Pfizer

My" To Do" list

We all have them, you know- the never ending "to do" list here's mine...

1. Do the actual quilting on those pieced table runners. Currently I need to quilt 10 table runners-ugh!
2. quilt those darn lap quilts! I'm up to what 5? Sheesh!
3. Clean up that guest room! I've got quilting stuff spread out all over the place in there!
4. Laundry...need I say more?
5. Clean upstairs bathrooms (it never ends)
6. Finish putting pictures on digital picture frame and send it to my mom.
7. list stuff for sale on E-bay (I gave up on Craigslist)
8. Haul Hibiscus Tree upstairs
9. Sand large square coffee table, paint and seal it!
10.  Hang up quilted Flag wall hanging
11. Hang up quilted nature scene wall hanging in family room
12. Hang up framed map in eat in kitchen area.
13. Wash my bicycle ( I enjoy riding through puddles and it shows)
14. Dust and mop upstairs hallway
15. Figure out this weeks dinner menu
16. Put paper on back of Hannah's book shelf
17. Rearrange guest bedroom
18. Make list of items to be donated
19. Take donations to Hudson
20. Go Grocery shopping (does this ever really end?)
21. Write to my sister and to my mother

Now for me to get on with getting this stuff OFF of my "to-do" list.

quote of the day

The more you find out about the world, 

the more opportunities there are

 to laugh at it.

-Bill Nye

Just toodling around...

I love this house! I love how I'm able to work through each room, giving it it's own unique stamp and adding in a little of my own personality. To some , walking into a new room in our house is much like walking into a different chapter in a book. I like variety- truly creative people rarely have the same theme going on throughout their home.

Quote of the day

If there is one thing worse than being an ugly duckling in a house of swans, it's having the swans pretend there's no difference.

-Teena Booth, Falling From Fire

quote of the day

Human beings, by changing the inner attitudes 

of their minds,

 can change the outer aspects of their lives.

-William James (1842 - 1910)

Laughing at life

My goal for myself is to be 50 and fit. I’m working my ass off at the gym- the elliptical machine is one mean lady! I work out on it an hour a day 5 days a week and I feel so much better for it! I also joined a cycling group- oh yeah this is going to be fun!

Now to make you laugh- Bike Shorts! Have you seen them? To say the least, they leave little to the imagination (especially on men, oh yeah). So this cycling group has lunch at the end of each road trip. As you may have guessed it, they dine in their cycling apparel…there’s no way on this planet I will be sporting bike shorts into any kind of eating establishment! So, I bought myself an ultra cool bike skort! Oh yeah, I am the epitome of fashion! Stop laughing!!!  Go ahead and call ME the Girly Girl in this cycling group! There’s no way I’m wearing neon yellow either! I know it’s the big  “safety color”  and it's meant to get you noticed by people behind the wheel; but in all fairness so are those pretty cycling jerseys with floral prints or graphic designs on them! I’ve got a couple of what I call “pretty jerseys” and I plan on getting a couple more. I’m also all about PINK (always have been). My bike skort is made by Castelli and is it ever cute and comfortable! So much so that I bought it in fuchsia and damn if I don’t think it’s the best thing ever! I just ordered another one in white. Every web site I’ve tried for the black ones are out of stock so I’m going to make a black skirt to go over my black bike shorts (I just now ordered them while typing this- I am a woman who can multi-task). I bike because it makes me feel good and I like to dress girly because it too makes me feel good.

Cycling apparel isn’t exactly inexpensive, but then again neither are quality gym clothes. I refuse to wear cotton t-shirts to work out in ever since I  discovered athletic wear that's made from moisture wicking fabric. I would come out of the gym feeling as if I was wearing wear a soaking wet sponge if I was to wear a cotton t-shirt.


 Now this next part will have you laughing with me! 

Finding a comfortable sports bra when you’re a D cup can be quite the challenge. I was laughing uncontrollably while shaking my head in the dressing room last week. Under Armor makes sports bras and are you ready…they also make a “sport thong”- I about died laughing! Sport thong, really now?! Oh do be serious! LMAO! Oh and of course I can’t get my D cups into any of their sports bras!  What the hell is with that zipper in the front? I have to say that it is strange to have a "zipper" on a bra!  The only thing I could think of was it's like putting a zipper on a jock strap...ouch! But I was determined, and I got that sports bra on...OMG!  It lifted my breasts up more than a push-up bra from Victoria's Secret . Holy Catfish, My breasts were practically under my chin. No one and I do mean  no one needs that sort of notice at the gym or other wise!  And to be able to find a sports bra in say beige or white OH that would be way too simple! Nope, at the store I was shopping in, I had colors choices like lime green, safety yellow, neon pink, poke your eye out with a stick florescent purple and my favorite  "hello look at my boobs" electric blue. Apparently these so called sports bras were made to be an article of clothing all on their own as in "not to be covered up with a t-shirt" and of course they are to be worn with the sporty looking short shorts that I saw for sale at the same store (you know, the kind that your butt cheeks peek out of). Oh as if the women wearing these outfits are really going to go to the gym to work out on the machines...uh huh yeah. They are there to catch the eye of a man, there's no getting around that one! Thank the LORD that sort of thing is not happening at the gym I go to!  Now back on topic... of course you can find black in just about everything in athletic wear. I’m fine with bright colors, heck most of my athletic wear tops are in cheery colors, there’s no hiding at the gym for me (as if I could...it's a small gym with lots of windows).  I even have some bright colored gym shorts, they make me feel "pretty" What I'm saying is this...I dress for myself, if I can make myself smile before I leave for the gym then I’m half way there in what I want to accomplish which is to “feel good about myself”.

quote of the day

You never lose a dream. 

It just incubates as a hobby.

-Larry Page

To my freinds...

First off let me say that I feel blessed for having as many dear friends as I do. There is something to be said by having lived in so many different places over the years and with that comes having made so many terrific and diverse friends!
 Being so close to so many does tend to have an effect on me. I feel their pain and their joy. Currently, I have a great many friends that are going through big changes in their lives, those changes range ever so greatly. From the death of a child, a parent or even of a spouse to something as lovely as the beginning of a new life or even a lifetime of love with a new marriage. There are (I am sad to say) a large handful of friends who are dealing with the mixed feelings of pain and relief at the end of a long term relationship and those friends who are experiencing the roller coaster of emotions when their child child goes off to college (out of state) for the first time. I have friends that are in the process of moving- across the country and across an ocean (or two).
Of course there are all sorts of things going on around me as well...my daughter Hannah is now a senior in high school and this is our last year with her at home and all too soon we will be empty nesters. My dear friend Liz (of whom I am super proud of) had gastric bypass surgery a year ago. She is at her goal weight and looks amazing! I know that it was not an easy decision for her to make or easy to work through the emotional journey to her decision to get this weight loss surgery. But she's done it and seeing her before and after photo (they were taken 1 year apart) well frankly the pictures moved me to cry tears of joy! 
Now there's me, I'm onto something big here myself. I do listen to my sister-in-law when she talks about health and fitness- even if she doesn't think so. She's an amazing person who inspires me. Her determination to fight depression through exercise so many years ago now has her certified and teaching a variety of fitness classes at a handful of different gyms. The woman has a following! Trust me, everyone enjoys her classes. It's not that I want to be her when I grow up, I just want to be healthy like her. She's an all around good egg and well, she's fun to be around!

Now for my own journey- I want to be thin again. Not that I'm not happy with who I am as a person, I think that I'm great, LOL! But seriously, I'm out of shape and now I'm finally out of the public eye... I can't begin to tell you how I LOVE being able to go someplace and not have everyone in the building know who I am and who I am married to because of his job. There truly is something to be said about anonymity! I no longer feel self conscious about going to the gym, donning athletic wear, grunting while working out with weights or sweating my ass off on the elliptical machine. We all work at our own pace and have to set realistic goals for ourselves. I've been losing weight and best of all- it's be staying off! Now for me to kick things up a notch. I'm now exercising 5 days a week and I've joined a cycling group which meets up twice a week. I want to get out and be more active and see things at the same time- what better way to do that than cycling! 

I've decided that I want to meet and make friends with people that have things in common with me (you know, besides status of being "retired" my sex or age).  For example, I joined a woman's group earlier this year and lets just say that besides being a woman and having that "retired" status, I have nothing in common with these women what so ever! 

I'm still very much a creative crafty type person, and I look forward to getting back into paper crafting as soon as this scrapbook/quilt studio of mine is completed. For now I keep myself happy by creating small projects that I can work on  in my spare bedroom. Enjoy your day, I'm off to the gym and then a bike ride! 

quote of the day

Let tears flow of their own accord: their flowing is not inconsistent with inward peace and harmony.

Seneca (5 BC - 65 AD)

Exersize...like your life depends on it!

I've been going to the gym 3 times a week for a while now and I'm about to step it up to 5 times.  I'm serious about getting back into shape and being MORE active than I have been in the past.  I'm pretty sure that my doctor will be thrilled to learn that I've jumped off of the ledge and have taken up all sorts of things. I've lost weight and I do feel better about myself and my endurance.

 When I first started going to the gym I thought that the personal trainer was out to kill me.  Now she looks at me and smiles and nods at me as I get on the elipticle machine and torture myself. When I leave the gym I'm a sweaty mess but I no longer hurt like I did when I first started going. Life is Good!

quote of the day

I like weights. You know where you stand with them. Well, sometimes you're lying under them, trying not to let them crush you, but you see, you KNOW they'd crush you if they could. There's honesty.

- T. Campbell and Gisele Lagace

My latest obsession...

No, it's not a new "craft" rather it's an activity.  I've wanted to get back into bicycling for ages. So, when my husband and I were at a bike shop getting a bicycle packed up so we can ship it to our son in South Dakota- well I started checking out the bikes there. You see, I'd gotten hooked on watching the Tour de France and knew pretty much which bike companies bicycles I wanted to take for a test drive. It was down to 3; Trek, Specialized and Cannondale. I left with a new bike helmet and a new bike. What did I buy? I got the work bike by Specialized and I love it! Here's a picture of my new bike

I also happened to have bought myself something else that I've wanted for quite some time...a Nantucket Bike Basket.

Needless to say, I took BOTH with me on a recent trip to Martha's Vineyard. All 3 of us (myself, my husband and daughter) road all over the place on our bikes and had a blast! I want to ride and explore the area in which I live on my bicycle! Now unlike riding in California, around here there aren't any designated bike lanes. There are loads of bicycle enthusiasts out here. I'm excited to say that I see a great number of bike teams riding around in our area. I'm working on my endurance levels and bike riding makes me feel good about myself.

Okay now for the funny side (with me there's always a funny side)...I'm a skirt wearing kind of girl, everyone knows that. Alas if there's one thing I know, it's not to wear a skirt while riding a bike. I did wear one on our trip to the bike shop and even while taking a bike for a test drive- that was a hoot! I kept worrying about flashing my panties to everyone in the bike shop (talk about a laugh out loud moment). I didn't realize that I was getting myself a bike that day. So any way I need to finish this to make you see the funny side of things and have you laughing with me...
I'm on Martha's Vineyard riding my bike with my family in tow. My saddle (that's the bike seat) was just a little out of adjustment and yes it felt off (I thought I'd just ride through it). Heck after crashing my bike and landing in a gravel filled ditch ( yes, I was scraped up and bruised up), having my saddle feel a little off was nothing! Apparently it wasn't just nothing. I ended up with bruises on the inside of my right though like no one knows and a very sore crotch! Those bruises were the ugliest scariest looking things I'd ever seen! I had to go to the gym and work out and every single person there who looked at me grimaced when they saw my leg. Okay lessons learned- 1-no you just can't pedal through it and 2- I need to wear padded bike shorts.  Alright now for the laughter part- Unless you are model skinny and even then, bike shorts are not a good look as they do hug every curve! And lets face it, we women are curvy. You've got to have a lot of confidence in order to feel comfortable walking around in padded bike shorts and I'll admit it right now, I'm not feeling that confident with having people look at me while wearing them. Now, unless you are a professional cyclist and you happen to be say...Lance Armstrong, Christian Vande Velde, Tommy Danielson, or Tyler Farrar, well then by all means please do walk around in those bike shorts ;-) Now where was I going with this? Oh yeah...I'm not about to go out and about in said bike shorts (did I mention that they have a padded crotch/seat in them? As if I need to have that shown to the public eye) and that's when I discovered something super cool- there are some companies out there that make skirts to go over said bike shorts! So I ordered myself some swanky bike riding apparel! Once it all gets here, well then I will get my daughter to take some pictures of me sporting said apparel! No more will I suffer with having a sore crotch or bruised thighs when going on long bike rides for me! There,  I know I just made you laugh! Trust me the more I think about it the more I laugh!

quote of the day

What do you call a cyclist who doesn't wear a helmet? 
An organ donor.
  ~David Perry