I've been such a prolific scrapper lately, it seems like I've just been posting and posting new pages constantly. I miss waxing poetic and random posts filled with jumbly thoughts. So, this is one of those posts!
1. Totally bummed to not be going to the Bead&Button Show this year. Although, it's probably for the best. I mean, I haven't been doing a whole lot of jewelry and beadwork lately. Which is sad too! It's not that I haven't been inspired, but...okay, as I was typing that I knew it was a lie. I haven't been inspired to make jewelry lately. I'm sad because that was my first entry into the crafty world. It was my way in. And now it's just a drawer full of stuff. I'm sure the mojo will come back. I mean, I really hope it will. I do read this divine jewelry blog every day. Her stuff is super inspirational.
2. Definitely creating for the deadline lately. I loooooooooove my crafty hobbies and I try very hard to do something creative every single day, but lately, the impetus to create is coming from assignments and deadlines rather than internally. Though, I suppose I've always been that way to a certain extent. Before I was on design teams, challenges fueled my creative energy! I have to admit that one of the reasons I love being on a design team is the challenge it creates. I feel like I do my best work under pressure - time and product constraints. That said, I'm making an effort to make sure I do some more stuff "just for me."
3. An online friend of mine mentioned that she only scraps when she's doing design team work and not just for fun anymore. When I heard that, I was like, "No way! That's so weird. I can't imagine doing that!" But, I was at a crop and another friend of mine said, "What team is that for?" and pointed at my pile of paper and stuff. And I said, "No one. It's just my stuff." And she looked at me with these big eyes and said, "Just creating for yourself? Really?!" She was so surprised. Hmmmmm...maybe it's because the stuff I create for myself tends to not make it onto the blog?
4. Teaching is making me realize how much I know. That sounds odd, doesn't it? But, I'm teaching more than ever lately with lots of classes at Portrait Bug and The City Quilter (the photo is from PB). And I've been thrilled to discover that when people ask me questions, I know the answers! Truth is, I think of myself as this silly little girl who likes to create. It has been a wonderful surprise to discover that all those hours of fooling around with my sewing machine or pushing paint around with a plastic fork have all paid off!
5. I've designed a "project kit" for Label Tulip. It will be available for purchase on April 15 and you'll get instructions on how to put the project together...and let me tell you: it's going to blow your mind! The kit is a total Project-palooza! It's called "Metropolis in Bloom" and we're going to be making cool dimensional flowers out of everything (grungeboard, felt, fabric, paper, etc.)! I can't wait! Eeek!
6. I overhauled my theatre company's website. I don't know if you know this, but six years ago when my theatre company (The Milk Can Theatre Company) needed a website, we were too poor to pay anyone to make one. So, I did the crafty solution: I taught myself html and made one myself. It has since undergone several renovations as my skills (html, graphic design, photoshop, etc.) have improved. But, I'm very proud of this latest renovation. The site feels fresh and modern and like a real reflection of the company.
7. This post on blogging sums up so many of my own thoughts on the subject. I would only add that I never thought I'd like blogging. It seemed too invasive of your privacy, you know? But, I find I love having a little place on the web to call my own. And it has allowed me to connect with amazing people! It really does take up a ton of time, but I enjoy it. It's a kind of scrapbooking in its own right - pictures, words - right? And she's right. It's the comments that keep me going. They mean so much to me and really make me smile every day, you know?
8. They've spelled my name all kinds of weird, but my Scrapbook Memories TV episodes are finally close to airing! Check out the breakdown for the season here. From the schedule it looks like the 1300 series are still on air, but series 1400 is coming fast! Yay!
9. Did you notice the blog update? I added a catalogue of previous online classes. I'm still trying to add some stuff that's lost in my hard drive somewhere. I also need to update the current class list - oops! I added some new layouts to the digital and paper albums on the right, along with some cards and altered stuff to the "non-layout paper crafts" album, and deleted a bit of old stuff. I updated my resume a bit, still needs some work though. And I did some general housekeeping to the look of the blog. Like I said in #7, this stuff takes forever, but I think it's important, you know? A bit of a spring cleaning, I guess!
10. I went to MoMA twice this week. Once to the opening of a photography exhibit: "Into the Sunset: Photography's Image of the American West" and once for a bit of an aimless wander focused on seeing "Martin Kippenberger: The Problem Perspective." They have two other exhibits I'm keen to see: "Stage Pictures: Drawing for Performance" and "Paper: Pressed, Stained, Slashed, Folded." Hopefully, I'll get back to the museum soon!
The above image is from the Kippenberger exhibit. It was my favorite for a number of reasons. Firstly, I think it speaks to our times. Something about throwing out the stock brokers with the trash, maybe? But mostly because that's Kippenberger in the painting. Actually, the painting is based on a photograph. And the painting isn't even painted by him. He hired someone to paint it. So, just to be clear. He set up the photograph, but had someone else do the actually shutter clicking. And he had someone else do the painting of it as well. But, he's the artist. It's an interesting chain, don't you think? And one that I started to relate to my own crafty explorations:
At the Urban Inspirations Quilt Show, my husband was shocked to discover that the quilt that won "Best in Show" hadn't been quilted by the winner. And the quilt top was started in a class that the winner took and based on an existing pattern. I tried to explain to him that it wasn't about doing it yourself. I think Kippenberger's painting is simply a more extreme version of that idea. Sometimes it's the conceiving of it, right? I mean, that's why so-called "scraplifting" makes people crazy isn't it? The other person may do the work of putting it together, but they're still copying your idea. And then there's a whole snobby thing about using commercial prints versus fabric you print yourself; using existing digital elements or creating your own; using an existing embellishment or creating your own...and so on and so forth.
11. I played catch-up with Project Fifty-Two and got everything uploaded. I am terrible about uploading lately. I literally have a pile of projects and about six saved blog posts that I haven't gotten to publishing. I won't bore you by showing you everything, but here's this week's entry for P52:
I seriously haven't seen my husband in weeks! He's working so much. But, we finally had dinner together. I'm sure I'll do some layouts about it too, but this was a great way to capture the emotion in the moment! It was simple and fun (and quick to make - took about 5 minutes including taking the photo).
If you've made it this far...thank you! And have a wonderful Monday!
