Crafting Rehab

I’m never pre-washing a quilt batting again. What a pain in the butt! I’ll happily settle for that “antique” look that involves not pre-washing. :P

I’m currently working on a gift for my mother, who attempted to make her first quilt last winter and ran into some, erm, problems. I’m using her quilt top, but I’ve replaced her batting (she didn’t have enough) and her backing (she didn’t have enough of this, either). I’ve also picked up a binding material that I hope she’ll like; the only pattern I could find that worked well was in flannel, which causes some wear concerns. Oh well, I can always repair it in the future. Because that’s what a good crafter does, right?

As an artist, to feel uninspired for so long is alarming. I feel a little soulless…

And very, very bored.

Very little progress with the tendonitis in my thumbs. Absolutely no knitting and only a short bout of crochet in 2009. Limited gaming, stopping when I feel things are getting stressed.

Completely and utterly bored. /sigh

I haven’t crafted a single thing since spring. March probably. I still owe pogle a wallet, and I have a quilt to finish for my mother. The lack of a crafting area and an overall malaise have simply led to me doing nothing creative.

I think, for my sanity, that this must change. I need to find something that I can do without further hurting my hands, but that is engaging to my mind and creative self. I’ll let you know what I find.

foxy thoughts: How to make a jewelry box.

Trying to get this to work. Will update with font if it ever uploads! ;)

DIY: YourFonts Turns Your Handwriting Into a Personlized Font.

From the Renfest we visited in Nov 2008.

Handcarved dragon plaque from Dragonlore:

Closeups:

Handblown glass (we watched Jerry Leaders of Leaders in Glass Studios create one just like this, but couldn’t buy it directly because they have to cure for a day):

That’s condensation on the glass, not a distortion. It’s huge and lovely, both an artpiece and a functional item. I had to recite a “do not” list back to the cashier, most of which is covered by the care instructions on Leaders in Glass Studios’ business card:

The life of your handblown glass may be assured if you treat it with care. Do not shock the glass with temperature changes, do not use it for hot refreshments, and do not pour cold water into a piece warmed by teh sun. Wash in warm water and dish soap, dry with a soft towel.

So that’s what I spent most of my birthday money on, Tammystamps. Aren’t they lovely? Thanks again! :)

My house is so full of stuff right now that we just have little aisles allowing us to travel room to room, and 2 seats and 2 sleeping spots cleared. That’s it!

Must clean, the dust bunnies are going to eat me.

Must clean, the dust bunnies are going to eat me.

Must clean, the dust bunnies are going to eat me.

(On a saner note, still banned from video game controllers/handhelds, knitting, crocheting, etc. Also, I have to rearrange crafting area. When I can reach it again…)

So, life was sort of derailed around here between job application/interview (didn’t get it), US presidential election, and pets/the boy trying to get sick. -_-

I fell off the bandwagon a few weeks ago and picked up several pieces of fabric from the $1-3/yard fabric from an area WalMart. Several of them will go towards Christmas gifts, I think, so that’s my “get out of jail” card. ^^

Now I just need to get my crafting area cleaned up and to pull myself away from the computer long enough to actually create those Christmas gifts, eek.

Oh! I almost forgot to add… Yesterday we went to our local RenFest. In addition to a couple of Christmas gifts for my parents and the spending of my birthday money (thanks Tammy!), I picked up about $30 worth of polished stones and sliced geodes for jewelry making. This, thankfully, is an once-a-year expense, so I’m not counting it either. ;)

Little Dee : The Sea Shanty

Ohemgee.

Columbus Day? What’s that? >.> (pogle and I both forgot about today’s holiday and tried to mail my mother’s belated birthday gifts…oops!)

Have a list. We like lists here:

1. Thumbs/hands are pretty painful right now, although I keep trying to play with yarn. I’m not so bright sometimes. >.> I need to clean my crafting area so that I can sew instead. I’m looking forward to playing with the patterns I purchased with the credit from Sew, Mama, Sew!

2. Root canal today! Yay! And another in my future, plus potential surgery, fillings, and caps. Oh, and wisdom teeth removed eventually. Awesome sauce.

Maybe they’ll do front surgery and wisdom teeth all at once…then I wouldn’t have to go back to OMG SCARY oral surgeon again! I would just have a mouth full of misery. :P

3. I think this “stash diet” is going to be a bit permanent for awhile. Oh well, at least I’ve still got lots to do! If push comes to shove, I’ve got several cross stitch kits around. Those are like lace when it comes to money spent per hour investment (ie low amount of money for the amount of time it takes you to finish the thing!).

Wooo! :P

The silver lining is, of course, that I can do anything at all to expell some of this artistic energy. I’m grateful for what movement I have in my hands, my stash, my gadgets (Hello PC, MP3 player, and DS Lite! I love you!), and a husband who lets me stay home and play while we figure out what’s going on with my hands.

And a little corner (here) where I can go to whinge, because I refuse to whinge in real life. I hate burdening other people with my problems, since ultimately my problems aren’t that bad (I have a very happy marriage, health & dental insurance, an emergency fund, etc). Especially with the world (not just the US) going a bit wonky economically–I’ve totally got it good. And now I’ve been reminded of why.

Little vents like this are just necessary once in awhile to help me keep my perspective. :)

Now for more podcasts and gentle playing with yarn.

P.S. More scarf pictures are still forthcoming, they just got delayed by my teeth trying to secede from my head. :P